Not quite ready to buy reasons...

[Lynnster]

It shouldn't be so difficult to buy a car!

We were/are looking at 2008 Legacy GT or 3.0 until research & this helpful forum slowed us down...

The 2008 year is now out for us. While the added audio on the steering wheel is nice, the SRS WOW sound system is absolutely horrid! And lousy armrest & lack of memory seat & Bluetooth options just not acceptable.

 

1. Some good news is that the 2009 Legacy will have Harmon Kardon 9 speaker/amp, but NO new head unit to go with it until, maybe 2010?! Someone said that's like putting good amp/speakers in a house & then running your sounds thru a crappy $30 portable head unit! So 2009 is also out for us.

 

2. Somewhere in this forum we read that there is a BIRD POOP paint-eating problem. (we have no garage, & live near the shore in New England with lot's of sea gulls. But never, ever had poop eat our clearcoated cars!)

 

3. Seems only thing to do is try to buy some time & hold onto our '99 A6 quattro until it dies. Hopefully by then, there will be a good/whole sound system, anti-poop paint, normal armrest, memory seat option, height adjustable pass seat, Bluetooth & HID option in the GT & 3.0 - for starters. And then pray the 5 star safety rating holds which is how we came to Subaru to look...

 

It seems that Subaru really takes way too long upgrading/adding options.

 

SOA: there ARE people, like us, trying to get out of Audi etc who would love to get into a Legacy GT or 3.0, but you need to offer some decent amenities (optional of course) to take the sting out. Of course we don't expect to get an Audi for the lower price, but you are SO close with handling (better perhaps!) you only need to add the optional amenities mentioned, maybe a few more. But PLEASE avoid the cost-increasing, idiotic package options other dealers are forcing & the reason we are refusing to go to AWD Lexus, Infiniti, Volvo. Make your options "stand-alones" & watch your sales go up on upper end Legacy's.

 

Love these forums & many thanks to all who help potential newbies like us sort things out before buying!

[pillboy]

Just go buy a Toyota. No matter what you buy you won't be happy. Something better ALWAYS comes around after you buy.

[Impulse]

haha, that bird poop video/problem was from Australia and seems to be an isolated incident. for the most part, if you leave bird poop on any car for too long, it might start to eat into the paint b/c of the proteins/acids regardless of your make/model.

[MOMSWGN]

Just get an used s4.

[rouar]

I miss some of the luxury items from my old car but it sounds like you are being a little unreasonable. Lack of memory seats prevents you from buying the car? I mean, I miss the Bose audio, automatic headlights, auto-up window and low washer fluid light from my old '00 Maxima, but there are more important aspects to the purchase. IMO, Subaru did help "the sting" by providing fold-down rear seats with ski port, aux in, climate control, 6-disc CD, the trip/MPG/etc display, and the windshield wiper defrost.

 

I just took a survey that asked if I would consider Bluetooth on the LGT "for an additional $800" ... I said no way.

 

Lastly, don't knock the 2009 till you actually have the opportunity to test one out!! Who knows, the audio could be phenomenal (however unlikely).

[gugarci]

The head unit is actually pretty good and offers adjustments of bass, treble, and mids. With better speaker and a good amp it will sound even better.

 

Not everyone changes head units. I have a friend that used to work at a high end car audio place. A lot of the installations they did on the more expensive cars were done with the head unit purposely kept to keep the car stock apperance. He did his Mercedes in this same maner and the difference in sound quality with just new speakers, amp, and a small subwoofer was like night and day. Isf the 09 Legacy comes even half way there we still win.

[SubLo]

It shouldn't be so difficult to buy a car!

We were/are looking at 2008 Legacy GT or 3.0 until research & this helpful forum slowed us down...

The 2008 year is now out for us. While the added audio on the steering wheel is nice, the SRS WOW sound system is absolutely horrid!

 

The OEM stereo sucks something awful - absolutely. Who cares though? 1 word = aftermarket. No more problems. This shouldn't be a make/break for the car at all. Easy fix.

 

And lousy armrest & lack of memory seat & Bluetooth options just not acceptable.

 

Extended (read: normal/comfortable) armrest is a dealer installed option and can be purchased. Again, easy fix and should not be a dealbreaker. Bluetooth: stupid on SOA's part - true but is not the be-all/end-all to the car. Minor in my book. Can be remedied if you overhaul the crappy sound system anyway. Not an issue.

 

1. Some good news is that the 2009 Legacy will have Harmon Kardon 9 speaker/amp, but NO new head unit to go with it until, maybe 2010?! Someone said that's like putting good amp/speakers in a house & then running your sounds thru a crappy $30 portable head unit! So 2009 is also out for us.

 

True again. It sucks. But who cares? Again, overhaul OEM sound system for various reasons.

 

2. Somewhere in this forum we read that there is a BIRD POOP paint-eating problem. (we have no garage, & live near the shore in New England with lot's of sea gulls. But never, ever had poop eat our clearcoated cars!)

 

Myth. Prolly will happen if you it sit there for a long time. At the very least, you'll get some discoloration. Shouldn't fare any worse than most other cars. Wash your car weekly as you should - no problem. Oh, don't park under an elevated train in Chicago or NYC as I have on occasion

 

3. Seems only thing to do is try to buy some time & hold onto our '99 A6 quattro until it dies. Hopefully by then, there will be a good/whole sound system, anti-poop paint, normal armrest, memory seat option, height adjustable pass seat, Bluetooth & HID option in the GT & 3.0 - for starters. And then pray the 5 star safety rating holds which is how we came to Subaru to look...

 

To each his own. You can wait forever and never buy another car if that's your reason for not buying. As someone else posted, it's kind of like buying a computer. Do you expect any automaker never to make improvements and better cars? No.

 

Memory seats are currently available in the Spec.B. Bluetooth has been discussed. HID kits and conversions are readilly available for our cars, are relatively inexpensive and easy to do. Not an issue. BFD???? Really....

 

It seems that Subaru really takes way too long upgrading/adding options.

 

Start with a decent base and make the car your own. It's not rocket science. Somebody is sure to feel the same about every OEM out there.

 

SOA: there ARE people, like us, trying to get out of Audi etc who would love to get into a Legacy GT or 3.0, but you need to offer some decent amenities (optional of course) to take the sting out. Of course we don't expect to get an Audi for the lower price, but you are SO close with handling (better perhaps!) you only need to add the optional amenities mentioned, maybe a few more. But PLEASE avoid the cost-increasing, idiotic package options other dealers are forcing & the reason we are refusing to go to AWD Lexus, Infiniti, Volvo. Make your options "stand-alones" & watch your sales go up on upper end Legacy's.

 

Love these forums & many thanks to all who help potential newbies like us sort things out before buying!

 

There are tons of not decent, but excellent amenities in the car already. There are plenty of aftermarket upgrade options as I've mentioned if you're not satisfied. If you're the type of person who lacks the vision or desire to customize, then sure - the things you mention in summation make the car not for you potentially. The cost issue you mention is something you should think about as well - something which currently keeps the car affordable while leaving a little change for those who want to customize as an afterthought.

 

Hope this helps.

 

[Lynnster]

Appreciate all the input, but seems like pouring my heart out to SOA has ruffled some feathers.

 

I was really trying to get my thoughts out to SOA, so pls contain those suggestions to go aftermarket etc. Not going to happen with 2 old baby-boomers who got too used to driving used, but cushy Audi's..

 

We enjoyed (loved perhaps) the test drive on the Legacy GT (can't wait to try 3.0, but no dealer has one to test so far)

 

So, hoping SOA might appreciate comments from a 56 yr old couple who could be a whole new market for upper end Legacy's.

 

Bottom line: You just need to add some decent options.

 

Glad to hear the bird poop isn't really an issue.

 

Lack of Bluetooth option isn't problem for us, but what about the young uns out there? Bad decision SOA...Just saying.....

 

Sillier still is the need to buy an optional armrest extension!

 

My previous post did say that we know & are willing to give up some amenities we got used to in our Audi's (if we go w/Subaru). But why doesn't Subaru offer anything to add on? Every other mfr we looked at offered tons of options, but they just don't have the base car we like/want. And what we're looking for isn't going to put us way over our budget- as long as options aren't forced-packages as I said before. Just saying....

 

It is an odd decision to not include new HU with the HK spkrs/amp. Just saying.....

 

And while it might not be a deal-breaker for us, why isn't there a memory seat option? SOA puts that in the Spec B. Just saying....

 

Also think it's minor request to ask for a height adjustable pass seat (manual is fine) Remember ,this is a new market for you, so you need to know that knees are the first things to go, so height adjustable is necessary) Just saying...

 

Bottom line is we want another AWD sedan, so that limits us. The one car that seems to "have it all" is the 2008 Lincoln MKZ AWD, but it drives like a boat (our father's Olds & now that we're "father" we don't want a boat) (The Legacy handles like our old '96 A4, & looks a bit like it too- All good)

 

For those who will undoubtedly have fun knocking me, pls don't tell me to stop whining & go back to Audi - our financial situation isn't the same as 10 yrs ago - we had no right to own Audi in the 1st place. My bad there - I talked hubby into them after we had a good year. And then there's the well known Audi reliability issues which are 100% true. (& bad service)

 

Finally, it's a great compliment to SOA that two Baby-Boomers in their 50's can BOTH get excited about buying a Legacy!

 

But please, SOA, offer some practical options asap! No need to drag your feet! Heck, I'll sell the boomer market for you!

[SubLo]

Your points are all valid but you're preaching to the choir. Practically everyone on this board would want those things too.

 

Though SOA employees probably visit this board (and other Subie boards) every now and then, you'd be much better served by writing them directly instead of praying they read your post here alone.

 

[Lynnster]

Bluetooth and Armrest NOT dealbreakers! ( I'm entitled to commenting on bad SOA decisions if I want.)

 

And what's wrong with wanting my "living room" in my car for long drives? (1 crappy knee/ 2 bad backs!) Hey, at least I admitted I got spoiled by Audi, so gimme a break - I LOVE the Legacy but.....

 

Geeze people! I hope you never get old!

 

 

And didn't realize I was "preaching to the choir" by posting on "pre-purchase questions" - thought SOA was in there!

 

 

I will mail my comments to SOA. If the '99 A6q can hold on thru the summer, we will seriously consider the 09 Legacy. (& maybe rent a cushy car for our driving vacations?)

[executor485]

As its been said in here, many people would love the options you mentioned. When the 05's came out they didnt have a LOT of options. The sound system was probably the worst I've heard in any car (stock), it didnt have SRS WOW or an AUX in, no MP3 ability, which was pretty close to being a no go for me. They only had a trunk pass through on the armrest and not the whole backseat folding down. No 6spd manual (only on the Spec B's now, but at least its available). The factory nav is ridiculously expensive at an extra $2500. And many other things I cant think of right now

 

They have started adding options, but it took them until 2007 to get it started properly. The 09's are looking promising in a few areas if they really stick to it, but again... Its not going to be "up to par" with a lot of the requests people have been requesting.

 

As far as the HK stereo, I think its going to be absolutely brilliant honestly. For those out there who dont want to hassle with upgrading, it provides an excellent setup and most likely some really nice sound, much better than what we have right now. With the Headunit being junky, I really dont think so. Its not a bad piece of equipment, but its not the greatest. It does what it needs to do, the biggest holdback of the HU at the moment is the fact the speakers are crappy.

 

We will continue to rant and rave at Subaru to add things, but they dont get out the products quick enough when they do start adding things. Hopefully you'll find a good deal on a car, whether you buy a Subaru or not. There are a LOT of different cars out there and they all have their quirks for sure, its just a matter of finding the car with the least amount of quirks that fits in your budget

Coming from an Audi to a Subaru there will be an obvious lack of certain luxuries, but I think it can all be overlooked with the bonuses that the Subaru provides. But thats me

[waynekranzler]

Hello to a fellow geezer! I'll be 58 soon and my wife is a couple of years younger. I own a "05 GT Ltd MT, presently at 31.6K miles...best car I've ever had, and I've owned many cars over the years, including a "66 Pontiac 2+2 (wish I still had that car) and a 240Z (ditto) in the early years. Since then I've had Celica GTs, Accords, a BMW 2002 and , yes, a couple of SUVs when I needed the kid carrying capacity.

 

When I bought the LGT, I was also considering an Accura TL...more amenities, more familiar to me at the time, etc. The lack of AWD was the dealbreaker, however...Up here in the north country, AWD is usually a consideration, but in retrospect, we haven't had enough snow or ice in recent winters to make a difference.

 

In any case, the LGT, to me, produces more smiles per dollar then anything else available...Still look forward to the drive to the office every am. I don't regret the purchase, in fact I plan to keep this car much longer then I normally have with previous vehicles...Can't get a RBP w/ black interior anymore!

 

...my 2 cents.

[DrCloud]

I'm in this general age group, too, and just bought a Spec.B. We also have an Outback XT. In previous years, I've owned Audi A4s and an allroad.

 

For me, the sumptuous Audi interior is more than I need/want, and the reliability was always an issue (I had Audis when they carried the 3-year bumper-to-bumper everything warranty, and I never kept one beyond 3 years).

 

It's always possible to nitpick about any car, and whining to the manufacturer is unlikely to be productive. After all, there are plenty of Subaru owners who would like to return to the bare-bones days of old -- and they have no alternatives, while people who want every possible little creature comfort built in and standard have all sorts of choices (including Audis).

 

It's really quite simple: if you don't want one of these cars, don't buy one. If you do, buy one and figure out what you need to add to it to make it fit your needs. HPH

[Lynnster]

I'm in this general age group, too, and just bought a Spec.B. We also have an Outback XT. In previous years, I've owned Audi A4s and an allroad.

 

For me, the sumptuous Audi interior is more than I need/want, and the reliability was always an issue (I had Audis when they carried the 3-year bumper-to-bumper everything warranty, and I never kept one beyond 3 years).

 

It's always possible to nitpick about any car, and whining to the manufacturer is unlikely to be productive. After all, there are plenty of Subaru owners who would like to return to the bare-bones days of old -- and they have no alternatives, while people who want every possible little creature comfort built in and standard have all sorts of choices (including Audis).

 

It's really quite simple: if you don't want one of these cars, don't buy one. If you do, buy one and figure out what you need to add to it to make it fit your needs. HPH

[Lynnster]

I'm in this general age group, too, and just bought a Spec.B. We also have an Outback XT. In previous years, I've owned Audi A4s and an allroad.

 

For me, the sumptuous Audi interior is more than I need/want, and the reliability was always an issue (I had Audis when they carried the 3-year bumper-to-bumper everything warranty, and I never kept one beyond 3 years).

 

It's always possible to nitpick about any car, and whining to the manufacturer is unlikely to be productive. After all, there are plenty of Subaru owners who would like to return to the bare-bones days of old -- and they have no alternatives, while people who want every possible little creature comfort built in and standard have all sorts of choices (including Audis).

 

It's really quite simple: if you don't want one of these cars, don't buy one. If you do, buy one and figure out what you need to add to it to make it fit your needs. HPH

[Lynnster]

DrCloud - I hope you're a PHD & not a MD!

 

Poor diagnosis/prognosis of my problem, if not a bit rude!

 

You drive a SPEC B which came with MEMORY SEAT standard - something we're willing to pay for, but isn't offered on AT Legacy GT or 3.0. The fact that you would deny us the same is unfair. (I can't drive MT with bad knee)

 

I'm a nitpicker/whiner looking for "creature comforts" according to you. I would hardly call memory seat for driver & height adjustable pass seat creature comforts for a couple who suffer with bad backs/knee who would be willing to pay extra to get these. But they aren't even offered!

 

And SOA does listen. Proof is audio on the AT steering wheel for 2008 (you already had this on your Spec B) And all 2009 Legacy's will get a long- begged for sound upgrade. However, helpful items such as memory seat & adjustable pass seat are still missing, even as options. (I'd like to think a doctor would approve of assisting folks with bad backs/knees, so you really puzzle me, but then you surely are a PHD!)

 

You say, go elsewhere or accept/customize! (just where do we go for aftermarket memory seat & height-adjustable pass seat & at what price?)

 

Your superior attitude speaks volumes but has fallen on deaf ears, as I wasn't talking to YOU. I assumed SOA would be here listening. Your remarks only serve to belittle. And may even put others off for posting in fear of getting slammed.

 

Our frustration, after falling "in like" with a GT or 3.0 Legacy, is the total lack of option upgrades. All the driving pleasure with dread of entering/exiting a car that offers no help for the bad back or bad knee!

 

So, doctor, enjoy your SPEC B with memory seat as you drive around sunny Boca! But watch out for sunburn on your nose as it's high altitude is highly susceptible.

 

(and l bet you gave/give painful injections!)

[longislander1]

I think you're being a little hard on Subaru. We traded my wife's '98 A6 for an '08 Outback and are very pleased with the transition to the new car. A new A6, after all, is close to double the price of a lot of Subarus so you'd expect the Audi to have more amenities. Plus, the Subaru service prices are a fraction of Audi's. I just had 3K oil change and 7.5K service done on our two '08s and the bill was $132 for both. I think a lot of people go to Subaru because of the great value for a car that has all the basics. I don't need backup cameras, parking assist and all that stuff. And for those of you who think the Subaru sound system is bad, I invite you to listen to the crappy Bose unit on my Boxster that cost me an extra $1,000. After seeing what Porsche charges for basic stuff like heated seats, climate control, 6-CD changer, etc., I'm grateful for the amenities that Subaru offers for a relatively low price. I guess I'm just looking at things from a different viewpoint.

[DrCloud]

Poor diagnosis/prognosis of my problem, if not a bit rude!

Sorry, but I'm just taking a realistic view of what's available.

 

I'd dearly love to have purchased an AWD Ifiniti M37, but they don't make them that way -- just as Subaru doesn't make their cars just the way you want them to. And, as I said, there is a huge segment of long-time Subaru loyalists who are already unhappy with the company's existing trend toward upscaling.

 

So whine on, sport. It's a free country. HPH