*PERTH* New Liberty Launch & catchup - Wed 9th September

[Ric]

Someone take a camera!

[Jimmy S]

yes RSVP to Emily on 9416 0888

Done-ski! C ya'z tonight!

[GTSPECB STI]

I'm out for tonight boys. Not going to have time to get to this and make my monthy poker game. Priorities are in order.

[Jimmy S]

hahah... weak...

[TorpedoCreative]

hahah... weak...

x2

[dwayne]

hahah... weak...

x2

x3 !!!

Jimmy, you bringing a camera ?

[GTSPECB STI]

hahah... weak...

[GTSPECB STI]

hahah... weak...

Jimmy ask Fred or Jaron about our poker games..winnings pay for mods

[vitagen]

x4 on the weak comment

see u guys there

[Jimmy S]

Turns out I was weak also... got asked to fill in for a mates bball team at the last minute so didn't make it!

How was it fellas!?

[GTB Liberty]

Turns out I was weak also... got asked to fill in for a mates bball team at the last minute so didn't make it!

How was it fellas!?

LOL Jimmy - what a classic

[TorpedoCreative]

GT looks better in the flesh than the photos. Car is much bigger, inparticular the boot and engine bay. Still too much Toyota influence for my liking. Needs to be dropped a good few inches... Ask me in 6 months and I will probably be more favourable (as we get used to seeing it around the streets)

J

[dwayne]

Lionel (vitagen), James (TorpedoCreative) and myself turned up.

It's not as bad in the flesh as the photos, and the black makes it less offensive. Still not a hugely pretty car, but after six months or so, I'm sure some will concede it's "OK". I must admit it's a car I could learn to like, and I think with a small number of changes would definitely be a more attractive car. Subaru will realise this, just like they did with the Tribeca and the bug eye WRX.

Random musings: It sits *WAY* too high, needs to be dropped about 2 inches. Boot is simply huge, couldn't believe the size of it. Very deceptive, especially with such a short bootlid. Engine bay is also very large. Universal agreement was the alloys on the GT needed to be a different colour - shadow chrome or something. The silver ones just look like hubcaps. Tyres are same as Gen 4, the Potenza's, which is a good thing. Got different stories from different salesmen on the turbo - one said it's same as MY09WRX, one said doesn't know if it's twin scroll or not, other one had no idea. The wagon remains a pretty good looking wagon.

Interior didn't feel any longer, but certainly was wider. Dash is cheap,hard plastic, which is just way out of place amongst the generally OK, but confusingly laid out switchgear. Keyless proximity system is straight out of the Toyota's, so if you've used their system, this works exactly the same. Interestingly, there is also a small keylock in the boot, hidden up above the numberplate in the handle area. Always needed if the proximity card battery dies. The maplights in front of car do NOT go on when the door is opened, so it's still a black hole area. EDIT: Apparently maplights do go on, but you need to have the proximity key on you or nearby Closing the door sounds like a Korean trying to be a BMW. Solid thunk, but not enough bass.

There's a handle cutout in the base of the boot lid lining now, making closing the boot a little more elegant. Gas struts now are on both bonnet and boot. Bilsteins are on 2.5 Premium/sports model, all 3.6's and 2.5GT's. All 3.6's and 2.5GT's get the "premium" moniker. Given there is no handbrake, the centre console design is a bit better, with a larger console box. Switchgear on steering wheel has moved to small push-release toggle style switches, which lack the solid quality feel the pushbuttons have got. No longer an Audi competitor in that area.

Boot release is now a press button on the dash, next to the park brake pullswitch, and hillholder. Lot's more legroom for the driver, dash shape is quite different in the knee area. Chrome garnish on doorframes looks OK on the premium models. Bumper is a dissappointment, instead of a separate design the single muffler mdoels now have a cutout where the other pipe would be. Tailpipes are a disappointment, just like the Forester XT's, but with the subaru tailpipe cover on them. Look terrible, but not quite as bad as the XT. Pipework underneath has gone on a diet, looks like it's about 1.75". If the turbo really is the new MY09WRX one, a new exhaust would be a perfect first mod to open it up a lot. The 2.5 now has a single muffler, the 3.6 and 2.5GT's have the twin.

Front end is almost vertical, and the Subaru wings and badge protrude from the grill by quite a bit. I do like the new grillwork, the plastic open honeycomb still mesh looks quite alright. Get rid of the wings or paint them black and it would look pretty good. The headlights don't look as massive in person as they do in the photos, so that's a good thing.
Tail end looks almost like an IS250 from drivers height on the road (which is a good thing), but from pedestrian height walking by looks like an Aurion (which is a bad thing). Side profile is let down by the wheel colour and design.

Boot now has more chrome, in the form of Liberty badge on the right and a "Symmetrical AWD" badge on the left. Let's hope it comes off easily.

James commented that it's lost it's identity, and I couldn't agree more. Too much Toyota, not enough Lexus. If you look at it from a cost point of view, you can easily see things where they have cut costs, however the price of the vehicle has gone down, which for a car that's been made larger, is quite rare. Cost cutting is evident in areas like interior plastics quality,

Haven't driven one, and not hugely fussed about it, but will probably get down their in the next few weeks and take one for a drive. The GT model they had in the yard area was CVT. Whilst on that, the six speeder feels like shite. Throw length was far too long, and it felt like a cheap 'box. Bring back the STi derived box from the Gen 4 Spec B's, please.

My final comment for the evening was "Front end from an Epica/Camry, Rear end from an Aurion, C pillar from a Maxima, with the ride height of a Hummer"

[HellKnight]

Great review Dwayne. I didn't go to the opening even with my invite due to the disappoinment of what I saw from pictures. The interior review was great as well as the door sound (which is something I do myself). So overall what you 3 rate it out of 10?

-Martin.

[dwayne]

Great review Dwayne. I didn't go to the opening even with my invite due to the disappoinment of what I saw from pictures. The interior review was great as well as the door sound (which is something I do myself). So overall what you 3 rate it out of 10?

-Martin.

Provided it feels the same on the road in terms of balance and handling as the current Gen IV's do, probably a 6.5 to a 7. If it rides differently, then other things become not quite so forgivable.

Cheers