§ No More Carpooling
After 5 years of carpooling, first in a 1995 Camry and then in a 2002 Tacoma, we finally bought another car. This past Saturday we picked up a 2004 Subaru Impreza WRX. One word will suffice in describing this car.
Wow.
It looks just like this one.
Compared to the truck
Our truck actually has more horsepower (280hp vs. the 227hp in the WRX) but the truck lacks the transmission to be a racecar and the large tires bleed off a bit of power as well. Not that I’m bothered by any of that, mind you. The WRX is a little demon.
But that is where the similarity ends
Though both vehicles have lots of horsepower, that’s where the similarity ends. The WRX is quieter than the truck, which will take some getting used to since I’m so used to guaging a shift off of engine noise that I’m going to have to get a feel for the WRX now.
And speaking of getting a feel for it: the turbo in the WRX definitely lets you feel that it is there. If you’re gunning it around you really don’t care, but if you’re not prepard or are trying to behave then 2700RPM becomes a worry point. When the turbo kicks in, it really kicks. 0-60mph in this car is estimated to be about 5.5 seconds for a perfect driver. I can say that number is probably pretty accurate. The power behind this engine is phenomenal. The only problem is making sure you’re in the right gear to get the boost you need because flooring it in the wrong gear can really cause the engine to bog.
Power to spare
Once I figured out how to drive the car a little bit (going from a supercharger to a turbo is quite a difference in how a car can be driven) I found that the car has power in just about any gear, at any time. Need to change a lane and grab it fast? 2nd is right there and waiting. On the highway and need to jolt around that jerkoff that pulled out in front of you? Drop to 4th gear, even at 65-75mph, and get a kick in the pants that’ll have you rocketed around that jerk and well on your way to getting a ticket.
So, how much am I gonna pay for gas?
While it takes Premium gasoline to keep the turbo happy the car can actually attain decent gas mileage so long as you behave. Keeping a short and slow accelerator pedal while driving can keep the turbo from kicking in and save a ton on gas. Stepping on it for long periods (hard to do, really, since it goes so damn fast there really isn’t anywhere to let it go and stretch its legs for a long time) can, and will, change that gas mileage significantly.
Very pleased
The car purchase was not all about the power. We went in with a few criteria, all of which were met by this car. We wanted 4 doors, a sedan, decent gas mileage, fun to drive, and decent space for the dogs. This car has all of that and a little more. We’ll be enjoying this car for a long while.
We might even make it out to Minneapolis. But that depends on how well I can work on the Monkey for a road trip…
Tagged as: camry carpool horsepower impreza subaru tacoma toyota turbo wrx
