05 GT Sedan available?

I went into a dealer here in NH today and they have their only GT sedan under a cover in the showroom. They told me that they can't even let it out for a test drive until June 15th. "You can buy it but not take it home until June 15th". I have read that there are other people who have bought the GT sedan and brought them home. Does anyone know what the deal is? Two other dealers I went too had the GT autos in stock and said nothing about this. I am looking for a 5MT. :?:

[quote name='QToo']I went into a dealer here in NH today and they have their only GT sedan under a cover in the showroom. They told me that they can't even let it out for a test drive until June 15th. "You can buy it but not take it home until June 15th". I have read that there are other people who have bought the GT sedan and brought them home. Does anyone know what the deal is? Two other dealers I went too had the GT autos in stock and said nothing about this. I am looking for a 5MT. :?:[/quote] My dealership (here in NY) told me they can't show their's until June 16th - so that sounds about right. - Mike

Weird policies. Is this part of the "official unveiling" scheme again?

Same story here in Montreal. Even the mechanics that went to training were told by Subaru that the bulk of the cars would not be released before the 15/16 and even at that in limited quantities--in an effort to build hype-=they were told.

That's total Bull$hit. I test drove a GT Limited 5MT sedan at Car Mart Subaru in Wilmington, Mass. (approx. 20 mins from the NH border). According to the salesman, it is the only 5MT within an approximate 50-mile radius. Go to [url]http://www.carmart.sne1.com/[/url] and do an inventory search. I think they still have it. It looks like Manchester Subaru has one, too. [url]http://www.manchestersubaru.com/[/url]

I know that there has been some speak about an official unveiling, but I also know that there have been quite a few people who have not only driven the car, but bought one as well. Now that I think about it, I only have heard of people buying the wagons.

[quote name='nicd']Same story here in Montreal. Even the mechanics that went to training were told by Subaru that the bulk of the cars would not be released before the 15/16 and even at that in limited quantities--in an effort to build hype-=they were told.[/quote] I see it already - a blotched release. I see limited #'s being released, and greedy dealers adding insane markups. I'm sorry but a few thousand dollar mark up on a GT Limited is going to be near the price of a G35x - I dunno about you - but if the two were close enough in price I'd jump for the G35x and get more lux features and more hp. I hope I'm wrong about them doing a blotched release by trying to drum up excitement by releasing limited numbers. That is how I feel it's going to head - which will only generate very slow sales. Then what is going to happen is they are going to collect dust on the dealer lots. Discounts and rebates will be offered and then people will start buying them, while the few who had to have the first ones and paid over msrp are pissed off that they have these huge monthly payments while everyone else is getting awesome deals. I've seen this same senario play out too many times on several different car forums. - Mike

[quote name='frankcal']That's total Bull$hit. I test drove a GT Limited 5MT sedan at Car Mart Subaru in Wilmington, Mass. (approx. 20 mins from the NH border). According to the salesman, it is the only 5MT within an approximate 50-mile radius. Go to [url]http://www.carmart.sne1.com/[/url] and do an inventory search. I think they still have it. It looks like Manchester Subaru has one, too. [url]http://www.manchestersubaru.com/[/url][/quote] You aren't under SOA jurisdiction, so maybe SNE isn't participating?

I went to Subaru of Manchvegas last week and they have a silver GT Ltd 5MT, but it was buried behind a few cars and I didn't have time to wait around. They also had a Black GT auto. Wakefield Subaru has a silver GT Ltd auto as well. No mention of this policy at either. If they try to pull the ADM, I would quickly go the G35 route. I wouldn't go with the added weight, or lack of a manual, in the G35X. It also tacks quite a bit onto the cost. A base G with 6sp. and winter snows would be great. The online inventory thing is nice but it also is not acurate. New cars show up when they are shipped (as was mentioned elsewhere) rather than when they arrive. A little frustrating to expect more of a selection and now have it on the lot.

[quote name='godwhomismike']I see it already - a blotched release. I see limited #'s being released, and greedy dealers adding insane markups. I'm sorry but a few thousand dollar mark up on a GT Limited is going to be near the price of a G35x - I dunno about you - but if the two were close enough in price I'd jump for the G35x and get more lux features and more hp.[/quote] Don't forget the almighy AT. :roll:

Hello, I've been lurking here for a while. Too long actually, as I ended up ordering a Legacy GT on Sunday. My dealer would not let me take out the GT Sedan or Outback Sedan because of the side airbag recall. I did get to drive the wagon, however. Just a thought. drew

What were your thoughts on the wagon? You can't say you drove it and then not review it! -Allen

This is still a lot of hear say in what I was told by this mechanic. These shortages or preception of are only on the the GTs I think. The deals have been quite good, my dealer gave me 500$ over cost plus knocked off .75% from the lease rate. Not only that he went to get me the exact car I wanted, had I not fussed over the colour I would be in one by next week(I think). As for the G35, I was lucky enough to go to the Montreal auto show in January where the Infinity booth was next to the Subaru booth. I stepped out of a Legacy GT LTD sedan and into a G35, after a quick look and some playing with the controls I jumped out! Plus read up about all the trim issues. Not only that the G35 has a nice engine but it is NA, the cost of producing more HP/trq from one versus a 2.5 Turbo, well I know you know what I mean. The old addage patience is a virtue is very true, not only that but early adopters as we are known in the marketing world, always pay for being the first. I amsure that with in 3 weeks the lots will be full.

Allen, The short answer: Well, I suppose the fact that I drove one for the first time on Saturday and ordered one on Sunday should be pretty telling. The LONG answer: I've been driving a Chevy S10 ZR2 for almost 8 years. That truck is pretty damn far from the 05 Legacy GT on the automobile spectrum. I add this bit of history so that you know I'm no performance car authority. Consider this sort of an "average joe" review. That said, I've been in the market for a new car since the middle of last year. I fell in love with the new Legacy since I started reading about it in reviews from Japan and Australia. I really wanted to like this car. But I gave a lot of other cars a chance, as well. I've recently driven the Mazda 3 and 6, the 2004.5 S40, 2001 Audi A4 Avant Quatro 2.8, 2004 325xi, 2003 325i wagon, and the 2.5NA Legacy. All of these were AT. I'm in too much traffic every day to hang on to dreams of the 5 speed. The Mazda 6 was another car I wanted to like, as nice as it was inside, it just didn't quite have the "spirit" i hoped for. I still think you get a lot for your money with that car, but it wasn't for me. The S40 I liked a lot. I love the looks and I'm not really concerned with the issues of front wheel drive (understeer I guess) it was quick and the interior was really nice. Maybe a little bit of turbo lag. It remained a possibility until I drove the GT. Based on my experience with the S40, I decided to take a look at a Mazda 3. It seemed like sort of a budget S40. Mazda got a lot right with that car. Again, I think you get a lot for your money. However, like the Mazda 6, I felt it came up a bit short on performance. Too bad. A MazdaSpeed version of that car could be really sweet. The Audi (even though it was the old body style) is a gorgeous car inside and out. It handled OK, but I suspect it is just too heavy for the 2.8. Perhaps the newer 3.0s fair better. Alas, there is no s4 in my future, although I love the s4 wagon. And, of course, the ubiquitous 3 series. I still think it has the best interior. I actually preferred the i to the ix, at least on the sunny day driving I did. These cars are nice, no wonder everyone copies them. But, where I live, I could walk to work on the hoods of 3 series sedans. And I have a 20 mile commute. Oh, they are expensive, even when used. Not that anyone needs that news flash. I drove the 2.5 na legacy a couple weeks ago. I wasn't super impressed and I began to worry. The inside was nice, even in non-limited trim, but it was not what I would call an exciting drive. Solid, but not exciting. This was a sedan, not a wagon. So, I finally got to drive the Legacy GT wagon on Saturday. It was silver in limited trim. Like he did with the base legacy, the dealer let me take it out by myself and only asked that I keep it under 4500rpm. The car had 59 miles on it when I got in. I'm 6 feet 220 lbs. I was able to get comfortable with the seat almost all the way back. I drive pretty upright and have long arms, so the lack of the telescoping wheel was not a problem for me. The armrest is a problem, but I'm hoping the extension will help when it is available. I thought the perf leather seats looked good and were comfortable. Inside materials seemed very nice. The center console seemed like it could use a little work, but it is fine for me. The place in the dash where the NAV would go if available is goofy. Hopefully I can find something usefull to put there. Maybe a 3rd party NAV or I don't know what. The sunroof is huge. Pictures I'd seen of it made it look like it had some bar through the middle, but it does not. Back seat room is tighter than I hoped. The electro luminescent gauges that I thought were sort of gimicky turned out to be really nice. Easy to read. I now think they are neat. Below about 2500 RPM, it seemed to have about the same power as the base model. I guess this makes sense. Once you get past that point, the power comes on quickly, but smoothly. It wasn't startling, but it did get my attention. As expected, the ride is firmer than the base model, but in no way jolting or harsh. I did get to take the car up a few exits on an unfortunately busy freeway. As requested, I didn't push the car hard, but I did push it a little. The car gets up to speed very quickly. When I looked down I was going about 10MPH faster than I expected. The car is quiet, but not as quiet as I expected given the many comments I've read about it. It didn't bother me, I think the boxer engine sounds good. The freeway is being worked on where I was driving, so the texture wasn't very smooth either. Maybe that contributed to some of the noise. The car handles fantastic, as far as I'm concerned. Getting back on the freeway for my return trip was a long circular onramp. I pushed it a little right there and the car just seemed to clamp down on the pavement (remember the S10, though). Very little if and body roll. I was very impressed. Basically, I think the car's interior styling (limited anyway) is 85-90% or the Volvo and Audi. Maybe 75% of the BMW. Exterior styling is very subjective, but I think it ranks up there with those 3 cars. I thought the performance was better than all 3. Subaru can't compete with the service from those other dealers. This was sort of an issue for me. But after I weighed all the pros and cons, I just decided it was the car for me. This will be a long couple months. Thanks for sticking with me through this run-on post. drew

Great write-up drew, thanks!

I rather enjoyed your post Drew; nice real world observations without all the fuss about 0-60 time trials. Thanks and congrats on the purchase. matt

Sounds like you did your homework and in the end it paid off! Looks like Subaru is already starting to change minds! :D

I think when they release the car in Japan, the wagon came out a few months before the sedan was available, so maybe the same story with you guys - might be a tactic to get more wagons sold.

Qtoo, I bought 3 subies from Subaru of Manchester. I test drove the silver 5 speed GT limited you saw. Its a great car. Subaru of Manchester actually has 3 of them right now and I am sure that if you wanted to get one, they would sell it to you. I just spoke to Todd the owner because I want a Base model GT 5MTransmission, in silver and there are none in New England. He call his local rep and was told that if could be 3 months, 6 months, or longer before this particular config will be available. I dont understand this/ Good luck getting the one you want.

Qtoo, I bought 3 subies from Subaru of Manchester. I test drove the silver 5 speed GT limited you saw. Its a great car. Subaru of Manchester actually has 3 of them right now and I am sure that if you wanted to get one, they would sell it to you. I just spoke to Todd the owner because I want a Base model GT 5MTransmission, in silver and there are none in New England. He call his local rep and was told that if could be 3 months, 6 months, or longer before this particular config will be available. I dont understand this/ Good luck getting the one you want.

holy double post batman! :o :P

[quote name='pszydlik']Qtoo, I just spoke to Todd the owner because I want a Base model GT 5MTransmission, in silver and there are none in New England. He call his local rep and was told that if could be 3 months, 6 months, or longer before this particular config will be available. I dont understand this/ Good luck getting the one you want.[/quote] That's an easy one, he told you at least 3 months because he wants to scare you into buying one of the ones he has on the lot right now. - Mike

Hooey. Order the car, and you'll get the same 4 to 6 week quote that the rest of us got when we ordered our cars. Sheesh...salesmen amaze me sometimes, which is why I don't deal with them. Speaking of 4-6 weeks, time is slowly (too) moving toward the arrival of my silver base GT wagon. Kevin

What's the countdown to now, Kev?

[quote name='gtguy']Hooey. Order the car, and you'll get the same 4 to 6 week quote that the rest of us got when we ordered our cars. Sheesh...salesmen amaze me sometimes, which is why I don't deal with them. Speaking of 4-6 weeks, time is slowly (too) moving toward the arrival of my silver base GT wagon. Kevin[/quote] Who DO you deal with then?