?s from a potential LGT 5spd Buyer

[JoeFromPA]

Hello everyone,

 

I've been reading this forum on and off for awhile now, and I'm a big fan. I owned a 2005 Saab 9-2x Aero (WRX wagon), bought it for 18,900, drove it for 9000 miles, and then was offered 20500 on it for Trade-in

 

Anyway. My wife and I went to test drive an 07 LGT 5-spd last night. The dealer let us go by ourselves (Steve at Rafferty Subaru in Newtown Square, PA....haven't heard good things about their service, but he was absolutely fantastic. As a generalization, I despise car dealers, but I would buy from him).

 

So my wife and I test drove it for about 20 minutes, on bumpy back roads, long curvy empty roads in office parks, and open roadways. We fiddled with SI-Drive frequently, revved it up to 6000, but went easy on the brakes and clutch (i.e. yes we drove it "hard", but we didn't abuse those parts that still need to break-in).

 

We came away very impressed by the drive. It pulls amazingly; I had literally jumped into an 07 WRX 5-spd a moment before and test drove it, and the LGT had a much more fantastic powerband. The shove in the seat was much more satisfying and prolonged; I don't care about numbers, the LGT was more fun. It was also smooth and comfortable.

 

Now, we're still going to test drive a few other cars. VW GTI, maybe a 3-series. And we're not going to make a move to late 2007 at the earliest. But I'm an absolute car nut and I plan way ahead

 

So my questions, for those who have read through my diatribe:

 

1.) Reliability - I've read some troubling things on here. We're not the types to launch much; I haven't launched my 06 Civic SI more than 2-3 times in 17000+ miles. But I'm worried about clutch life on these cars. I've read a fair amount of reports of clutches retiring around 30k. Was this an early model problem; something rectified in the clutch design by this point? A byproduct of the drivetrain setup? Something I need to concern myself with?

 

Seems like other than that reliability is mainly the little things, which doesn't bother me much.

 

2.) Shifter - We test drove the car and the shifter felt so-so. I said to my wife that the short shifter dramatically improves the feel (and look as far as I'm concerned) of shifting, based upon what I've read. We come inside and the salesman tells us the short shifter is listed on the window sticker, so it has to be on there.

 

The shifter in this car didn't have a long throw, but the shifter itself stuck up fairly high off the console (what I would consider standard height). The shift action felt quite notchy and a little rubbery (I know this sounds contradictory, but the notchiness comes from how the shifter moves into the gate, the actual movement of the shifter felt rubbery).

 

What do you think? Based upon the description, was I driving the standard shifter? Does the Cobb double adjustable allow a nice, lower shifter length?

 

3.) Road noise and engine smoothness - This car had 100 miles on it, so the tires nor the engine was broken in. That being said, the cabin noise seemed a little higher than I was expecting from the tires. A result of the craptastic re92s, or a byproduct of the desire to feel connected to the road? Not overly bothersome, just curious as to it's origins.

 

I understand this is a largish bore boxer engine, and thus though it is balanced it still feels umm....less refined....than some engines. Again, not bothersome, but I'm wondering if break-in and oil changes help the engine smooth out a bit. It seemed very "alive". Again, I'm not complaining about this. I might come to find I love it, and would always want it in an engine. Again though, it just wasn't what I was expecting. Thoughts?

 

4.) Rear door entry for those with babies - That extra window by the rear door really seems to cut into entry-room for both passengers and parents inserting children. How does it play out in real life? Is this a bother?

 

5.) Cost - Looks like the 07 LGT 5-spd runs around 29k. We would probably just add a Spoiler (was quoted $398 for this). How much will this car sell under invoice down the line?

 

One of the 06 Models on the floor (auto, navi, spoiler, conv. pack) was listed at 33k selling around 27k.

 

Do I have a shot in a dark, hot place at hitting 24-25k towards the end of the year?

 

Thanks for any/all help and feedback. Very impressive car some of you own

 

Joe

 

Any and all thoughts are appreciated

[GBY]

Hello everyone,

 

I've been reading this forum on and off for awhile now, and I'm a big fan. I owned a 2005 Saab 9-2x Aero (WRX wagon), bought it for 18,900, drove it for 9000 miles, and then was offered 20500 on it for Trade-in

 

Nice, don't here of that very often

 

Also, thread moved to Pre-purchase Questions forum.

[lawl]

Notchy and rubbery are what my friend described the Sti short shifter as when he drove it.

 

I'm guessing that's what you drove. Also people here say the sti short shifter is crap. I will withhold judgement until I drive it myself. (Car is 6 hours away... he was checking it out for me). Not sure how good the cobb is in comparison, but judging by what i've read.... a lot better than the sti.

 

I drove a car with 24k miles on it... felt really smooth. Maybe yours just needed breaking in.

 

As for road noise... I drive a miata as a daily for now. Road noise? what road noise . (it felt more like my cousin's audi S4 than anything else i've driven in awhile. I was impressed with how quiet it was... lol)

 

No babies here.

 

leftover 2006's right now are going for under dealer cost. 5k off window sticker BEFORE negotiations- rebate included though. (although I dont know how much they'll budge after that). For 25k for a legacy GT limited, I'd say that's a bargain. What else can you get for 25k?

 

(my coworker got a jetta... paid 25k for it... ouch)

[Crawdaddy79]

I have the short throw shifter in my car and I don't think it's rubbery at all. The first 500 miles it was a little inprecise - hard to tell whether it was in gear or not, but since then I guess I wore it down a little and I've been very pleased with it. It clicks into place very predictably and with little give.

 

The stock shifter I road-tested on a 2005 felt very rubbery and uncomfortable to me.

 

As far as the cost goes, from what I understand 2007 models will no longer be produced after March this year, to make room for the 2008's coming out in May(ish). So, yes it is very likely that you can get the car for cheap cheap if you wait. Unfortunately, it's also very likely that someone else will buy it before you do.