A Report From The Dark Side

olliesgrandad · July 17, 2021

Well now I owned my distant relative Subaru for a few weeks I thought I'd give you an update.

Firstly I changed the tyres to Cross Climate + this week which has transformed the ride and handling from the factory fit Bridgestone Dueler Sports. The Bridgestones had little wear but having experienced them on my last RX was happy to part company with them.

For those of you who are currently running on those they have been discontinued.

When my tyre fitters changed the tyres they were surprised to find the Bridgestones were starting to perish...

My car was registered on 27th September 2019 so this is probably indicative of it being parked up at the dealership during lockdown ( I know it was off the road from December until I purchased it.). The code on the tyres showed they were manufactured in 2018 so not that old.

It would appear that servicing costs are not much different to Lexus., mainly because of 4wd oil change costs.

The fuel consumption as expected is quite "hot". Around 35mpg, but it is petrol only.

Accessory prices are similar to Lexus. I just purchased 4 mudflaps for £122.

The dealer I purchased the car from included a new set of rubber mats and a boot liner which are about the same price as Lexus.

The cabin fit and finish is typical Japanese. Quite acceptable, but this is new a £28000 Car so its unfair to compare it with an RX at over twice the price.

Lack of parking sensors is surprising although the rear camera is very good.

Infotainment is courtesy of Toyota I understand and apple car play and android auto are standard fare.

The Eyesight safety system is amazingly good.

It is possible to let the car do most of the driving in traffic as when 'locked on' to a vehicle in front the adaptive cruise will brake the car to a standstill and put the brakes on hold. The cruise can also be set at 20mph.

Unlike my Lexus it reacts to cyclists and pedestrians in the road. A couple of days ago a cyclist suddenly cam across in front of me and the car started to brake before I hit the pedal.

Downsides of ownership?

Dealers don't do discounts to Subaru Forum premium members. Nearest dealer to Gloucester is near Swindon. UK Forum is very quiet so I've also joined the US/Canadian forum which is an extremely informative place. Hybrid models only just being introduced.

Silly little Positive points - The locking wheel nuts are much better finished - chrome plated. The diamond cut alloy wheels seem to be of higher quality than the Lexus ones (surprised they fit them on a proper offroader, but they sell huge volumes in the USA so must be okay). The controls seem more intuitive than Lexus.

All in all it's not a Lexus but ideal for what I currently need (and my wife will drive it).

Regards to all

Les

royoftherovers · July 17, 2021

Thanks Les. Glad it is going well for you.

Interestingly a couple of days after you posted about your new Subaru I found myself along the shores of Clatteringshaws Loch in Ayrshire and I found myself parked next to the model that is your new car. It looked very nice indeed, but it was not as big as I had imagined it to be.

Do carry on enjoying the Sub, reporting back occasionally and I look forward to your return to this Forum.👍

olliesgrandad · July 17, 2021

1 hour ago, royoftherovers said:

Thanks Les. Glad it is going well for you.

Interestingly a couple of days after you posted about your new Subaru I found myself along the shores of Clatteringshaws Loch in Ayrshire and I found myself parked next to the model that is your new car. It looked very nice indeed, but it was not as big as I had imagined it to be.

Do carry on enjoying the Sub, reporting back occasionally and I look forward to your return to this Forum.👍

I am so envious of you being in Scotland.

Surprisingly the interior legroom in the Subaru is almost as good as the RX.

The boot however is much smaller.

Ground clearance is extremely good and getting in and out is just a matter of sliding in.

My wife likes it because at 5 foot tall she doesn't need a stepladded🤣🤣.

We can also get past it easily to empty the tumble dryer in our garage when it is in the car port.

For those needing a bigger car the Forester or Outlander are the choices.

Regards Les

royoftherovers · July 17, 2021

I was in Scotland then. I am on Wirral again now and next week I will be in Northumberland.

I am booked on the cross channel shuttle for my drive to Spain (all being well) on 3 September. Fat chance !!??

rich1068 · July 17, 2021

I'd agree with all that Les, especially your thoughts on the Eyesight system. We have a lot of foreign students in Sheffield and it's happened before but sometimes they look the wrong way before stepping into the road. This happened again the other day and I did react but also noticed the Eyesight was ready to kick in if I hadn't.

But while you're playing follow the leader in town watch out for roundabouts!