Some thoughts on my "new" 2004 WRX wagon

I leased a 2004 WRX wagon back in February and now that I've had it for 6 months, I thought I'd pass on some of my impressions.... This is the first Subaru I've ever owned and a major part of my decision was the reception I received at the dealer (Scarboro Subaru in Toronto). Having just come from a Pontiac/Buick dealer where the salesman had no interest in spendng any time with me (telling me in so many words that since Saturday was such a high volume selling day, if I wasn't ready to buy a car that day he wanted nothing to do with me), I was impressed with the willingness of the Subaru salesman to spend as much time as I needed, which included stopping at my house to pick up my wife and giving both of us generous time behind the wheel to test drive the various models that we took out that day (3 of them). All in all, he ended up spending about 5 out of 6 total hours I spent in the dealership that day with us. I don't know if this is typical of Subaru but it sold me as much as the car itself. I had pretty well decided on the Imprezza Sport when I jokingly asked the salesman about the WRX wagon they had displayed in the showroom (knowing full well it was out of my price range) and he explained it was a demo with

10000 km on it and would I be interested in having a look? Suffice to say that once I drove it, the deal was done and the price turned out to be quite reasonable. So what did I get?..... Everything I've ever wanted in a car, combining practicality with a helluva lot of driving fun. Being a wagon, I have plenty of room in the back for the dogs and/or cargo and the WRX engine/suspension gives me all the performance I could ask for, not to mention the all wheel drive. Dislikes: At first I wasn't thrilled with the OEM Bridgestone RE92's but they've settled down with use and have performed well in all weather conditions. I know these tires have been discussed many times in the group but so far my experience with them has been decent. The ventilation system also leaves something to be desired. In the cold months the car seems incapable of keeping the driver's or passenger's feet warm and in the warm month's it's taking far too long for the A/C to get the car to a comfortable temperature. To be fair, it is a black exterior along with a mostly black (with grey trim) interior so it's not totally unexpected. My biggest beef has got to be with the throttle/automatic transmission (yes, yes, I know, but my wife refuses to learn standard and it being a demo, I had no choice on the transmission anyway). I don't know if it's just me or they have it progammed this way for fuel economy but I find myself manually shifting down to 3rd most of the time when needed. Using the throttle to downshift results in too much lag in my opinion, up to 3 seconds or so on the highway which can be dangerous when trying to move into a gap in the left lane to pass. By the time the transmission downshifts, a car coming up from behind on the left can be too close. It's also slow to respond in the city, sometimes even refusing to downshift at all (3rd to 2nd and 2nd to 1st) despite repeatedly pressing the throttle to the floor. Any other WRX owners experiencing this? Anybody found a way to get around this? One last minor point: I recently removed the roof-rack crossbars from the roof and was surprised to find that there's no storage space cut out for them under the flip up panels on the floor in the back. Again, anybody find a solution? Likes: Performance, performance, performance! The seats: These have got to be the most comfortable seats I've ever had the pleasure of sitting in. I recently did a four hour trip up north to go camping with no back discomfort or fatigue at all. I've got a 7 or 8 hour drive down to New York State planned for September and have absolutely no hesitation in going. Highway fuel economy: While never having taken the tank down to empty, I'd guesstimate that I get around 400 km to the tank in the city but during my recent drive up north, I probably could have gotten at least 600 km, maybe even as much as 700. Quite the difference! Overall, the dislikes only peripherally take away from the driving pleasure of the car and if it lives up to Subaru's reputation for quality, I'll probably buy it once the lease runs out. I also want to say how much I've enjoyed reading everybody's posts on the newsgroup over the past few months and I look forward to more in the future.