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Subaru WRX STI Spec C: 304 HP JDM Bruiser
Subaru WRX STI Spec C Spotted Testing In Germany

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FrankGrimes
07/24/09

In reply to Subaru WRX STI Spec C: 304 HP JDM Bruiser
You guys realize there are whole companies dedicated to making your car go faster?

I don't care if they get this fancy model I will take the base model and throw a better turbo on it and be done with it.
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metal face eagle premium is not from So Cal
07/24/09

Well sure, but that's no fun for the type of person who gets off on owning limited edition cars.
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Turboner
07/25/09

@FrankGrimes: There are practically angry mobs of companies waiting to make Subarus go faster.
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HeatherVitani
07/24/09

In reply to Subaru WRX STI Spec C: 304 HP JDM Bruiser
The current STI has 305hp and for $695 you can have 340hp (93 octane). So I don't see the big deal. Yes its a tad lighter and as always has the 2.0l JDM motor compared to the 2.5l motor we get in the US. It just seems like a very minor change in output.
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Al Navarro promoted this comment HeatherVitani was starred HeatherVitani was unstarred

engineerd
07/24/09

In reply to Subaru WRX STI Spec C: 304 HP JDM Bruiser
Why does God hate me?

Focus RS? No.
Fiat 500 Abarth? Maybe.
Fiesta ST? Don't hold your breath.
Astra VXR? No.
Renault Megane RS.R? Absolutely not.
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Deartháir II
07/24/09

@engineerd misses Uncle Pete: I don't know, but I blame you, personally, for the fact that those aren't available in North America.
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metal face eagle premium is not from So Cal
07/24/09

God doesn't hate you, he just hates your country.
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aSoundofSleep-less nights
07/24/09

In reply to Subaru WRX STI Spec C: 304 HP JDM Bruiser
This doesn't quite upset me as much as what Subaru did to all of the 2008 WRX owners. In 2008 they changed the body style completely to what you see now. They kept the same power specs from the previous (2007) WRX. In 2009 Subaru they decided that they were going to screw everyone who bought an 08 for the new body style and completely revamp the engine increasing it's power output significatnly. I almost bought an 08, thank god I didn't. There's a good chance that it would have mysteriously found itself parked halfway in the new car showroom, building collapsing around it.
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MrBangBam
07/24/09

@aSoundofSleep: I know how you feel - I'm always scared to buy Apple products in case the next update will be significantly better.
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aSoundofSleep-less nights
07/24/09

@MrBangBam: I'm just anti-Apple in general. In any case, that earned you a heart.
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Cognitive Friction
07/24/09

In reply to Subaru WRX STI Spec C: 304 HP JDM Bruiser
Lighter windows ?!?

Were the old windows really weighing the car down?
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Edited by Cognitive Friction at 07/24/09 12:18 PM Cognitive Friction was starred

Das ASHloch (achtundsiebzig)
07/24/09

@Cognitive Friction: I asked the same question back in 1993 when cars were being advertised as having hollow carpet fibers to save weight. All I could think was "If this is important to you, take the carpet out."

I think it was the Toyota Supra, IIRC.
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CaveTroll
07/24/09

@Cognitive Friction: A person could save quite a bit of weight with lighter windows. I know that if you switch from glass to a polycarbonate like Lexan or Plexiglass that you cut the weight of that window in half. So let's say the windows all told weight 100 pounds (a fair guesstimate), if you cut that in half (using thinner glass, not a polycarbonate), that's a fifty pound weight difference. That's a pretty huge difference. Windows are an easy place to shed weight (especially without having to do a whole lot of retooling in a production setting), hence why they did it...Or so I'm assuming.
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OldeEnglishD
07/24/09

In reply to Subaru WRX STI Spec C: 304 HP JDM Bruiser
Frankenstein never scared me.

STI Spec Cs do, because they're fast...
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Edited by Al Navarro at 07/25/09 9:33 PM OldeEnglishD was starred OldeEnglishD was unstarred

Unregular
07/24/09

@OldeEnglishD: i have a ghost roaming the halls of my ancient victorian mansion. she has flowing robes and a skull head and stringy hair and drags chains around - hides behind doors and such.

doesn't scare me as much as this beast.
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pauljones promoted this comment Unregular was starred Unregular was unstarred

pauljones
07/24/09

@Unregular: I drive a Saturn. It scares me much more than this little kitten of car.
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RamblinReck89
07/24/09

In reply to Subaru WRX STI Spec C: 304 HP JDM Bruiser
All that work on the performance and they still haven't fixed the ugly?
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DEAЯTHÁIЯ promoted this comment RamblinReck89 was starred RamblinReck89 was unstarred

Deartháir II
07/24/09

In reply to Subaru WRX STI Spec C: 304 HP JDM Bruiser
About time the Japanese came out with something that can compete with the Focus RS. Too bad the weight from all that running gear makes them compromise on the "everything else"... and, you know, it's SO. GOD. DAMN. MUCH. UGLIER.

Good try, Subaru. You'll catch on to this whole "car making" thing eventually.
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Edited by Deartháir II at 07/24/09 12:10 PM Deartháir II was starred Deartháir II was unstarred

aSoundofSleep-less nights
07/24/09

@DEAЯTHÁIЯ:I happen to like the looks of the new Sti, have you had a chance to see them up close yet? Pictures do not do it justice.
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DEAЯTHÁIЯ promoted this comment

Deartháir II
07/24/09

@aSoundofSleep:Yes, yes I have. Many times. You're right, pictures do not do it justice. It's even worse in person.
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aSoundofSleep-less nights
07/24/09

@DEAЯTHÁIЯ: We are talking about the same Sti, aren't we?
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Deartháir II
07/24/09

@aSoundofSleep:That abomination of taste and style photographed up top there? That thing? Yes.
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acarr260
07/24/09

@DEAЯTHÁIЯ: but it's JDM tyte, yo!

/shoots self
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FTGDWolverineEdition'09
07/24/09

@aSoundofSleep: I can sort of live with the rear (minus the stupid altezzas...ummm it's 2009) but the front? It's like an fuglified version of a bland Toyota. I've been seeing it for over a year now and no, it still hasn't "grown" on me. That's long enough don't you think.

Again, each to his own.
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SoK
07/24/09

@DEAЯTHÁIЯ: 0/10

Maybe if they actually sold the RS they use in the rallys they'd compete with Subaru on the showroom floor. Instead they sell a watered down FWD pig that sacrifices, well, everything that makes driving fun.

A Focus sir, even for it's success at rally, is no Subaru, any of them, and is certainly a long ways off from what the Impreza represents not just as a single model year, or sheet metal change but et al. Those tasty spec C parts will eventually find their way here, and the tuners, they will tune.

Oh and I admit, this iteration of the Impreza looks wise isn't my favorite. Technically though, I admire it's return to some of the lines of the original and I do like the way it looks. But Bug Eyes and Pig Noses will forever be my favorites.
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DEAЯTHÁIЯ promoted this comment SoK was starred SoK was unstarred

LionZoo
07/24/09

@DEAЯTHÁIЯ: And yet the AWD makes the car a much more attractive package to me than the FWD Focus RS. Revo knuckle or not; you simply can't defeat the physics of channeling all your power through the front wheels while coming out of a corner.
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DEAЯTHÁIЯ promoted this comment LionZoo was starred LionZoo was unstarred

brickyard
07/24/09

@DEAЯTHÁIЯ:
I came dangerously close to stuffing a WRX motor into an old 914, just so I could have the engineering brilliance without the styling abomination. The 914 wasn't a styling masterpiece but it wasn't a turd like the Impreza either.
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pauljones
07/24/09

@DEAЯTHÁIЯ: Oh my God. I'm actually agreeing with your stylistic tastes.

Well, I guess since you love the Veyron and I hate it, and I love them Camaro that you hate, it's about time we found some kind of common ground.

I won't tell anyone if you don't.
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Deartháir II
07/24/09

@brickyard: I actually considered it for my Lotus Europa project, but it wouldn't quite fit. While I abhor the looks of their cars, they make damn fine engines. I just wish all their owners weren't such jackasses.
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Deartháir II
07/24/09

@LionZoo: When driven at the absolute knife edge of performance, you're right. Ford realized that 95% of the time, the FWD system was going to perform better, and it wasn't until you pushed the car far beyond what the average person, or even average enthusiast, would ever be able to do that you finally noticed any advantage for AWD. Sorry. I love AWD as much as anyone, but an advanced traction control system can do almost as much, most of the time, for less weight and lower cost.
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Deartháir II
07/24/09

@SoK: Yeah, okay, so Nibbles ate my response. Basically, it said, "Go do some research". The Focus RS is built on the best small-car platform in the world, has the same horsepower as this car, but with an interior that doesn't make you want to kill yourself, and looks that don't make your eyes bleed. And that AWD vs. FWD crap is a tired argument. It's not until you get the car on the absolute knife-edge of the maximum performance a car can do that you're going to see the benefit of the AWD, and none of us here are good enough drivers that we'd ever be able to discover it. My FWD Corrado has kicked the ass of more than its share of AWD WRXs in stoplight races.

You're right, the Focus is no Subaru. It's so, so, SO much more.
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LionZoo
07/24/09

@DEAЯTHÁIЯ: Not at all. FWD out of corners is absolutely annoying, even when driven at 8/10ths. The understeer sets in early and often. AWD, while still understeery, allows you to get on the throttle much earlier. Simply put, even at slip angles far below the limit, FWD feels like you're trying to fight the car. AWD feels a lot more like the car is trying to work with you.

Have you driven the new AWD cars? While I admit to not having driven the Focus RS, I've driven plenty of other FWDs both with diffs and without and they all have the same characteristics, just to different shades. Meanwhile, the AWD system on the new Evo is absolutely amazing.

And I like the new Impreza interior and don't care at all for the Focus interior...
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Deartháir II
07/24/09

@LionZoo: See, I know what you're talking about. I've had multiple FWD cars, and have experienced that horrendous understeer.

Then I bought a Corrado, and realized it didn't have to be that way. And from the more reliable sources -- ie. someone other than Clarkson -- the RS has virtually no understeer. It's been praised as one of the most neutrally-balanced cars they've seen. (I think that was CAR magazine, but I'm too lazy to go hunting for the article.)

I have driven the new AWD cars. I've taken an S4 quattro out for a spin, and it was impressive, but I had to push the car HARD before I could find any way that it performed better than my FWD Volkswagen.
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SoK
07/24/09

@DEAЯTHÁIЯ: "It's not until you get the car on the absolute knife-edge of the maximum performance a car can do that you're going to see the benefit of the AWD, and none of us here are good enough drivers that we'd ever be able to discover it."

Thats the point though, the Ford, like it's Mazda 3 counterpart -limit- ability for below average daily drivers - because to give them any more means the cars decline in performance. That Subaru IS able to 'go to the bleeding edge' where Ford implies artificial limits because the platform can't handle life on the bleeding edge in it's production configuration.

Subaru's taken to that limit will outperform what a Focus RS is capable of if also taken to the same limits - Subaru's are a few mods from the race track and being viable there - what about your FWD Pig that is 'restricted' because most people can't 'use' that performance.. even if they were capable of it...?

Your gripes with looks are subjective at best.

As for your street racing experience, really dude... your experience is street pulls? Because all enthusiasts love street pulls.. grow up, and take it to a track - which BTW, you again only make a point for me - you can ONLY do that in a straight line with a FWD car.. add a turn or two, rain, dirt or snow, and you'll see what the difference is.

Enjoy your Focus and S3 where they dumb them down because people like YOU can't drive and think being an enthusiast means you win stop light street pulls.

As I said, 0/10
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Deartháir II
07/24/09

@SoK: Oh sweetheart, don't start getting all "you don't know cars" on ME, I've been building and racing them on tracks, strips and streets for years now, thank you very much. You've taken this from good-natured banter to assholishness, and that's the end of it for me. Do me a favour, fuck right off, don't bother me again.
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Edited by Deartháir II at 07/24/09 4:15 PM Deartháir II was starred Deartháir II was unstarred

Al Navarro
07/25/09

@DEAЯTHÁIЯ:

Now, now, fellas...
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devilock138
07/24/09

In reply to Subaru WRX STI Spec C: 304 HP JDM Bruiser
Needs pics of the twin scroll setup. The Subaru twin scroll header/up-pipe combos I have seen in the past were quite beautiful.
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acarr260 promoted this comment devilock138 was starred devilock138 was unstarred

FTGDWolverineEdition'09
07/24/09

In reply to Subaru WRX STI Spec C: 304 HP JDM Bruiser
I've always wondered, does the "C" in spec C stand for Cool? Or Competition? Or Costly? Or Cocaine fueled? Or Chinchin?
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RamblinReck89
07/24/09

@Formerlythegreatestdriver: It stands for "Can't make this thing attractive so we'll just give it more power"
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LionZoo
07/24/09

@RamblinReck89: An attractive Subaru would actually be a crime against nature. Like obesity for Americans, bad teeth for British people, and garish tastes for Russians, ugliness for Subarus is a defining trait. Take away the ugliness and suddenly they're nothing more than a wannabe Japanese Audi.
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DEAЯTHÁIЯ promoted this comment LionZoo was starred LionZoo was unstarred

Deartháir II
07/24/09

@LionZoo: Hey hey hey. No badmouthing Audi like that.
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LionZoo
07/24/09

@DEAЯTHÁIЯ: I know too many Audi owners and they're just... well I'll leave it at the Top Gear stereotype is more or less true. I actually prefer Subaru owners; much more technical and they don't feel like their cars are God's gift to automobiles.
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Deartháir II
07/24/09

@LionZoo: Actually I generally equate Subaru drivers and Audi drivers, and I'm not particularly fond of either of them. For all the harping I do, I do genuinely like Subaru's technical prowess. I just get irritated that they feel, when I drive them, like they're made of cardboard and bits of tin... and wrapped in a big bag of ugly.
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Pew Pew BOOM
07/24/09

In reply to Subaru WRX STI Spec C: 304 HP JDM Bruiser
Hell no, they even have pu**y magnet yellow. Why god, why!!!!
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pauljones
07/24/09

In reply to Subaru WRX STI Spec C: 304 HP JDM Bruiser
Itasha vinyls not included.
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combat chuck
07/24/09

@pauljones: But you know at least one of these (probably more) will be defaced with that crap.
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pauljones
07/24/09

@combat chuck: It would probably be an improvement on the terrible look of this thing.
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