Subarus/flames etc.

[Neil Swanson <75377.3445@compuserve.com>]

OK,

I'm going to start this off before I even check my mail for today the 4th.  My
reference to "Jap" cars was not in any way meant as derogatory, racist or
anything other than an abreviation for Japanese.

To anybody offended, I got one note last night, I'm sorry.

So, I drove the Outback last night in the snow.  Coast of CT snow means snow
turns to freezing rain then thaws a bit then gets compacted and then freezes.
So it is slick and dense.

The car was great fun.  Now I know how you quattro owners with the right tires
feel.  The Outback has a Michelin that don't even claim to be snow or even
mud&snow tires.  But they aren't a regular tire either.  Whatever, it was tough
to spin a tire and fun when I could.  I could double the 25mph speed limit on
many back roads.  With a little too aggressive turn in entering a turn and then
a stab of the gas the back would drift out and I could hold it there pretty
well.  Then all wheels would grab so I had to be sure the wheel was pointed
ahead.  It was my best impression of Colin McCrea the current WRC.  I had to
try.  I tried to be Buffum in the S6 and that didn't work so what did I have to
lose.

So in this case the Outback has a better HP to grip ratio than the S6 had.  As
you know the S6 makes probably 100lb/ft more torque than the Subaru and at only
what, 1950rpm?  

I don't have to convince anybody here that the Quattro works.  But the Subaru
ain't too shabby. It is very quiet except for the roof rack.  Take a turn
briskly over broken chopping off camber pavement and the wheel control/handling
is better than an out of the box VW/Passat VR6.  Hard to believe I know but
true.  Skid pad?  Who cares.  When skid pads are built like an on ramp to the
George Washington Bridge I'll listen.

But........... 

A lot of you seem to own 8-10 year old cars with over 100K miles.  Where will a
Subaru be then.?

I'd rather crash in an Audi.  And I never trust frameless windows to seal out
wind and water for long.  Why do Subaru do that?

Real truck/SUV owners who do need their SUV to be a truck sometime for towing
won't buy it.  You'd be amazed at how many Chevy Suburbans I see commuting to
the train station with one person aboard.  I really HOPE they get more logical
use on the weekends.   But someday maybe when the truck fad dies people will
find they could have had AWD and do better than 18mpg highway their SUV did. 

Now I will check my mail and see how many people are irrate.  I DO still want a
Quattro.

Neil