Back to back test drives of 2.5i and 2.5GT Sedans

Today was going to be the day Right after work, I drove to the Subaru dealer for a test drive. It was nice and sunny. Right in front of the showroom, a clean Atlantic Blue 2.5i sedan beckoned. I circled the car many times and finally had to admit that this color is growing on me. I had come to test drive a 2.5i manual. Waiting for the salesman in the showroom, I popped open the hood of a Legacy Wagon and was surprised by the light weight. I remembered it is made from aluminium. I explained to the salesman that I was wondering if the 2.5i would feel powerful enough , showing him my 2001 Accord EX Coupe nearby... We went to a black 2.5i Sedan (non-Limited) and I sat in the driver seat, while he got in the passenger side. After fiddling with the seat, steering and mirrors, I found a good, high, driving position. Visibility is great, as the windshield is not excessively raked and the A pillars are relatively thin. As soon as I let the clutch go, I sensed that this is not a Honda: A lot of grunt down low. We went for a 15-20 minutes drive on their standard demo circuit: A bit of stop and go traffic, a portion of flat, uncrowded highway, a long uphill climb, and then slowly down the other side of the hill on a crowded highway towards an exit and a bit more urban driving, back to the dealer. While the salesman entertained me with all the features of the car, I concentrated on feeling engine power and suspension reactions. There is no doubt in my mind that the 2.5i is powerful enough. It is very difficult to keep below 130 kmh (80 mph). One has to constantly remember to be easy on the gas...The salesman drew my attention to the nice sound of the engine and encouraged me to open it up in third and fourth gear on the long uphill climb... I managed to bump the rev limiter at about 6200 rpm.. The car is very quiet. The radio was off as I was concentrating on the driving. The transmission lever is precise enough, though not glorious, and shifter travel no longer than in my Honda. Gear ratios are, as expected, shorter than is my Honda, a welcome improvement. At 120 kmh (75 mph), rpm in fifth gear seems to be right on 3000, vs 2800 for my Accord Suspension is well damped. The car is firm but cushy, not being disturbed by an agressive left-hand turn at low-to-medium speed on broken pavement. At higher speeds, the car feels very stable. I would say it is as smooth as my wife's 2002 Passat, but without the body roll and slight float. My Honda is much harsher, but of course, is is a 3 and-a-half year old car. When exiting the highway, I commented on a distant whining, spooling-down sound, and the salesman told me this is the mechanical sound from the three differentials under the car. Coming back on the dealer's lot, I asked, as I am a skier, if they sell a ski sack accessory for the trunk pass-through . Even though the previous Legacy had a similar pass-through, there is no ski sack accessory available from Subaru...The salesman seemed a bit ashamed to confess this fact. An entertaining drive. The car is better than I expected. The low-end torque is a welcome improvement from my Accord. Finally, I backed up the car cautiously between two other Legacies and got out. The remote key lock acknowledge signal has a discreet and differend beep to it. It does not come from the horn. And then lo-and-behold, I realized I had parked right beside a black GT Sedan (non Limited), and a manual at that! Although that car was not officially a demo, the salesman said I could drive it...He went back inside to get a license plate and off I went, again, taking the same circuit in the opposite direction. As I was coming out of the lot, he told me that maybe I should not try it, because I could like it too much. Well, that turbo rush is addictive! If the 2.5i is strong enough, the GT is a grin machine. Even harder to keep at reasonnable speeds. The extra power comes smoothly from 2500rpm, and harder from about 4000 rpm. I had just a bit of trouble keeping the beast under control in slow traffic, but I am sure I could adapt...Suspension doesn't feel much different from the one on the base 2.5i, except for slightly harsher tire impact. The GT still rides smoothly. While on the highway, I somehow managed to get myself boxed-in as a narrowing from 3 to 2 lanes approached. A quick push on the go pedal summoned the turbo to the rescue as I darted with authority in front of some Tercel who was refusing to give me a break. At that point, the salesman commented that "the turbo can be a safety feature". My overall impression of the engine is that the turbo is strong, but remains civilized. It is not intimidating. So, except for the added equipment and the higher power output, there is not such a big difference in overall feel between the 2.5i and the 2.5 GT. Three other things I noticed: The cloth seats in the GT appear to be identical to those in the 2.5i and the salesman confirmed that they are. The electroluminescent gauges seem dim in daylight, even at their brightest setting. And ( STI guys are gonna love this... ) the hood scoop on the GT is somewhat distracting from the driver's position. It intrudes a bit on the field of vision, as it is not entirely recessed. Well, there you have it for now. I found it illuminating to drive the 2.5i and the 2.5 GT back-to-back. Of course, I prefer the GT. But is it worth the the 8500$ price difference in Canada? How much could I use all the power and performance of the GT? I will sleep on that.

[quote]Three other things I noticed: The cloth seats in the GT appear to be identical to those in the 2.5i and the salesman confirmed that they are. The electroluminescent gauges seem dim in daylight, even at their brightest setting. [/quote] Thanks for the review. Interesting about the seats. Was expecting bigger bolsters on the GT seats. You are the first to comment about the gauges being dim in daylight. Was the sun shining directly on them?

Awesome review. I kind of wonder if the cars have the same suspension. People keep telling me the GT has a stiffer suspension, but I'm not so sure. They say this about a lot trims for the same car and when you drive them, you find that they are indeed the same. The GT comes with very low profile tires, which is why it could feel more stiff.

great thoughts Bernard... thanks for sharing. :D Saw but didn't drive a navy GT sedan-- the scoop looks much more refined/tamed from the outside..... have not seen the GT scoop from the inside :cry: (what am I worth?) I checked out a 2.5i Ltd. Wagon today inside, and man was the interior slick. The seats were folded down and I found myself thinking-- why would I buy a Subaru sedan? Then I went back outside to take a look at the GT.... and it confirmed my crazy idea :P The cockpit seems a bit tighter than I would have expected, but by judging it with the overall size of the car it is great. Maybe I'm just getting fatter :| I bet the sedan gets fold-down seats for MY06. +Stereo option and non-perforated taupe leather. Btw-- the wheels are huge and fabulous, in my opinion. :D

First off, nice review. I think your assessment is very close to mine. I've also driven both cars, although a couple of weeks passed between the time I drove the 2.5i and the 2.5GT. My review is in this thread: [url]http://legacysti.com/viewtopic.php?t=977[/url] From pictures I'd seen online, I didn't think I would like the electro luminescent guages. I thought they were kind of gimicky. It turned out that I found them quite nice in person and plenty bright (the brightness could have been maxed, I don't know). In regard to the hood scoop, it was tough not to be distracted by it a little because I don't have a scoop on my truck. It wasn't nearly as intrusive as the WRX I tried out last year, though, and after 10 minutes I hardly noticed it at all. "Strong, but remains civilized" is a great way to describe the turbo. drew

[quote name='outahere']You are the first to comment about the gauges being dim in daylight. Was the sun shining directly on them?[/quote] It is the overall impression I got from my drive. The sun was not directly hitting the instrument cluster. The only other car I drove with electroluminescent gauges was an Acura TSX. The gauges were both bigger and brighter. One of my friends has a Toyota Matrix and he also finds that the electroluminescent gauges are dim in daylight.

My first GT drive, I was like OMG this is the faster car ever. Then I bought it, and it felt slow after a few months. Stage one made it better, then it got slow. Stage 2 was also a big help, and while it still gives me grins in the WINTER, summer kills it, and it's slow again. sigh.

wow a 4yr old thread....

oh shit. I wonder hwo I found that? Sure I was maybe drinking a little, but whoa.

[quote name='BernardP']"the turbo can be a safety feature"[/quote] :lol::lol::lol: That's awesome. Oh and nice bump :P

Oh, yes my LGT certainly feels slow sometimes.....or most of the time.

I have the same problem. You just get used to your mods and become more demanding. This is why it's nice to drive the wife's 6 once in a while to make me appreciate my car more.

I need a slower car to drive for awhile..... getting to used to stg 2 and it makes me want to go stg 3

Suddently, I feel old...

You see My LGT is my wides daily driver, so I drive my 06 F150 during the week and the LGT on the weekends. It helps keep the LGT feeling fast.