Seriously considering the purchase of a Forester due to Kids, Dog, Push Bikes etc.

Have seen the Forester STi in Evo this month, and was extremely impressed - 0-60 4.8 secs - WOW.

I have looked at the 2.5XT and feel this may be more me - Knocking on the door of 40 now, and would prefer the subtlety of the XT.

As an ex Supra TT owner i like the power, but dont want the car to stand out - like the Supra did. The XT in Obsidian Black looks v.nice, and with a few of the normal mods, wheels, exhaust, chip etc. I think it would suit be perfectly.

Can the XT be modded to get nearer to the STi's performance ?

I also assume a JSpec STi's insurance is going to be way higher than a UK XT which seems to start of at just 349 for me

Any advice appreciated, and details of tuners in the UK that work with Foresters would be great.


Thanks



DeanB

 

Have never owned or driven a STi or a WRX, so I can't say exactly what difference it will make in driving experience with the Forester 2.5 XT.

One thing I can say, the Forester 2,5 XT is a kind of sniper.
Nobody expects that a car like the Forester is that fast.

Recently on the German Autobahn I had someone driving behind me with 170/180 km/h who was pushing me. In no time he was not more then a very little spot in the rear mirror when I pushed up to 230 km/u.

It happened so fast that I even could not see the look on the face of the guy behind the wheel, which I think will have been very surprised.

Greetings,
SRX!

 

Just had the same dilemma.

Looked at an Sti but lack of recognition from SUK put me off, plus didn't like any of the colours (been there, done the WR blue thang on an Impreza STi, and wanted to get away from the negative Impreza image thing anyway )

Took delivery last Friday of a 2.5 XT, along with 17" Prodrive P7 alloys, PPP (first customer fit one), in Obsidian black pearl with black tints - very bling

I don't think dealers have even been officially notified yet thet the PPP is available

EcuTek will do a remap for the 2.5 XT, but the PPP is the only warranty friendly remap (and EcuTek supply the software to Prodrive anyway). PPP 0-60 (irrelevant, but a benchmark), is circa 5.5 secs).

Still running it in, but it goes like stink (260bhp/281 ft/lb, 60ft/lb increase over standard at 3000 rpm ), and people don't know what the hell it is until it passes them at an indecent rate of knots for a Japanese wardrobe on wheels

Also, Thule do a three bike rack that clips on the rear hatch - it's sitting in my garage , and the black lab appreciates the tinted windows so he doesn't get too hot in the back (my excuse for having them done ).

Waiting for Prodrive to sort out an uprated rear ARB for it (the standard one is a 17mm hollow one, and very soft, Prodrive are experimenting with 19 and 20mm solid ones.

Overall, very pleased with it

 

Dave you tart

 

Tel
Excuse me?

 

Thanks Dave.

It was like looking in a mirror as i read your post

Bar the blacked out back windows, you've got exactly what i'm looking for.

May i ask what you paid roughly for the PPP bit, and as your wheels are Subaru are you declaring them to the insurer or taking them as standard ?

Thanks for making my mind up for me - Obsidian Black here i come....

By the way, love the analogy to a Japanese Wardrobe

DeanB

 

Negative impreza image? never seen that myself.
Anyway...

I really like the 2.5XT and with ppp it must be a right laugh, plus they are huge in the back and very practical.

Oh and don't forget the much better image

Dipster

 

LOL, ignore me yer berk

 

Dean

PPP is £1600 inc vat and fitting from your local friendly Subaru dealer (part no is SACC 2588 in case they give you a blank look) - they *might* give you a bit of discount if you ask nicely

They are currently in stock (cos nobody knows about them yet )

All mods declared (but my insurer doesn't care about them anyway ).

Re Japanese wardrobe, I can't take credit for that, it was Josh L coined it - funny though

Tints are a personal thing, but I think they look good on a black car.

Dipster
Bottom end of Impreza price range at £3k for an import is now firmly in chav country, and top end, well, I think the whole wheels and wings and WR blue Impreza thing is a bit tired and in your face these days (but not only me saying that - mentioned in evo this month too). I was quite happy driving a Type UK STi two years ago, but would be embarrassed to now - IMHO of course

Telboy
I always ignore you, ya berk

 

I spend my days alternating between the 22B and the Boxster now Dave - severe identity and midlife crisis I reckon, baseball cap firmly planted on my head and sticking 2 fingers at every other driver...
Hello old people of scoobynet.
Cman

 

Dave,

Sounds wonderful, my insurance comes up at the end of the month - who are you with?

Regards

Francis K

 

Hi Cman

LOL

No offence, and hope you are well

 

Francis

I was waiting for the first person to ask that

Liverpool Victoria - but it may not help you - some people have said that they are now only doing this for existing policyholders, not new business.

We in the insurance industry were all predicting they might get their fingers burnt several years back, and I think this might be the net result.....

 

Dave,

Does the 1600 include the suspension upgrades etc? From what I hear the 2.5XT really needs them as it's a bit of a monster.

 

Neil
In your dreams......

The standard Geolandars fitted appear to have the friction coefficient of a vaselined eel on polythene, and marshmallow sidewall stiffness

Prodrive recommend you do not fit the PPP without the 17" wheels and tyres (nor do I ) - they make a HUGE difference, to the point that I would say if you can only afford one or the other of the PPP or 17's on a 2.5 XT, go for the wheels/tyres NOT the PPP.

Mike Wood is still playing with ARB's. Cobb in the USA and Whiteline in Oz both list ARB's, so Powerstation will be able to get the Whiteline ones. I'll hang on and see what Mike comes up with first - not sure if overseas Foresters have the same spring/damper rates as the UK, so overseas spec ARB's might be sub optimal.

 

Dave - a picture would be nice....
As a family man the PPP Forester is looking like a good option

 

So actually if you wanted a performance Forester the STI comes in as a cheaper option as it already has all the parts required to make it go faster. However if I recall it has less kit than an XT and does without cruise, heated seats etc.

Anyone know if that's the case?

 

Managed to talk the wife to look at a Forester as a second car to the STi. Got a 2.5XT ex demo. What a hoot, the ultimate in stealth.
Picture the scene, Johnny Rep in his rep mobile coming off the by pass onto the motorway, side by side with "shooting break" Forester. Before he know's what's hit him the Forester is 6 cars in front and leaving in haste.
Love to try one with PPP, just need to talk the wife into agreement

 

Neil
You can't easily do a like for like comparison, they are a different kettle of fish.

The XT with PPP is £24,950, but discounts are available - I effectively got the PPP for free, and a bit more off besides

By buying the wheels and tyres separately instead of as a package from SUK I saved another £200.

The XT is more stealth than the STi.

The PPP is warranty friendly.

The STi will not be touched by Subaru UK dealers, nor will you be able to buy accessories/parts for it.

Hotrod
I'll try and take some pics over the weekend.

Compshack
Whoops, I seem to have got two invoices for my car, one for the car itself and one for the PPP/wheels/tyres, and seem to have omitted to tell my girlfriend that it has had some "upgrades"

 

Dave
Welcome to our small corner of the subaru world!!
The 2'5 XT has been out for around 12 months now and there are lots of guys doing some interesting things with them.

Check out www.subaruforester.com
It's a US based site but theres a europe section down at the bottom of the home page where some UK guys hang out

 

Dave

You've certainly excited me with the 2.5XT prospects.

Being a Subaru newb can you tell me what the PPP consists of ?

Also, something i couldnt find an answer to - does the Sat Nav popup or is it fixed ??


Thanks


DeanB

 

The main differences... I'm sure there are more...

The Forester STi is 6-speed, XT is 5. That might be significant if you have a lot of tuning in mind, since the 6-speed is stronger.

The STi seats are, er, JDM STi ones. The XT has big comfy seats instead, purely a matter of preference.

They BOTH come in Black now.

The WR Blue STi might attract attention, the Crystal Grey doesn't, the stickers don't stand out against that colour background.

STi power and torque is about 290 hp and 310 lb ft with standard exhaust and mapped for UK fuel (based on the used one that Iain Litchfield is selling) whereas with exhaust (as in Evo) it is higher (320/330).

Things the STi doesn't come with: rear cargo cover (I need to buy one), sunroof (not an option), leather (unless you get it done yourself, like Mrs. Mog), satnav (I'm using a TT Go anyway). No heated seats, no cruise control. No body roll compared to the XT either. No cheap insurance. No front fog lights.

Things it does have out of the box: 18 inch wheels, big Brembos, 6-speed, different suspension and ARBs, 225/45 tyres, electric folding mirrors, 'Forester Solid Force Sound System', various other STi bits such as intercooler, steering wheel, dials, pedals etc. Different shape front, skirts etc.

Insurance for me is around £770, I was quoted about half that for an XT. That's with Privilege.

XT 0-62 is thought to be a realistic 5.3. STi is estimated at 4.8 in Evo, but I wouldn't be surprised if it is a bit faster given the torque.

The imported ones will be the facelifted version now:
http://www.litimports.co.uk/subaru/forester/

 

Well said Ricardo, its almost as though we prefer our STi's. At the end of the day it depends upon if you want to blend in with the crowd or be different, also me and the wife are 40+.

Mog

 

Can you post up a picture of your Forester please?