2007 Spec B Driving Impressions

[de Rookie]

Bored today....and I know it's not the current model, but the other day I had a 2007 Spec B for a loan car from my dealership. They normally don't give something like that out as a loaner, but I know the owner Mine was in for some minor warranty work (had that front driver's side wheel bearing tea kettle sounding thing going on).

 

Anyways:

 

Handling: Pretty sharp. Impressive turn in compared to an LGT. The ride was much smoother than I thought it was going to be. It was stiffer but delivery of the feedback was nice without being uncomfortable.

 

Transmission: I was actually nicely surprised by this. You barely have to engage the clutch pedal when grabbing gears. Every shift was very smooth and clutch response was very predictable.

 

Interior: I like the re-designed guage cluster. It has more bells and whistles but still remains clean and easily readable. The alcantara inserts do a great job of keeping the driver still in the seat (my only beef with my LGT's leather). The nav system is pretty good and I love the fact that it's touch screen. Everything else was identical to my LGT.

 

Gadgets: Again, the nav was cool. SI Drive...pretty much useless if you ask me. I came with SI Drive from the womb. I left it in Sport # the entire time and just let my foot control everything The only thing that really accomplished was making it more difficult for Cobb Tuning to get an Accessport out for the car (which a beta one is being tested one of Subaru of Plano's investor's Spec B). I like the new position of the seat heater controls...actually wish mine were there instead. The auxilary jack in the arm rest cubby was well done too.

 

Audio: The tweeters sound better than a stock LGT but the woofers sounded muddier.....still not bad for a from the factory standard system. No sub-woofer upgrade in the car I had.

 

Overall: A very fun car to drive. I felt more confident throwing it around than my LGT. It could still use bigger sway bars. For the price, I'd still get the LGT. Honestly I don't drive my car like a race car driver everyday so I wouldn't benifit from the suspension upgrade. All the 6-speed gives you is a great gear to reap some fuel saving benefits. I never really understood why people moan about only having a 5-speed. Unless you're constantly pounding the car and breaking every speed limit in the nation, other than some minor fuel savings it's not a big deal (to me, the non-aggressive driver).

 

Anyways, just thought I'd share my thoughts. I love the car, that's for sure...and it was nice to jump in a manual again and row through the gears.

 

Mike

http://kanedasrealm.net

[SLegacy99]

Never been in a Subaru that I didnt think handled tremendously. But Ive never driven a Baja, Forester, or Tribeca.

[stewartg]

The Subaru 5-Speed is mushy and weak. It's not about having the extra gear as much as it is about the feeling and the beefier internals which can handle more abuse and more power. I have always loved the Legacy, and with the introduction of the 6-Speed in the Spec.B I can finally own one. It's a descent stock suspension, but I am quickly replacing it as many Spec.B owners do. The navi is a nice addition, but honestly I would rather have a cubby to keep my stuff in. The alcantara is just sweet, I love the look and the feeling of it, I could never go back to leather. The Spec.B package also includes better looking 18" wheels and grippier all-weather tires, which ofcourse need replaced if you go with a bbk kit.

 

Overall the additional price for a spec.b is well worth it for the tranny, suspension, seats, wheels, tires and nav if you are not going to modify it heavily. But most will end up replacing all but the tranny, nav and seats.

[Guest]

If only these tards made SpecB wagon. Would have ordered one now.

 

I bet the wagon to sedan ratio for teh SpecB would be quite different than GT.