Subiesport Magazine - November 2008 - (Page 22)

2009 WRX 2009 WRX TEST DRIVE felt unbalanced or unstable. In fact, I marveled at how hard you could push the car over questionable surfaces without upsetting the balance. Like a car set up for tarmac rally. Subaru was kind enough to set up a gravel stage just to prove how quick and well thought-out the car is. And with the addition of a set of soft gravel tires, the WRX showed just how capable it is. When I say rally stage, I mean it. This was a loose-gravel road cut through the trees. On either side were pines big enough to give you a bad day, a swamp and then some boulders, just to keep you on your toes. Luckily, we did have some professional drivers that acted as our co-drivers with helpful ideas on when to brake and turn the wheel and where the road might be headed. I must confess that in my hands the car was nowhere near as quick as it was when the pros took over, but my god, what a ride! Sideways around a decreasing radius sweeper in a stock car while looking at trees fly by is one of those moments that I will never forget. In a proper rally car with a cage and racing seats, it’s not such big a deal. In a road car with none of those safety features, it’s a much bigger deal. On the “track,” really a big autocross course, the car is a delight. Fast, quick to turn in, stable through the corners and able to pull away from braking zones without hesitation, it sets the standard for what a sport-compact should be. Through the quick, switchback sections of the course, I was able to fling the car at will and it never got tripped-up nor had that slogging feeling that the 2008 had. It was like I could go one direction really fast, and once something got in my way, I would turn and the car would do it; brilliant! There is still understeer. When I mentioned this last point to Subaru I was reminded that Subarus have always understeered. It is the way Subaru sets up the suspension to keep it safer for novice drivers and bad weather, which is where many of these cars end up being driven, through the rain and foul weather by non-rally drivers. The car still has some little foibles. It does feel a bit cheaper still than the GD Impreza did. It in no way is the raw car that the older Impreza was and it still has the buffered feeling that all drive-by-wire cars seem to have. Also, after a brief lap around the Big Willow course during this year’s Subiefest event, I have to say that the car still has some of its “floaty” nature. Again, coilovers will fix this problem, but largely the car’s propensity to just feeling vague has been erased. But this car captures the essence of what the Impreza was and is: A cheap, fast box that corners like a swinging ax and accelerates like there is a rocket on your bumper. So while the forum fan boys are busy patting themselves on the back for “forcing” Subaru to “fix” the WRX, perhaps we should all thank our lucky star cluster that there is a dedicated group of enthusiasts already looking out for you at Subaru. http://www.slowboyracing.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Subiesport Magazine - November 2008

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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