Adios folks, a former WRX owner bids adieu.
Adios folks, a former WRX owner bids adieu.
Well, nine bittersweet months later, my WRX is gone. I traded it in for a brand new Mazda 3 hatch 5 speed. I thank everyone on this board and in the Impreza community for giving me a wealth of information on Subes and cars in general. Cheers!
I'm a VERY critical driver. I've owned high performance cars since I could drive, as has my father. Seemingly insignificant things will rub me wrong, and big flaws simply make me crazy.
I really liked the 2002 WRX I took on an extended test drive. It felt good, had decent balance, didn't shift as badly as I had been led to expect, and seemed like a solid car. My 1997 Legacy was simply fantastic, I pounded 90K miles on it in two+ years. I forgave its lack of power, disintegrating synchros, and modest handling. It was a great car. A new 2003 WRX 5 speed sedan seemed like the only logical choice after that.
When I got my WRX last June, I immediately began looking for upgrades. Kartboy shift lever? Done. Prodrive shift ****? Installed. Helix rear end links. 17X7.5 Enkei RPF-1s with 225-45-17 SO-3s. The car was getting sharper and sharper. Prodrive axleback. K&N drop in panel filter. Samco intercooler hoses (those of you who think these the Samcos don't free up power are nitwits). All of these things made my WRX better.
Then I began to notice the things that bugged me. The steering is incredibly slow. It still shifts slow and notchy, even with the improved Kartboy lever. Low end torque (below 2500) is really bad, magnified by San Francisco hills. Throttle response is 'on/off' instead of easily metered. The gearing in the gearbox is preposterously high. Turbo lag exists, although much less after the above mentioned upgrades. Even then, these characteristics could be chocked up to 'character'.
I then went looking for suspension. Koni inserts seemed the logical choice for my needs, and they were great. STi RA springs turned out to be a mismatch, so I then went for Prodrives. They were a much better dynamic match for the Konis, but dropped the ride height more than I wanted. I stuck with it.
Tragically, throughout this whole period of time, the interior of my car was disintegrating. Over 19K miles, the following interior maladies surfaced:
1. Rattling in right front corner, A pillar
2. Buzz underneath passenger seat
3. Buzz from styrofoam (!) in lower B-pillar trim, passenger side
4. Heavy rattling from left rear back seat area
5. Intermittent dash rattle
6. Intermittent, very loud squeak from right rear deck shelf
This crappy build quality was completely unacceptable. It was without a doubt the single biggest reason that I got rid of the car. This is the eighth car I've personally owned since age 16, and the fourteenth I've regularly driven in that time, Only my 1967 Camaro Super Sport had more squeaks and rattles than this WRX. My 1995 VW Golf had better interior integrity when it was rammed from behind on Interstate 880 with 133,000 miles on it. I know some current model Sube owners have had interior bugaboos, but I was very unlucky. It was especially inexcusable considering the spartan accomodations a 2003 WRX sedan comes with.
Bummer. I had high hopes for this car. I planned on keeping it for 5 years, 100K miles.
I wouldn't be writing this if the interior in my car had been properly put together. It drove me nuts. It was laughable. I was just unlucky I guess. Maybe my car was made at 5:00 on a Friday afternoon. Most of you folks haven't had those kind of build quality nightmares. I won't bag Subaru products in the future, because the car was otherwise reliable. Nevertheless, it forced my hand.
I will have a bunch of low mileage and new parts for sale, all in perfect condition. Look for them in the 'Parts for Sale' and 'Bay Area' forums.
You guys rock! The Impreza forums have been a fantastic experience, and I will drop back in from time to time. Keep up the good work.
Cheers and all the best!
-TheMirror
I'm a VERY critical driver. I've owned high performance cars since I could drive, as has my father. Seemingly insignificant things will rub me wrong, and big flaws simply make me crazy.
I really liked the 2002 WRX I took on an extended test drive. It felt good, had decent balance, didn't shift as badly as I had been led to expect, and seemed like a solid car. My 1997 Legacy was simply fantastic, I pounded 90K miles on it in two+ years. I forgave its lack of power, disintegrating synchros, and modest handling. It was a great car. A new 2003 WRX 5 speed sedan seemed like the only logical choice after that.
When I got my WRX last June, I immediately began looking for upgrades. Kartboy shift lever? Done. Prodrive shift ****? Installed. Helix rear end links. 17X7.5 Enkei RPF-1s with 225-45-17 SO-3s. The car was getting sharper and sharper. Prodrive axleback. K&N drop in panel filter. Samco intercooler hoses (those of you who think these the Samcos don't free up power are nitwits). All of these things made my WRX better.
Then I began to notice the things that bugged me. The steering is incredibly slow. It still shifts slow and notchy, even with the improved Kartboy lever. Low end torque (below 2500) is really bad, magnified by San Francisco hills. Throttle response is 'on/off' instead of easily metered. The gearing in the gearbox is preposterously high. Turbo lag exists, although much less after the above mentioned upgrades. Even then, these characteristics could be chocked up to 'character'.
I then went looking for suspension. Koni inserts seemed the logical choice for my needs, and they were great. STi RA springs turned out to be a mismatch, so I then went for Prodrives. They were a much better dynamic match for the Konis, but dropped the ride height more than I wanted. I stuck with it.
Tragically, throughout this whole period of time, the interior of my car was disintegrating. Over 19K miles, the following interior maladies surfaced:
1. Rattling in right front corner, A pillar
2. Buzz underneath passenger seat
3. Buzz from styrofoam (!) in lower B-pillar trim, passenger side
4. Heavy rattling from left rear back seat area
5. Intermittent dash rattle
6. Intermittent, very loud squeak from right rear deck shelf
This crappy build quality was completely unacceptable. It was without a doubt the single biggest reason that I got rid of the car. This is the eighth car I've personally owned since age 16, and the fourteenth I've regularly driven in that time, Only my 1967 Camaro Super Sport had more squeaks and rattles than this WRX. My 1995 VW Golf had better interior integrity when it was rammed from behind on Interstate 880 with 133,000 miles on it. I know some current model Sube owners have had interior bugaboos, but I was very unlucky. It was especially inexcusable considering the spartan accomodations a 2003 WRX sedan comes with.
Bummer. I had high hopes for this car. I planned on keeping it for 5 years, 100K miles.
I wouldn't be writing this if the interior in my car had been properly put together. It drove me nuts. It was laughable. I was just unlucky I guess. Maybe my car was made at 5:00 on a Friday afternoon. Most of you folks haven't had those kind of build quality nightmares. I won't bag Subaru products in the future, because the car was otherwise reliable. Nevertheless, it forced my hand.
I will have a bunch of low mileage and new parts for sale, all in perfect condition. Look for them in the 'Parts for Sale' and 'Bay Area' forums.
You guys rock! The Impreza forums have been a fantastic experience, and I will drop back in from time to time. Keep up the good work.
Cheers and all the best!
-TheMirror
Last edited by The Mirror; May 1, 2004 at 08:24 AM.
Registered User
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 119
From: mpls, mn
Car Info: 04 wrx sedan
sorry to hear about your problems and the mazda3 is a fine-looking car. good choice on the hatch!
however, you can't fault it for not gaining low end power with the mentioned improvements as they add very little hp and torque. perhaps a downpipe, high flow cat, light weight fly wheel, twin scroll turbo, and ecu will help your low end better.
as for the rattling, have you taken it to the dealer to see what can be done? i mean, impreza is still an econobox and you can't expect vw quality trim from similarly-priced japanese cars. though i hear the new mazda interior is fab. hope you're enjoying it! it just won't do 0-60 in under 6 sec
however, you can't fault it for not gaining low end power with the mentioned improvements as they add very little hp and torque. perhaps a downpipe, high flow cat, light weight fly wheel, twin scroll turbo, and ecu will help your low end better.
as for the rattling, have you taken it to the dealer to see what can be done? i mean, impreza is still an econobox and you can't expect vw quality trim from similarly-priced japanese cars. though i hear the new mazda interior is fab. hope you're enjoying it! it just won't do 0-60 in under 6 sec
Guest
Posts: n/a
Thanks for the interesting thoughts. I hope the Mazda is more to your liking. I do think it's a pretty good car.
Sorry to hear about the interior rattles etc. But have you tried to have them fixed? It's usually pretty easy (either for yourself or a dealer if you're not the home mechanic kind). Rattles etc. are usually a matter of things coming a little loose and contacting together with other surfaces at various frequencies of vibration. Usually not a big deal. I've done all sorts of fixing up of this sort on my wife's Ford. My '02 WRX has been good in this department though.
Anyway, I hope the Mazda 3 meets your needs better!
Allan
Sorry to hear about the interior rattles etc. But have you tried to have them fixed? It's usually pretty easy (either for yourself or a dealer if you're not the home mechanic kind). Rattles etc. are usually a matter of things coming a little loose and contacting together with other surfaces at various frequencies of vibration. Usually not a big deal. I've done all sorts of fixing up of this sort on my wife's Ford. My '02 WRX has been good in this department though.
Anyway, I hope the Mazda 3 meets your needs better!
Allan
VIP Member
Joined: Mar 2003
Posts: 2,023
From: Phoenix, AZ
Car Info: Subaru Impreza WRX 2002
I don't think his assessment was particularly useful or fair. All the "problems" he diagnosed are either 5-minute fixes or are endemic to the car's design in the first place (as in features, not bugs); all the "fixes" he attempted in the way of mods didn't go towards the actual falts he percieved.
I've certainly had a few rattles in my WRX, but that's been the case in every car I've owned for the last six years -- any interior put together with those plastic clips is prone to this problem. In my case, 5 minutes and a hot-glue gun solved every rattle I've had.
He complains about a lack of low-end torque and high gearing -- we're talking about a 2.0 liter forced-aspiration engine here, not a Hemi diesel. No engine on the market with so little displacement puts out torque under 2800 RPM -- and the Mazda 3 certainly suffers from the same problem. The reason this is more noticeable on the WRX is because it is AWD, and has a second set of differentials and wheels to drive; the power is halved to each wheel, essentially, and there is drivetrain loss to friction and heat. As others have noted, the grab-bag of mods he made didn't address that problem specifically. The way to "solve" the low-end torque "problem" is to adjust your driving habits to keep your RPMs at a more optimum level, period. It's just a learning curve.
I think his reasons are sincere and he thought this through, but this seems to be a mismatch between driver and vehicle rather than a critique of the WRX's design itself.
I've certainly had a few rattles in my WRX, but that's been the case in every car I've owned for the last six years -- any interior put together with those plastic clips is prone to this problem. In my case, 5 minutes and a hot-glue gun solved every rattle I've had.
He complains about a lack of low-end torque and high gearing -- we're talking about a 2.0 liter forced-aspiration engine here, not a Hemi diesel. No engine on the market with so little displacement puts out torque under 2800 RPM -- and the Mazda 3 certainly suffers from the same problem. The reason this is more noticeable on the WRX is because it is AWD, and has a second set of differentials and wheels to drive; the power is halved to each wheel, essentially, and there is drivetrain loss to friction and heat. As others have noted, the grab-bag of mods he made didn't address that problem specifically. The way to "solve" the low-end torque "problem" is to adjust your driving habits to keep your RPMs at a more optimum level, period. It's just a learning curve.
I think his reasons are sincere and he thought this through, but this seems to be a mismatch between driver and vehicle rather than a critique of the WRX's design itself.
Registered User
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 556
From: We are the all singing, all dancing, crap of the w
Car Info: '09 Black Audi S5
Same thing I dislike in my '02. Not bad, but certainly it's not up to Toyotas build quality. Let's face it, Subaru spent the bucks on the engine and drivetrain...not the interior. Besides, an econobox with a stiff (or modded) suspension and a short wheelbase;well, you do the math. What caught your eye about the WRX in the first place? HHMMMM, how 'bout 0-60 in under 6 seconds! I know we expect more for mid-$20k, but SOMETHINGS got to give.
Spend another $10K, get a 4WD G35 Sedan, and you'll get your build quality as well.
Spend another $10K, get a 4WD G35 Sedan, and you'll get your build quality as well.
Originally posted by johndove
sorry to hear about your problems and the mazda3 is a fine-looking car. good choice on the hatch!
however, you can't fault it for not gaining low end power with the mentioned improvements as they add very little hp and torque. perhaps a downpipe, high flow cat, light weight fly wheel, twin scroll turbo, and ecu will help your low end better.
as for the rattling, have you taken it to the dealer to see what can be done? i mean, impreza is still an econobox and you can't expect vw quality trim from similarly-priced japanese cars. though i hear the new mazda interior is fab. hope you're enjoying it! it just won't do 0-60 in under 6 sec
sorry to hear about your problems and the mazda3 is a fine-looking car. good choice on the hatch!
however, you can't fault it for not gaining low end power with the mentioned improvements as they add very little hp and torque. perhaps a downpipe, high flow cat, light weight fly wheel, twin scroll turbo, and ecu will help your low end better.
as for the rattling, have you taken it to the dealer to see what can be done? i mean, impreza is still an econobox and you can't expect vw quality trim from similarly-priced japanese cars. though i hear the new mazda interior is fab. hope you're enjoying it! it just won't do 0-60 in under 6 sec
Nah, I don't blame Subaru for the low end torque issue, its our bad gas and emissions laws that make it necessary to tune the EJ205 like that. Mike Shields explains it far more eloquently than I could have.
http://www.spdusa.com/driving_the_wrx_engine.htm
Certainly those mods listed would wake it up on the bottom end (and top end too), but it would have been a hefty chunk of cash to spend. Add the fact that I live in California with cops checking smog gear and it became a non-option.
I was able to hunt down a few of the interior noises, but others were mind-blowingly elusive. Oh well, as stated before, I just got unlucky. The 3 drives beautifully, really well engineered. Its the only car I've ever owned where I might consider replacing the shocks with OEM replacements once they wear out! Its good enough that I gave up @70hp and 4wd, not an inconsiderable amount!
Cheers,
-Mirror
Registered User
Joined: Feb 2003
Posts: 307
From: Burbank, California
Car Info: 05 CGM FXT STi
I hate to break it to you but that mazda is going to rattle as much, if not more than the suby. My fiancee has an 03 mazda 5 and I have an 03 wrx. Even with my uppipe/downpipe and loud @ss catback, I have less dash rattle and "interior noise" than her.
but nice honest review of the wrx anyways. most people become bias and wont admit the flaws their wrx posseses, but we all have them, some people just deal with them differently than others.
have fun with the 3! I hope you opted for the larger motor and (six speed?) I think it has an available six speed.
but nice honest review of the wrx anyways. most people become bias and wont admit the flaws their wrx posseses, but we all have them, some people just deal with them differently than others.
have fun with the 3! I hope you opted for the larger motor and (six speed?) I think it has an available six speed.
VIP Member
iTrader: (1)
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 2,531
From: Bike Lane
Car Info: Black 2003 WRX Sedan
have fun w/ the mazda 3. i saw one on the road the other day here in san francisco. about that throttle response, i understand what your saying. i was the same way when i got my WRX. it took a while to get used to it, but i did. i also have about 19 K on my car and so far so good. i get some rattles here and there but my stereo is usually to loud to hear them. cheers!
BTW, since your leaving can i have your scooby snacks???? (j/k)
BTW, since your leaving can i have your scooby snacks???? (j/k)
Last edited by DLUX WRX; Mar 20, 2004 at 03:15 PM.