Subiesport Magazine - November 2008 - (Page 21)

DRIVELINE teresting lines and shapes. This is the design that will take the Impreza into the next decade happily. With the addition of aggressive lower-hanging bits for 2009 and the rally-inspired roof-spoiler, the new car really looks mean and purposeful, especially when you dump her to the ground. With more power, better handling and better tires, Subaru has effectively taken the 2008 WRX and turned it into a factory-tuned car for 2009. A bigger turbo, upgraded suspension and steering rack and more aggressive looks make the 2009 car a real head-turner in both performance and styling. Before we get to the driving portion of our program, let’s recap what’s new for the 2009 WRX. Two words: Power and handling. This is the most powerful WRX ever released into the United States. With a larger turbo and much more aggressive tuning than that of the 2008 model, this WRX manages to deliver massive quantities of torque and horsepower with just a dab of the throttle, and it does so without that SI-Drive nonsense. This car feels like a GD STI, albeit a little more refined and with a tad less power. Burry your right foot in the carpet and the car surges forward, all at once. Gone is the hesitating and lurching of the 2008 model that would dole out power in jerking stages. This car just goes. Need to pass someone on a tight mountain road? No problem, just stomp on it in just about any gear; the turbo bangs to life and the car rockets ahead. It was on the holiday-traffic-choked backroads of Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada, that this “power to pass” showcased the additional grunt of the new car. According to Subaru, the 2009 WRX makes all of its 244 lb/ft of torque by 3000rpm and holds it almost all the way to redline. The 2008 TD04-powered car would start to lose breath at extralegal speeds; the 2009 just keeps charging as horsepower also climbs through redline. This turbo may be perfectly matched to the EJ255 and will be a great upgrade to anyone unlucky enough to have bought a 2008. Part of the power-delivery equation is a strengthened transmission. The Subaru 5-speed has never been known as a monster gearbox and has continually been upgraded over the years. Once again it has received enhanced internals that will, hopefully, be up to the task of handling the added power. Although I am sure that side-stepping the clutch will still be the quick way to shredding your transmission. The biggest change is in handling. It is hard to believe that this car is based on the same chassis as the 2008 WRX, so drastic are the improvements. And we are not talking huge changes either. Re-valved dampers, stiffer springs and 1mm larger swaybars front and back; that is all. The steering rack was also revised a bit as well, but the changes are seemingly minimal. Also, the addition of Dunlop SP Sport rubber in 225/45 R17 makes a world of difference. No more blaming poor performance on the crap RE92s that Subaru has insisted on using on just about everything since … ever; this new tire is the final ingredient in a potent package. The biggest help does come from the steering rack and the dampers. Even our brief 2008 WRX project car with springs, sway bars and tires couldn’t compete with the 2009 WRX. Go into a sharp bend and flick the wheel, and the car hooks and turns without protest. Where the old car would wallow and see-saw back and forth on its suspension and fight quick steering inputs, the 2009 WRX feels planted and sure-footed. The stiffer dampers have done much to reduce the body lean and roll in the new car as well as the stiffer springs and sway bars. Over rough and undulating pavement (in Canada, “rough pavement” is denoted by an orange sign with three humps on it) the car never SUBIESPORT MAGAZINE 21

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Subiesport Magazine - November 2008 Contents Editor Letters Readers’ Rides New Products Subaru News 2009 WRX Test Drive Back on Easy Street Brothers in Boost Treasure Island ESPN X Games 14 Subiefest 3 Subie Extravaganza WWJCD WRC Rally Finland WRC Rally Deutschland Rally America: Ojibwe Forest Rally America: Colorado Where to buy Subiesport Orange Invasion - Europe 2007 STI Intake Test Dreadnought Widebody Install p2 Ad Directory Spotted!

Subiesport Magazine - November 2008

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