RE new subie B9

[benebob]

Originally Posted by 94svxred

Last note. Owning 2 SVX'S is'nt saving the planet either so don't come down so hard on me !! Is your SVX Solar powered )

Considering the one drove 500 miles since last August (200 were from Jesse getting home) and the other has gone maybe 150 since October. Even when you average my work truck into the mix I average well over 30mpg so actually, by me owning them, they are saving the planet b/c they aren't being driven. My whole point is drive something that meets your needs. A Escalde or even a B-9 doesn't for most people. where as a freaking mini van or even a full sized van would meet the same needs better, its just people get sucked into the "image" of vehicles (hence the reason why I feel they are ignorant). Don't feel bad, I don't have much nice to say about the idiots out there spending $25k on Toyota Prius' either.

[SubaSteevo]

Originally Posted by benebob

...its just people get sucked into the "image" of vehicles (hence the reason why I feel they are ignorant). Don't feel bad, I don't have much nice to say about the idiots out there spending $25k on Toyota Prius' either.

I'm with Ben on this. 90% of SUV drivers buy their vehicle based on image (I'm making that % up, but I'm sure it's close). Essentially mini-vans and SUVs offer the same thing (added cargo space, added passengers). If you see a commercial on TV for a mini-van, I can almost guarentee it is going to focus on the safety. SUV commercials on the other hand tend to focus on power and size.

The other 10% really do need an SUV instead of a mini-van. This 10% live in the mountains and receive 2ft snowstorms, or they actually take their SUV offroad. I'm sick of people telling me the H2 is a rugged offroad vehicle. If you have chrome anywhere on your vehicle, it is not a rugged offroad vehicle If you have 20" rims, it is not a rugged offroad vehicle What is it then? One word "compensation"

This is what happens when you live in a free country. No one can tell you how big of a house you can buy. No one can tell you how many kids you can have. No one can tell you what kind of vehicle to buy. No one can tell you how to spend your money. So, you get people who take it to the extreme: huge houses that are way too big for what is actually needed, vehicles that take up two parking spaces and eat gas like it's going out of style...etc...etc. You don't have to like it, but it is a freedom. Heck, I hate motorcycles because I think they are WAY too loud (esp. when they decide to blast past my apartment at 2 am at full throttle) but as long as it's legal, they'll continue to do so. Freedom has its prices.




Dave

[benebob]

Originally Posted by red95svx

Heck, I hate motorcycles because I think they are WAY too loud (esp. when they decide to blast past my apartment at 2 am at full throttle) but as long as it's legal, they'll continue to do so. Freedom has its prices.

Dave

It isn't legal Dave motorcycles have the exact same laws governing noise as do cars. The police and D.A.s are too afraid to ticket a motorcyclist though because they'll have Harley on their back complaining about freedom.

Originally Posted by benebob

It isn't legal Dave motorcycles have the exact same laws governing noise as do cars.

Great, now I hate them even more!




Dave

[Mr. Pockets]

Originally Posted by benebob

I'm embarrassed for Subaru. I thought they had better sense then to come out with a Pig U V but I guess with GM there now money is the biggest motivator.

Grow up. FHI is a company, and like all companies their entire reason for existing is to make money. Money is always the biggest motivator - epsecially if you're public.

[SVX10]

The B9 is okay. We evaluated one here at work and it's a bit disappointing. The torque is rated at something like 219ft-lb and its obvious how low it is until you hit about 3k RPM. It's got NOTHING down low. Also, for those who have owned and driven Legacies, Imprezas, and Forresters, the B9 exhibits considerably more body roll. Ride is cushy, but it's not very fun to drive. Even though it's got wide tires it doesn't have a very high grip limit. Interior quality is pretty good, though. It's got fantastic HVAC controls appearance. Steering is pretty dead on center and as a result it's pretty non linear at larger input angles. But, considering who's going to buy it, I think it's a pretty good vehicle. Two things will hurt it though 1) Noticeable lack of low end power and 2) Price. The one we had was 39k and it didn't have some basic features a car of that price should have. Subaru loyalists will like it for what it is, but it may have a tough time drawing in a new crowd. My 2cents.

[dcarrb]

Originally Posted by SVX10

Subaru loyalists will like it for what it is, but it may have a tough time drawing in a new crowd.

As the SVX attests, if there's one thing Subaru knows how to do, it's befuddle the market.

dcb

Originally Posted by dcarrb

As the SVX and Baja attests, if there's one thing Subaru knows how to do, it's befuddle the market.

dcb

Post fixed




Dave

[benebob]

Originally Posted by Mr. Pockets

Grow up. FHI is a company, and like all companies their entire reason for existing is to make money. Money is always the biggest motivator - epsecially if you're public.

So they should follow Toyota's lead. Sell 40,000 or so horrible for the enviroment Prius' that have batteries that will need to be disposed off in 10 years time enviromentally equal to the amount of dumping 1000 gallons of oil into the ground water while the stupid Americans think you're a "green" friendly company all the while selling 9 SUVs that don't meet the archaic CAFE standards for what they are PASSENGER vehicles. Long before all this, Subaru was looked at as an enviromental leader (which is why they were bought and developed the highest owner loyalty). Remember they were and are the only auto company in the world to achieve a 0 emissions factory. Yes that is 0 emissions. Personally, I won't buy from a company that skirts around CAFE standards but then again, maybe I have standards unlike the rest of america. If that's the case I'm sure W. wants me to leave my nookie in so he doesn't have to resort to using the patriot act to shutting me up.

[HighwayUFO]

My intent is not to offend anyone, but here goes...



This arguing is pointless. I would like to back up Ben and Burgundy on this one. Most people don't need what they have if it is grossly overcompensating for something. My grandmother was looking into getting an SUV, and I told her no. Why, because, in Idaho and most other places, the people who drive these highway terrors with total disregard for others's safety do so to fit their own agenda. My grandmother is 60 years old and I asked her why she felt she needed something so grotesquely large to try and maneuver and drive her reply was, "I dunno, I just thought I would like it"

It is all based on image, IMO, and that is why the market exists. People, whether or not they need an SUV, are attracted to the thought of owning one on a "just cause" basis.

There is my two cents.

Keith

[Landshark]

the main reason i hate Escalades, Hummers, and the new 8-foot tall Ford pickups is that when they are in front of you, you can't see a frickin' thing ahead of you on the road. since people have pretty much quit using turn signals altogether, you have no idea what the car in front of the <insert behemoth SUV/pickup here> is doing.

i also think having an SUV or pick-em-up is a waste unless you have a large family, or haul large objects on a regular basis. if i need to haul something, i'll borrow my dad's pick-up, or if really necessary, i'll rent a U-Haul for $19.95 for a day. the one or two times a year i might need an SUV/PU does not make sense for the other 363 or so days of the year when i don't. i wish more people understood this.

Originally Posted by Landshark

i wish more people understood this.

I think people do understand, they just want what they want. Some people like small cars, some like big cars. Maybe it's about image, maybe it's about comfort, maybe they just like the way it looks. Whatever their reason for their choice....it's their choice. I'm not a fan of huge vehicles OR of wasting resources. But I am a fan of freedom of choice.



Dave

[dcarrb]

Originally Posted by Landshark

the main reason i hate Escalades, Hummers, and the new 8-foot tall Ford pickups is that when they are in front of you, you can't see a frickin' thing ahead of you on the road. since people have pretty much quit using turn signals altogether, you have no idea what the car in front of the <insert behemoth SUV/pickup here> is doing.

Same here. Some SUVs block a trailing driver's forward vision as badly as a tractor-trailer rig. I like to see what's happening way on down the road, especially on busy interstates.

And no matter where I go, no matter where I park, it seems I always return to my car to find flanked by vehicles which require a stepladder for entry, forcing me to back out of the space blind. Most recently, to my right was one of those "8-foot tall Ford pickups," (piloted by a middle-aged lady of petite build who I watched basically fall out ot the thing). From the vantage point of my driver's seat, I couldn't even see its windows. It was like having a battleship pull-up alongside.

Veering back toward the topic, as I've mused here before, it's puzzling that Subaru would introduce an up-sized and up-priced SUV, no matter how well executed, to a market already saturated with large, inefficient and overpriced vehicles.

And are they ever gonna advertise the thing? I watch (too much) TV and subscribe to magazines ranging from U.S. News to Smithsonian to Rolling Stone, and I've yet to see the first spot.

dcb

I've seen a couple of cheesy Tribeca commercials made by Subaru Of New England. Very home-made feel to them. Very dissapointing. When will Subaru learn to SPEND SOME FRICKIN' MONEY AN ADVERTISING??




Dave

BTW we now have about 9 Tribeca's and have only sold once since we first started receiving them. They are stating to pile up like the Baja's.