Is it me or do new WRX drivers have the biggest attitudes on the road now?

[JonT]

EVERY time I take my car out I come accross a WRX wanting to race. Lots of stares first then the taunting. I haven't raced one yet. I'm the one driving the Porsche and have nothing to prove. There's always been too much traffic around to do it in relative safety. I'm confident I will spank one SOUNDLY with the 275hp 3.6L screaming to unleash her hell upon the unsuspecting Subaru with the collosal attitude. I'm looking forward to my first hammer drop on a punk in a Rex. They are great performing cars but GOOD GOD THEY ARE UGLY! I guarantee you no kid stares in awe at a WRX and says I'm going to have one of those someday...

[VincentVega]

It's a sad state of affairs. I am looking for a new grocery getter and the wrx is on my list of cars to look at. In doing some research it appears they are actually faster in just about every catagory than my SC. I haven't driven one but it sounds like a nice everyday car; I dont think I would take it to the track though.

I saw a wrx with a different set of headlights, j-spec I think, and it changed the looked of the car completely. I am not a fan of the headlights stock headlights, but other than that I think it's a hard combo to beat.

[nostatic]

Here is SoCal they are the new choice of ricers. The good news is there are plenty of spare parts now since lots of kids are crashing them on a daily basis. The bad news is the insurance companies now notice, so rates are climbing fast.

The headlights you saw are probably the STi spec. You can get them aftermarket.


I don't much care for the looks of the sedan, but the wagon is OK. And there is something cool about having a station wagon that can smoke most things on the road...

[rstoll]

Yeah, they may even be giving the guys in the Dodge Ram pickups a little competition.

[island911]

Yeah they do sport the 'tude. . .esp. in the presence of a 911.
I came up behind one in some tight twistys. Apparently he felt the need to "show me."
That Rex was pitch'n and roll'n, braking and cranking, through the turns. Meanwhile, my SC just calmly tailed him. . .of course I may have run up his six once or twice, just to let him know There is no substitute . . for a low CG

[Glasgow 911SC]

I don't think you can generalise about drivers of any vehicles> You should here what people say about Porsche owners!

[BlueSkyJaunte]

Chris speaks truth--I'll have my WRX within 2 weeks. Why? Because it's got a working A/C, 4 doors, 4 real seats, AWD, and a nice engine.

Who cares what it looks like? It's a grocery-getter. Plus, I'll be able to take some time to fix a lot of things on the P-car that have been languishing since it's my sole vehicle:

Headlight lens replacement
Seatbelt replacement
Foglight repair
Targa top recover
Targa Top seals
Fix driver's door rattle (window?)
Lube windows
Change oil
Locate and fix oil leak(s)
Fix A/C blower
Replace heater hose
Replace Targa rear window seal
Rebuild pedal cluster
Brakes (pads, fluid, etc.)
Get windshield washer(s) working
Change transmission oil
Big time detailing...

HA! How appropriate that this is post #666 for me!!!

[A Quiet Boom]

It's funny, when I used to street drive my 10sec drag Mustang I never felt the need to race a Porsche, I knew I could smoke any of them in a straight line but at the first turn I'd be on the brakes and they'd be long gone. Yet every kid with a loud exhaust or a ricer felt the need to race me, in those days (2-3 years ago) there weren't any 10sec Supras etc. so I didn't bother with them either. Now it's the same thing with the P-car and it's again getting annoying.

So I've come up with a plan hehe. My winter beater/race car hauler is a very ugly 1977 F100 stepside with a 460 modded to about 400hp, I'm thinking BFG drag radials in back an a NOS 250HP shot for the engine, maybe getting smoked by a total rust bucket truck will bring those egos down a bit? Seriously though, there are a bunch of kids in my neighborhood who are into fast cars of all kinds and they like to hang out and race on nearby streets. I went down there last night in the P-car and offered to pay the entrance fee for any of them that would go with me to the next Street Trophy Night at our local dragstrip, I hoping they'll enjoy themselves enough that they will take most of their racing to the track. So far 7 takers at 12 bucks a piece seems worth it!

[911nut]

Yesterday I had a cigarette-smoking 19 year old in a turbocharged Ford Probe tailgate me for 2 miles trying to goad me into a race. When he finally turned off in a divided highway turnaround he overcooked it and nearly pegged the curb with his front wheels.
His mommy needed to give him a good spanking...........
PB

[Adam]

The Australian market has had the Impreza WRX available for nearly 9 years now. As such, we've had to endure all the throttle blips at the lights too.

I actually work for a Subaru dealer. I have had the '99/'00/'01/'02 WRX as a company car, from time to time and I've gotta say that the latest incarnation of them are great cars. They do everything so competently. Sure, they look like a box of armpits, but they're actually a lot of FUN to drive. The power delivery is really nice too and the engine feels like it could do it all year round. They're very tough and built to take a lot of punishment.

They eat tyres (tires) and clutches if you use them hard, though.

[tobluforu]

It's funny that this is coming up since I have a turbo saab that has a lot of tricks installed. But, i'm almost out of things to do to it. Saab and subaru share the same dealership where I live. The dealer will actually give me a fare price for my 210hp saab. I know i could get more from the right person. My car actually smokes the tires in second gear when the turbo spools. My next door neighbor has the four door model, blue, which is my fav color. His car is putting out around 300 hp. I really don't like the looks of them. But heck I own a saab-not the best looking car. I think a nice set of rims, better tires and the car being lowered a few inches would make it look much better. My neighbor would be pissed though if I bought a blu one. I was hoping that the 2003 models would have different lights and not look so boxy. They remind me of the old m3's but funnier looking.
What to do..

[Adam]

In Australia at least, the 2003 model is set to have new headlights.

If they look like the spy photos show them, you'll suddenly love the old 2002 lights! The new ones are terrible!

[WydRyd]

The styling seems to be getting worse eh? I'm beginning to like the older WRX's look compared to the new. WTF? When the 2003 comes out, I'll like the current model??? Now THAT is a scarey thought

BTW, on the way home on Friday, I had the 'pleasure' to toy around with a Mitsubishi GTO 3000 (or is it a 3000GT?) along a deserted stretch of back-road. Wasn't really in the mood for thrashing my baby, but what the hell I don't think I need to reveal the rest

[bell]

anytime a wrx person wants to race me and we're sitting at a light i always say "ok.....let me go home and get my jeep so it's an even match"
and i don't even own a jeep........

[PORSHIN]

That's a good one Bell, I'll remember that. I really have a Jeep!
Rob

[bell]

other times i'll just laugh loudly and point at them, if they get smart i'll ask them if they want to head to the highway for a "lesson"......that usually discourages them

[toman]

Ok, I'm missing something with these WRXs. I work at a subaru dealership, and drive WRXs every day. They aren't that fast! The turbo lag is a killer to begin with, and even when you get past that they're really not that impressive. I prefer to drive the Imprezza RS, which is basicaly the same thing without the turbo, because it's much more responsive and fun to drive. Anyway, I don't think you guys have much to fear from the WRX crowd.

[West]

A friend of mine works as an track driving instructor. We were having a discussion about WRX 's and he said the same thing- their really not that fast. He said for your buck, the fastest, best handing "new" cars at the track are the M3's. Now, if there was an inch of snow on the track...

[Tinton]

toman, remember that most of these wrx's are modified. I'm assuming the ones u drive are all standard or not heavily modified.

Rarely do I see one without an exhaust from the turbo, front mount and the many other mods that are relatively cheap.

[Dana_Drury]

We have had the WRX in Australia for about 8 years now. Great little cars for the price, fairly quick, good handling, but yes, a lot of the drivers tend to have some serious attitude. They really are "rice-mobiles" for those who want long grain out of the box.

The car has a cult following over here.