OK. I was finally able to drive an '08 OBS and an '08 WRX Sedan!

We just got another WRX wagon in late last night... GUESS WHAT? It has a mesh grill, the Chrysler Sebring grill can be deleted with a mesh grill option (at least on the WRXs!). This grill option looks sooooooo much better!

I will not go into the design of either much (this dead horse has been well beaten). But, two instant impressions. One, the car looks better in person then in pictures. It has some pretty broad 'shoulders' that do not translate to film very well. This gives it a bit more aggression then most of the photos I saw. Two, the WRX sedan looks just like the '08 Lancer (who's been sleeping with who?). Down to the alloy wheel design. I couldn't figure out why we were getting Lancers on the same truck as the Imprezas. Then it dawned on me that those were the WRX sedans.

Engine bay looks just like a Legacy, (airbox, etc.). There is now a plastic manifold instead of the cast one (eeeew!) in both the OBS and WRX.

Climbing in you are in a Legacy like interior (with a touch of Tribeca thrown in for good measure). Big improvements here no doubt! I did not like the fact that the OBS with a tan interior had a tan steering wheel as well (just a personal thing).

The seats of the OBS are good quality (all interior materials are a couple notches above the older Impreza it replaces). It is pretty much NOT a sporty interior, more luxury oriented, (is that a bad thing?). The seats in the WRX are great, firm and supportive.

Driving? The OBS is quite quick despite the fact that I am sure it is heavier then the '07. I drove the 4 speed auto with sport shift (finally a 4 speed). It is a sporty little touring car. The longer wheel base keeps the ride to the comfort side of the equation. The bad news? Oh my, does this car have motion! Squats hard under braking, lifts on acceleration, and transitional changes (left-right) feel domestic in the amount of body lean encountered. The OBS has a front sway bar only. It is MUCH quieter inside then the outgoing model. The framed windows and longer wheelbase helps with this improvement. However, the new roof racks on the OBS are CRAZY loud (I took them off and the car was 100% better). Subaru knows this is a problem. They have stuck on tiny 'wind deflectors' with 2 sided tape along the leading edge of the front rack... a 'band aid fix' to be sure.

The new REX? Despite the window sticker claiming 'sport tuned suspension' I sure could not feel it (yes, it does have front AND rear sway bars). But the soft, undersprung/underdampened suspension had the same results as on the OBS. A disappointment to be sure. Help please, Mr. Aftermarket! The car also did not pull any better then the outgoing model (maybe even a tad slower due to the weight).

They have made these car more 'civilized'. I expected much more from the new WRX... but, it is now simply a quick 4 door compact. The OBS on the other hand may open a big door for an older crowd driving an Impreza. For someone who wants a 'sporty' yet practical car with good highway manners, this may be for them. For the enthusiast, it appears the STI in the only car that is going to make us happy (won't see that for months!).

There is one design issue that I am truly surprised Subaru released without attention turned to fix it. The design of the wipers was supposed to be that they hid below the trailing lip of the hood (out of the wind stream, for less wind noise). It appears someone dropped the ball. The passenger side wiper had to be bent so severely to cover the windshield correctly, that now, half the blade pokes above the hood 2-3". Not only does it look bad, it misses the heating strips all together on the passenger side of the windshield. Those are there so the rubber blades do not freeze to the glass. Ooops!

Also, the rearview mirror placement inside the wagon (oops, 'hatch') is almost in the middle of the windshield (OK... but it IS really low). It blocks out a good portion of your view out the front. It appears it's that way because the rear window is so low, it's the only place the mirror could be to look out straight through the back window. Any higher placement and you would be at an angle looking 'down', cutting off the road behind you.

So. 1st impression of the new design is better then I thought! The new car is more about comfort then performance. The interior is light years better then the outgoing model. And content for $$$ is tremendous. The OBS was just a kiss over $21K and has so much more comfort and style inside then the '07 it replaces.

 

wow.. nice writeup

thank you!

 

I'm glad I got my 06, I feel like they were the best year - along w/ the 07's.

 

Stupid question, but what is OBS?

 

Impreza ~ Outback Sport

 

Great write up! Thanks for the impressions. I look forward to forming my own...

 

Thanks for the write up. The new Impreza is supposed to be 50lbs lighter than the 07.

Looks like the general consensus is that the suspension is softer. Yet all of the magazines that have test it show the 08 throwing down the same performance numbers as the 07. In fact, one test had an 08 running a 67.7mph slalom which is 3mph faster than before.

I wonder if the rear double A arm suspension and stiff chassis alows for a softer ride than before w/o sacrificing actual performance (e.g. Legacy)?

 

The powerband in the 2008 WRX has been moved downwards (not a bad thing) while actually improving driveability by increasing the width of the powerband by 400 rpm. Improving the width of the torque curve is more important than peak horsepower numbers in a street-driven car.

 

I have since spent much time in the WRX's both at work and at a launch in Portland. Both models are indeed lighter. If I got this right, the sedan is 50lbs lighter and the hatch 100lbs lighter. The sedan 4" longer and the hatch 2" shorter.

The car is not as sharp in handling as the '07. Much more brake dive and side to side transitions are sloppy. It is now a Legacy mill under the hood (a de-tuned GT/XT mill). The engine is placed lower then in the '07 because it now sits in a modified Legacy chassis. The new rear suspension gives the car a lower CG as well (no strut towers) and more room in the trunk.

 

Thanks for the write up, I can't wait to drive one!

 

Do you know you are famous??? Check out this month's Motor Trend ~ WRX review! It was a qoute from you on the poll I posted about the 're-style'...