Went from '05 GT Limited MT to '07 2.5i Limited AT

I picked up my '07 Legacy 2.5i Limited last night in Brilliant Silver Metallic. These are my first impressions.

-The '07 2.5 has a dimmer gauge cluster that is less pretty. It also does not dim at all.

-It also as a new DRL yellow light to let you know that the DRL's are on. I guess this is why the wiring for disabling DRL's is different for '07.

-The leather seats are all solid leather, not perforated leather.

-Auto is good, but MT is better.

-The power of the 2.5i is decent in the city. Pretty smooth, but not the kick that the GT has.

-The brakes felt amazingly good. Day and night from my previous GT. Not smushy, and I felt on first try like it stopped on a dime. Not sure what to attribute this to, but I had to change the way I use the brake pedal.

-The reddish shinny wood inserts are nicer than the old style wood inserts.

-I like the radio a lot, and the features seem just right as of now.

-Folding down seats are very welcome, and I like how Subaru implemented the release for them.

-I now have Yokohama Advans on instead of the RE92's. Not sure how much better these tires will be. They are also 205/50 17, not sure why the size difference.

I am pleased as of now. I know I no longer have the raw power of the GT, or the fun 5 speed, but I can live with that since I can use 87 octane and not have to fill up every other day.

On another note Universal Subaru sucks at prepping their cars for delivery. Mine was full of fingerprints on the back windshield, and I was still able to see the suction cup marks from the machine that they use to install the glass at teh factory. I do like them however in that they are very straight forward, and it only took me 20 minutes to get my car and get the hell out of there. I also did get one compliment from some dude at the car wash place.

"Hey, that is a nice Subaru there!"

I am sure I will find more things as time goes by. I'll post pics when I get some good daylight.

X

Wha?....I got the same car about three weeks ago, same color too.

So far I'm really enjoying it. Love the SRS/WOW sound. Not perfect, not nearly as nice as my wife's Lexus IS, but still adequate.

Mod plans yet?

Yeah I am still debating on the WOW sound enhacement, but I keep turning it on.

As far as mods, I will get 35% tint all around, and will be installing my XTEC HID's that I had on the '05 this upcoming weekend. Still deciding if I will get the aplsh guards, adn the OEM sub or not.

I have only driven the car for 12 miles as of today, but I will rack up some more over the weekend. The silve ris growing on me, but the pearl white will always be my favorite color. I do like the dark interior a little better, but I'll see how it holds up. I am also glad the it came with the armrest extension and the all weather mats. I wished Subaru just made the extension standard since it is so useful.

X

I'm glad your happy with your decision. Why did you switch though?

My guess is fuel mileage. I only guess that from when he said this....

I am pleased as of now. I know I no longer have the raw power of the GT, or the fun 5 speed, but I can live with that since I can use 87 octane and not have to fill up every other day.

Welcome to the NA family. Me got BSM too!!

Gas mileage was the only reason I did not go for an 05 LGT wagon that my dealer had on his lot (leftover at a low price). I have to commute 70 miles a day to work. So gas mileage is pretty important for me.

Besides my 2nd car is a 1.8T Passat. So 1 turbocharged car is enough for me.

But it should have been a difficult decision for you to go to a 2.5i from the LGT. I never even test drove an LGT so I have no idea of the LGTs power. Ignorance is Bliss!!!!!

I posted the reasons for me going to a 2.5 on other threads but basically it came down to life changes (moved in with GF, have to share a car in NYC and she does not drive stick, bought an apt., had to get lower payments, etc). I checked out other cars and makes, and not one other car had everything I wanted like the Legacy at the price point I was looking for.

Now, for the bad parts, I do miss my GT for the power it had! Last night I went over the Triboro Bridge and going in merging uphill I was reminded why this car is cheaper. It struggled a bit going in and up, and enough for me to miss my GT a lot. Well I knew the power was going to be different, but I was not ready for the loud engine idle when the car is started cold. Yesterday night I turned it on, and it idled high for a few minutes with a loud engine noise. The GT never did this.

Indeed ignorance is bliss, but mark my internet words, I will own another LGT in a few years!

I told the GF that the LGT was like dating the hot blond girl, everyone admires you, but your pockets are always empty. The 2.5 is like dating the sensible woman, it is pretty enough to look at, but will never be as fun.

So I guess you marry the 2.5, and have the GT as an ocassional mistress!

Thanks for the welcome, again.

X

Welcome to the NA family. Me got BSM too!!

 

Gas mileage was the only reason I did not go for an 05 LGT wagon that my dealer had on his lot (leftover at a low price). I have to commute 70 miles a day to work. So gas mileage is pretty important for me.

 

Besides my 2nd car is a 1.8T Passat. So 1 turbocharged car is enough for me.

 

But it should have been a difficult decision for you to go to a 2.5i from the LGT. I never even test drove an LGT so I have no idea of the LGTs power. Ignorance is Bliss!!!!!

I didn't test drive the LGT either because I was not impressed by the gas mileage numbers on the sticker. I traded in a 1.8T Passat Wagon... good riddence to bad rubbish(terrible reliability). I used to be impressed with the 1.8T but now I realize that I get more power, better gas mileage, can use 87 octane, AWD, and the 2.5i is quieter to boot, I don't miss the VW one bit. Like I have said before, the 2.5i has enough power for just about any normal driving situation. The only thing I don't like is the 4EAT, it's not terrible, but it is not as good as the old 5AT Tiptronic in the VW.

^^^ I wonder if teh forester has a different AT tranny. I drove a 07 forester loaner for three days and the tranny felt smoother. I am getting a clump when slowing down almost as if it is shifting hard to 1st.

X

I noticed the same thing about the brakes.

The GT brakes ARE mushy compared to the 2.5i ltd.Makes ya wonder:confused:

The LGT is to roadhead.... as the 2.5i is to paying for dinner....

However, I understand your position and I'm glad you stayed in the Subbie family!

I didn't test drive the LGT either because I was not impressed by the gas mileage numbers on the sticker. I traded in a 1.8T Passat Wagon... good riddence to bad rubbish(terrible reliability). I used to be impressed with the 1.8T but now I realize that I get more power, better gas mileage, can use 87 octane, AWD, and the 2.5i is quieter to boot, I don't miss the VW one bit. Like I have said before, the 2.5i has enough power for just about any normal driving situation. The only thing I don't like is the 4EAT, it's not terrible, but it is not as good as the old 5AT Tiptronic in the VW.

The 5AT Tiptronic trans in the 02 Passat 1.8T is the best automatic trans I have driven. It is quite smooth and very responsive. You just have to take your foot off slightly to tell it to upshift when accelerating. It downshifts precisely (ramps etc.)

Yup the 4EAT sucks big time. But I am learning to live with it. I usually shift it into manumatic mode when merging etc. Keep it in 3rd all the way till I reach 70 mph and then shift into 4th.

I am sure the 2.5i Ltd is much quicker than the passat off the line. But the passat has better acceleration on interstate when passing etc. But the 2.5i is quite adequate to merge/pass on the highways.

The brakes on the passat are better. They have a uniform and gradual grip.

The passat is quiter on the interstate and has an awesome Monsoon audio system!! The 6disc 6 speaker system in our legacies is nowhere close to it.

But inspite of all these goodies on the passat I drive the legacy and my wifeee drives the passat. Passat sucks big time in steering feel and driving position. Even though the passat has a better suspension/chassis then the camry it still feels wobbly. Legacy is fun to drive. Thats what sold me into buying it.

When I bought the legacy I had test driven camry, accord, sonata (its not that bad you know) but the legacy was sooo different then either of these. Can say love at first drive!!

I agree with ^^^ you on the feel of the car. It feels pretty solid and surefooted, at least a lot more than the other cars you mentioned.

I have to drive the car a lot more, both on long trips, and short trips to get a better feel. I am also sure that after it breaks iin it will get a little smoother.

I have never driven the GT 5EAT, so I really do not have a good comparison point between trannys. I am sure this car in a 5 speed would be more fun and nimble.

I justn need to mod it a little bit to personalize it.

X

I agree that the Legacy feels much better than the Passat, much better steering, handling, and the ride is much firmer and not floaty like the Passat is on the highway. I also miss the sweet sounding Monsoon audio w/ the awesome PhatBox system and some of the little niceties that the VW had, but I will not miss the floaty suspension and all the problems that I had with mine. I disagree on the brakes, the Passat brake pedal had a very mushy feel at first and I found it difficult to modulate, the Legacy is a little bit better in this regard.

All in all the 2.5i w/ 4EAT does what I need it to do when I need it so I really don't find myself wanting for much more mostly because I am not willing to pay for it.

UPDATE

I have almost 300 miles on the car. So far so good. The car seems to be getting smoother now that itis breaking in, but the engine is definitely louder until you hit 25MPH or so.

I am also only putting 87 gas in this car. This will be my beater for the next three years. I really do not see the need to spend on anything more. I have defintinely not visited the gas station as often as with the 05 GT. I have driven it to 80 MPH already, and taken it to 5K on the tach. Brakes are still as responsive as the first day. I can actually brake later now that I feel confident with the way it stops.

So far I like how the sport mode on the tranny holds the gear longer while accelerating in traffic. On the other side the seats seem to be more uncomfortable than the 05. I can feel my right leg not beeen supported too well, and it has started to hurt after driving more than one hour.

Everything else has worked flawlessly. I am enjoying tha AUX in and radio very much, and I am comteplating in getting the XM addition. The black interior is not showing as much dust as I originally thought it would.

Overall so far I would give it a 7 out of 10. Wil see how I feel in a few months.

X

does the red wood trim fit on the 06 LGT???

would love to get the red wood instead of the dull wood trim in my LGT

Looks exactly the same, but the door trim you would not be able to change without changing the whoe door panel.

X

Hey Laz,

I've got 2700 on mine so far. Pretty much loving it. I must say tho...when I drive my wife's Lexus IS250AWD, my tranny is no comparison to her six speed auto. Other than that, I can't complain. The XM is great. The SRS is great. We had snow, and I prettty much could go all kinds of places everyone else was getting stuck.

Keep us posted....