aki334

sorry for bad picture and please post your alignments so we can compare copy from each other same settings.

I had some free time and took the car for free alignment check. In the wheel alignment place I did not go to the waiting room but instead decided to watch from behind the yellow line the screen as the tech was checking the alignment. Once everything was setup, I noticed that the screen had everything in green except one red. Tech approached me and said that FR is out of spec (.10 degree toe in ). While thinking that the .10 degree of toe in is not much especially when the car is loaded and under the acceleration, I still said "sure do the alignment". And then I could not believe the difference. Tested the car for 500 miles great feel. I will post the alignment specs that I had and currently have. The car only has 16K on the odometer because it was not fun to drive at all. I was really thinking I am wasting my garage space with this POS it is not fun to drive at all and was thinking to trade it. Now I like it and will invest in more mods to make it even more fun. My current upgrades are: 20mm rear sway bar and pereen steering dampener - yes it fits.

So gentlemen: lets share screen shots of our alignment specs and say if your new alignment settings made a big improvement for you in the steering feel so we can try to copy similar numbers the next time we go for alignment.

In conclusion: do not think that if the car you bought is brand new that it is perfect. So what I think was happening is that the FR was fighting the rest 3 wheels that were going straight and that that was confusing steering torque sensor to constantly give imputs to the motor for steering assistance making it very very light and in constant need for micro steering adjustments which was very tiring and not fun at all for long trips. Now I can literally let the steering wheel out of my hands at 80mph and will tract straight. If you do not have that feeling then something is not right.

Lets please share the screen shots of our previous alignment specs and our current specs and talk about how and if any improvements we noticed.

hello all, I see many beautiful wheels and wonder if anyone noticed any improvements in the handling with different wheel size and offsets?

As we all know legacy 6th generation steering feels little loose at highway speed. So please let me know which wheels tires offset combo gives you better steering feel at highway speed?

Hello again. I think the problem is in different roads/highways that we use.

I started this thread in 2017 and since then have driven 4 times to Colorado Springs from Chicago using I-80. Most of the I-80 between Chicago and Nebraska is heavily used by trucks, however once I enter Colorado and go on I-76 I think portion that is not used by heavy trucks car is very stable. This did not happen once it repeats every time I hit that road car is very stable. So in my opinion our cars are very sensitive to the inperfections in the road. So depending on the road you use our opinions will be different. If someone else can confirm using I-80 from Chicago to Colorado let me know if you noticed same problems.

I also have 21mm rear sway bar and perrin steering dampener lock or whatever is called

Suggestion for all: Please if you do not notice any issues with stability please say which highway you used and rough location, so that others that live in the same area with noticeable stability issues can try their cars and confirm my experience mentioned above. This can help us who are taking future road trips to also try to select that part of the highway and try to finally figure out what is happening.

also very interesting article about modifying steering road feel

http://www.autospeed.com/cms/article.html?&title=Modifying-Electric-Power-Steering&A=111532

I have not noticed an issue at highway speeds with my '16. The car is simply a reliable sedan. Nothing spectacular about the handling (good or bad) at any speed. Stability was improved on mine by junking the OEM tires, but even with the originals it was fine. To expect anything other than the handling of a non-premium sedan is unrealistic. The Legacy will never be a 3 series BMW! Then again, it was a hell of a lot cheaper.

I understand that bu I have had 20 year old cars that handled better at 70-80 mph and were able to keep straight line without constantly moving steering wheel which makes driving long ranges really not so fun.

my best guess is: Side of the vehicle is like a big sail boat, front of the vehicle is like brick not aerodynamic at all. Engine is light due to aluminum heads and block. Wide tires for its weight, electric steering wheel torque sensors too sensitive.

http://www.autospeed.com/cms/article.html?&title=Modifying-Electric-Power-Steering&A=111532

What shape are your tires in? Are they properly inflated?

We have a windy bridge in my area and I’ve had no trouble. I fly through the mountain roads in WV and VA and have no issues. I rarely go above 90.

 

My rearsway bar is still stock.

only 6k on the clock, tires are good

The first year of the 5th gen had that problem. Increasing the tire pressure with 10 to 20% over what was recommended solved the problem.

 

But if the problem persists - check the wheel alignment first. No point in throwing parts on a car if it's badly adjusted.

I did experiment with different tire pressures with no change. Steering is not pulling or anything. I think it has to do with electric steering and maybe needs .5 to 1 degree of negative camber. Will check alignment definitely to see how far is from factory specs.

This is a normal response to a new 2015 to 2018 Legacy owner. Subaru went with a very small rear sway bar in the rear. I believe its 16mm. If you upgrade to larger rear sway bars it corrects the issue and the car feels much more stable. You can swap out for a Cross Trek RSB which is 20mm and its a direct Subaru part.

 

https://subaruonlineparts.com/subaru-crosstrek-rear-sway-20mm-p-3920.html

interesting I will look into it and see how to do it myself.

I’ve heard of a floaty feeling that was vastly negated by the RSB upgrade.

 

Wonder if it’s the feeling of electric vs hydraulic power steering. I had a similar experience when I drove my wife’s Honda with EPS until I got used to it.

 

But yes always start easy - check tire pressure, tire wear, etc.

that is what I am also thinking that it has something to do with electric steering torque sensor being too sensitive. My tires are OK. only 6K miles on the car

I just recently had my alignment done and I also installed the 20mm sway. I've got STI BBS wheels installed, with barely-worn DWS tires inflated to a few # over the door placard.

 

The Legacy's steering is very light on center. With lots of twists and turns, it's fine, but for straight highway driving over imperfect roads or with a decent amount of wind I feel as if I'm adding more input about center than I'd like. I've gotten used to it.[/QUOT

 

are you happy with 20mm sway now?