Riding the Unicorn - How I Learned to Relax and Enjoy the Boost

"bugattatra - parallel double-park that muthafucka sideways" (bugattatra) 03/09/2014 at 20:07 • Filed to: None

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I bought it. Bar a few minor imperfections it is immaculate, which is pretty shocking given Subaru's terrible paint quality.

First impressions: It's fast as fuck.

The interior is gorgeous, particularly at night.

It seems like Subaru were going after Lexus and ze Germans with this generation, as style and quality wise I think it's the best-looking, nicest feeling Legacy by a mile—the newest model seems like a distinct step backwards in both regards, as if they re-focused their attention towards Toyota.

It's wobbly and the brakes suck, but handles pretty well for what it is. Brakes and suspension upgrades in the works.

Gas mileage sucks, but I've been driving the balls off of it, too. Ruined a few guy's mornings on the way up north to Cars & Coffee, Irvine this past Saturday. People in fast new cars don't like being embarrassed by nearly ten-year old station wagons on stilts. One dude in a MkVI GTI tried to beat me at in-gear freeway blasts four times, bless his little heart.

Which brings me back to point one: it's fast as fuck. I don't like standing starts because I'm not an idiot car abuser, but once you hit boost at about 3k in first it pushes you back in the seat like an STI. If shifted at 5-6k or so, right as boost starts tapering, it will reward with each successive gear being selected smack dab in the heart of Boostlandia. 2nd and 3rd gear are particularly impressive, but even 5th gear (final) rewards handsomely at an 80 MPH cruise.

It's very refined, smooth, quiet, and has a great ride—primary ride is honestly nearly on a par with my old LS400, though secondary is a bit choppy depending on road surface. It feels about five generations removed from my 2000 Outback, though in reality they're only separated by one.

I put the factory 17"s on my old one and swapped the 18" OZ Prodrive P1's seen above on immediately, literally right after getting home from the three hour round trip to pick it up. Steering and ride were unchanged, though the lighter, forged nature of the OZ's seem to give sharper acceleration off the line.

Cobb Stage 1, stainless lines and some good brake pads are on the way, debating whether I want an exhaust, though. I love how sleepy it is, but I'd love to have some of that boxer warble and turbo woosh—any suggestions for a deep sounding, non-droning system that remains quiet unless pushed?

Extensive suspension modding to come as detailed by !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! written by my Instagram homie Jason who claims to have the nicest riding, best-handling OBXT setup in existence. Dude seems to know his stuff and doesn't seem like a tool.

What have I forgotten? Oh yeah, the sunroof is the size of a Japanese Jacuzzi, the stereo is the best I've ever heard outside of a $70k luxury car (I'm a hifi geek, too, so I know what I'm talking about here), and the shift quality is what the Brits like to call "pants"—it blows.

The dealer told me I was the first to call and that after submitting a credit app five other guys promptly offered to buy it for a premium, but the guy was very honorable and held it for me as he promised. The most un-car salesmanlike car salesman I've ever encountered.

To recap for those who may have missed the earlier thread, it's an '06 with 50k miles, one previous owner, full dealer service records, and just recently had a new timing belt, tensioners, water pump, clutch, flywheel, and various other minor things attended to. I spent less than half of what I had budgeted on a new STI or Focus ST and I am much happier with the end result—I've been hunting for this car for years, literally.

Sorry for my enthusiasm/bragging, I'm still pretty damn excited.

jkm7680 > bugattatra - parallel double-park that muthafucka sideways 03/09/2014 at 20:11

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I don't blame you, I'm Jelly. You could keep it relatively sleeper looking without an exhaust, but it would sound nice. Good luck with the car, and suspension upgrades! You got a real nice example there.

BeaterGT > bugattatra - parallel double-park that muthafucka sideways 03/09/2014 at 20:22

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Grats on the car, reminds me of when I got my LGT. Best of luck with the future repairs ;)

bugattatra - parallel double-park that muthafucka sideways > BeaterGT 03/09/2014 at 20:26

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Eh, cheaper than an E60 M5 or even a 540, both two alternatives I considered.

BeaterGT > bugattatra - parallel double-park that muthafucka sideways 03/09/2014 at 20:29

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Most definitely. I've had mine just under a year but will advise staying on top of your oil changes and listening for bad wheel hubs. Also would you be able to put a pic up of that moonroof?!

bugattatra - parallel double-park that muthafucka sideways > BeaterGT 03/09/2014 at 20:33

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Sure man. I'll snap one next joy ride.

I'm pretty obsessive with maintenance, and I've heard about hubs expiring prematurely.

One guy was saying that Mobil 1 has too much Zinc and leads to turbo failure, but others were saying he didn't know what he was talking about. What do you use?

Tom McParland > bugattatra - parallel double-park that muthafucka sideways 03/09/2014 at 20:49

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Man I miss my 05 LGT...congrats killer car dude!

BeaterGT > bugattatra - parallel double-park that muthafucka sideways 03/09/2014 at 21:02

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I have the dealership do my oil changes because my car is under warranty, less headaches that way. A lot of the Subaru forums seem to recommend Rotella T6 so I'll probably start with that once the warranty expires.

bugattatra - parallel double-park that muthafucka sideways > BeaterGT 03/09/2014 at 21:05

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I was thinking Royal Purple myself, I'd like to remain synthetic.

BeaterGT > bugattatra - parallel double-park that muthafucka sideways 03/09/2014 at 21:25

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The T6 is synthetic as well, I think regular changes is the most crucial part. I do between 3000 and 3500 miles.

bugattatra - parallel double-park that muthafucka sideways > BeaterGT 03/09/2014 at 21:26

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That's about how far I like to go at max as well.

JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t > bugattatra - parallel double-park that muthafucka sideways 03/09/2014 at 23:04

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Buddy of mine has that exact car in white. His has the cob stage one, a loud BOV, cold air intake and a few other tweaks, and I will absolutely agree on the "fast as fuck" statement. Especially as you just do not expect that sort or rappididty from a tall wagon.

Papa Squatch > bugattatra - parallel double-park that muthafucka sideways 03/09/2014 at 23:37

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I recently acquired an 05 Forester XT and man I love it! It's my second turbo Subaru. You're absolutely right on the fuel economy. If you are having fun driving it, the economy sucks balls. However, if you keep it under 75 on the highway, you can get 27-ish out of it. But, it's so fun to boost it! I've got an SPT (which is actually made by Bosal) 3" from the downpipe back and its not bad if you keep it low in the revs.

Burrito de EJ25 > bugattatra - parallel double-park that muthafucka sideways 03/10/2014 at 02:03

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"...which is pretty shocking given Subaru's terrible paint quality."

Tell me about it. The front of my year old WRX is starting to look like a teenager's face with these tiny rock chips.

bugattatra - parallel double-park that muthafucka sideways > Burrito de EJ25 03/10/2014 at 02:46

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Yeah, thinking of putting one of those clear nose protectors on.

beardo > bugattatra - parallel double-park that muthafucka sideways 03/10/2014 at 10:47

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currently looking to get into one of these or a Forester XT. I'm hoping my experience reads something like this

bryank930 > bugattatra - parallel double-park that muthafucka sideways 03/10/2014 at 12:39

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http://legacygt.com/forums/showthr…

JDIGGS > bugattatra - parallel double-park that muthafucka sideways 04/15/2014 at 15:57

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BTW if you have the stock 6 CD player and it jams you will sustain a 250 ma draw constantly that will drain your battery and be a phantom for years even if you unplug the fuse for it because the accessories on fuse allows it to draw power. Your radio will work this entire time never giving a clue this is the culprit.

Royal purple is really overrated and costly. Everyone talks crap on Mobil 1 but I like to use it as my Subarus don't burn oil and the people who talk crap about mobil 1 always have oil burners. I also have a big turbo sti that is tracked. Mobil 1 full synth for the win.

Finally just before it turned 100k I went ahead and had the front axle replaced, it wasn't too costly luckily. Although it had life left there was quite a bit of slop. The car has been off road a ton, crashed through a gate at speed (don't ask), accidentally gone off a ~4 foot drop blah blah blahThings has had a hard life and keeps on trucking.