Subaru Review
Back in August, I posted some requirements for my upcoming vehicle purchase. At the time, I was looking at the Rav4, Impreza Wagon, and Jeep Compass. On Sept 23, I bought the Subaru. I've had it for two months and put almost 4000 miles on it. So how does it hold up to my requirements?
- Seat four adults "comfortably." That is in quotes because comfort is a relative term. This requirement basically means four doors. This one is a stretch. I've had 5 people in the car at one time, but I don't think those in the back seat would want to be there for more than 10 minutes. Three is no problem, but since I'm so big, sitting in the seat behind me is only comfortable if you're small.
- Full or part time four wheel drive (or all wheel drive.) This is a ski vehicle so I don't want to be afraid of snow. A+++. I've had this in snow a few times, including a sketchy trip through the Snoqualmie pass last weekend, and I have never been anything but completely impressed. I did pick up some chains, but I'm not sure how bad it actually has to be before I need to whip them out.
- 25+ miles per gallon.The Subaru meets this one. With the roof rack on, I'm getting about 23.5 mpg around town and the roof rack sucks about 1 or 2 mpg. On road trips I'm getting 27 but the roof rack caveat applies there too.
- Room for four people on a ski or camping trip. Tim, Chelsea and I had the car pretty full on the way back. Chelsea didn't have much room in the backseat. But then again we had snow gear, ski stuff, a chop saw, blankets, Christmas presents, and all our bags piled in there. Three adults on a trip is no problem. Four would require some planning and coordination. In general though I love all the room I have. Folding down the backseats creates a ton of storage space if needed.
Negative points:
- There are some rattles. It's not a BMW or a Mercedes so the tight construction quality isn't there.
- My Mustang had raw power. This car has "pep." It's 170hp in a fairly small vehicle, so it's not underpowered, but I have to remember I'm not driving the Mustang anymore. Passing on a two lane road requires some planning so I can lay back and get a run on the guy ahead of me. With the Mustang I'd just slam it into third and stomp on the gas.
- The interior doesn't have all the fancy features like climate control, but it gets the job done. The addition of the AVIC nav system really improves the feel of the interior.
Overall, I'm completely satisfied with the vehicle. Two thumbs up!