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The Evo was officially sold this past Weekend because I never drive it and I was tired of paying for something that I never use. The original plan was to just drive the MINI everyday until the time was right to get another performance car. But things rarely go as planned with me. As some of you know, My girlfriend had some medical problems back in March. She passed out at work, slammed her head against the tile floor and spent some time in the hospital. They ran all kinds of tests and scans to find out why this happened. The final conclusion... an allergic reaction to a cold medication, combined with the use of Hydroxycut.

We were ecstatic it wasn't something major like Cancer. Some of you know how cancer has affected my life and how prevalent it is in my family.

My girlfriend runs a small company that just opened in July of last year. They haven't gotten big enough to have a lot of benefits. I also work for this company on my days off to help with advertising and assist in a managerial advisory role. One of the benefits that isn't currently offered is Medical. And the bills started rolling in. I don't know exactly where she is in terms of money owed but damn did they start rolling in.

She doesn't make as much as she used to and they payments on the Medical Bills, even with assistance, this is going to financially kill her. I made the decision that she would drive the MINI everyday and I would still make the payment so she could now put the money she was paying me to drive the Eclipse would go to the Medical Bills. Also, the MINI is far better with MPG than the Eclipse and she would save money there too.

That would leave me paying for and driving a 2008 Mitsubishi Eclipse GT that I absolutely hate. I just couldn't do it. Every dark cloud as a silver lining I guess. I decided to trade in the Eclipse and buy something that I will actually enjoy driving. The decision was made to order a new car, that new car is a 2011 Subaru Impreza WRX









The WRX is usually received as "Like it" or "hate it" in the car communities. I've always had a soft spot for Subarus. (as with EVOs) I own an house and wanted some extra room to haul things from Home Depot. The 5 door and fold down rear seats are awesome. I wanted a fun performance car that I could live with everyday, the Subaru is surprisingly comfortable, reminds me a lot of the MS3. I wanted something that wouldn't be inconvenient when it came to gas and highway driving. The Subaru gets 25-30mpg on the highway while the EVO got 18-22. I wanted somethings that still had the fun to drive element and wasn't boring. The Subaru has 265hp, AWD, and a brand new suspension for the 2011 model year. I wanted something that allowed my girlfriend and I the financial freedom to pay off debt. The Subaru is a lot cheaper per month (payment, gas, insurance) than the EVO and the Eclipse.

Au Revoir EVO, I absolutely loved that car. It was time to move on and I feel I will really enjoy the WRX as well.

Damn bro, from an evo to a WRX, thats fucking awesome. Nice ride, hope it treats you well

Hope all goes well with your girlfriends health and getting her finances in order.

As for the WRX, I asked on Facebook but I'm not sure you responded. Any mods planned? Coilovers, wheels? I'm sure you'll be upgrading it somehow for auto x

I'm not a fan of hatches typically... but that one is growing on me.

Best wishes and all on the financial deal too, of course.

Good call sir. I think you like like the WRX a lot. Be mindful of the satin silver trim surfaces...they are cosmetically delicate. We have had no real problems with that line at all

That aint no hatch, it's a wagon!

That being said, I love your car choices and abilities to make your decisions after weighing pros and cons and settling with where you need and being content. I look forward to your quick and simple mods. I'll miss seeing your Evo sig though

Glad to hear your girl is ok and it's nothing too bad.. Her health is what matters, hopefully the bills wont be to bad.

Congrats on the new ride!

Nice choice...the more and more I look at those cars they are growing on me. I dunno if I would pull the trigger on one myself but I would drive one given the chance.

Enjoy the car and debt sucks

Sucks about your girl, but atleast she will be okay.

On a better note. You are owning all of most peoples dream cars before you turn 30 lol.

sidepipe87 wrote:As for the WRX, I asked on Facebook but I'm not sure you responded. Any mods planned? Coilovers, wheels? I'm sure you'll be upgrading it somehow for auto x

Pretty much planning on doing what I did to the EVO to the WRX. Cobb Tuner, Rear Sway Bar, Springs/Coilovers, Exhaust, Wheels, Tires. Haven't really looked into specific parts, cost, or anything really, just a basic outlined plan.

FAC3L3SS wrote:That aint no hatch, it's a wagon!

That being said, I love your car choices and abilities to make your decisions after weighing pros and cons and settling with where you need and being content. I look forward to your quick and simple mods. I'll miss seeing your Evo sig though

Thank you, and the Evo signature inspired the WRX one. lo

heydockyle wrote:On a better note. You are owning all of most peoples dream cars before you turn 30 lol.

I'm consider myself very fortunate. I've worked very hard in my professional life and with my finances to have the freedom to do the things I want to do in life.

First off: VERY glad that everything is okay health wise for your girlfriend and that it wasn't something severe. Make sure that in the future she notes exactly what she was allergic to and avoids it at all costs. I deal with this on a daily basis for a number of allergies and sometimes you find something you're allergic to in the weirdest things.

Second: I love the WRX, way more than the EVO. Maybe I'm an oddity in that regard but although EVOs are super impressive on paper I was never fond of how they looked. I think it's awesome how far you went to help her out, you don't see that too often these days and it takes an awesome person to do what you did.

Best of luck paying off the bills, best wishes for a clean bill of health for her and a debt free 2011

Looks great Travis! Love it in black!

Does it have fogs?

LilSparkPlug wrote:Second: I love the WRX, way more than the EVO. Maybe I'm an oddity in that regard but although EVOs are super impressive on paper I was never fond of how they looked. I think it's awesome how far you went to help her out, you don't see that too often these days and it takes an awesome person to do what you did.

Best of luck paying off the bills, best wishes for a clean bill of health for her and a debt free 2011

Thank you, I really appreciate it. I've asked her to stop taking her work out pills and few other things. Hopefully we never see a relapse of what happened.

Canada wrote:Looks great Travis! Love it in black!

Does it have fogs?

I was going to order the car in Blue but couldn't find one without waiting at least 15 weeks. Now that I have it in Black I REALLY like it. As I said when I was buying the MS3, Black hides ugly. lol

No, it doesn't have any fog lights. Those aren't available until you hit the "Premium" model. I could of upgraded to that model, but I rather have a lower monthly payment than Fog lights, heated mirros, heated seats, and a Sunroof.

Its lighter this way anyhow...

I really like the depth of the black and the flake in the paint, saw one a few weeks back in direct sunlight, it absolutely sparkles!

Canada wrote:Its lighter this way anyhow...

I really like the depth of the black and the flake in the paint, saw one a few weeks back in direct sunlight, it absolutely sparkles!

Completely agree. It just looks like a totally different car in black than it does in the other colors.

Well, I imagine down in Florida you wouldn't have a whole lot of use for heated mirrors and seats anyways...

Hope that your girlfriend feels better soon.

Odd, your dash looks very reminiscent of the one in the Forester that I drive for work (nothing bad about that, just an observation).

No burnout vids yet?

MoxHair wrote: Thank you, I really appreciate it. I've asked her to stop taking her work out pills and few other things. Hopefully we never see a relapse of what happened.

She really should, allergies are nothing to screw around with. Those pills are so dangerous from the start. Just eat healthy, in moderation, and exercise. Not taking those pills anymore would've been the first thing I would've done if I were her.

Awesome i love the new subbies

also glad your girl is okay man

Very sweet. Be sure to throw out some comparisons between the EVO and the Rex once you drive it more.

Enjoy her man...congratz.

So you've had it a few days, any deeper thoughts on the car? Have you given it a name? ( )

I'm really enjoying driving this car. I actually made the comment that after 4 days of owning this car I actually like it more than I liked the Evo after 4 days of owning it.

I really like the growl of the engine and audible whine of the Turbo spooling up. Makes me smile when I get on the gas a bit. Both of these will only get better when an exhaust is installed.

The Car isn't broken in yet but in a couple short jaunts the car accelerates pretty hard. You can tell that it's a lot lighter than the Evo. Even with 40 less horsepower it still takes off hard.

I like the fact the WRX doesn't have launch control. I don't have a computer telling me I'm doing it wrong when I try to launch from a dead stop. The car requires more driver input rather than computer telemetry which is a welcome change. I feel I can drive this car faster than the Evo; the Evo may still be faster.

The WRX is incredibly comfortable on the highway. It can be tame and a cruiser and then down shift and accelerate and it takes off. The Power delivery is linear and smooth.

I fit 10 bags of mulch, 4 bags of potting soil, and lots of plants in the car with the seats folded down. It was nice to only make one trip to Home Depot rather than several.

The only negative I have so far is it didn't come with XM or Sirius and the local radio stations absolutely suck in this part of the world. I haven't decided if I'm going to purchase the Subaru satellite radio box for the stock head unit or if I'm going to go to my store and buy an xm kit that I'll have to add in like I did the MINI.

And Sean, I shall punch you for suggesting that I would EVER name one of my cars. FOR SHAME SEAN, FOR SHAME!

I said it completely in jest knowing how much you despise named vehicles Trav. You know this.

Congrats! And its not a bright color.

Subaru's are amazingly easy to drive. Going between my srt and my buddy's wrx is ridiculous. Feels like a grandma car till you get on it.

oh man..... this is exactly what I've been looking at lately.. I know you pay a lot of attention to detail please keep us posted with how you like it because I'm honestly looking at picking one of these up in the summer.

neonpla wrote:oh man..... this is exactly what I've been looking at lately.. I know you pay a lot of attention to detail please keep us posted with how you like it because I'm honestly looking at picking one of these up in the summer.

Well as a quick update. The car has just under 1,700 miles on it. I've really enjoyed driving this car, probably more so than any other car I've owned for a short period of time. It's really nice to have the extra room the Hatch/Wagon provides. I don't really have to worry if I can actually fit something in the car when I'm out around town. The car is comfortable on the highway. I've taken a trip to Tampa and Sarasota in the car with people from work and my passengers even complimented the comfort of the car, it still has a sporty feel but it isn't uncomfortable during a long trip. One of my female employees fell asleep during one trip and she said that there "Is plenty of room" in the back seat.

As comfortable and versatile the car is, it still wakes up as soon as you roll onto the throttle. The flat 4 gives a great exhaust note that makes me smile whenever I accelerate hard. However, I do notice that there is a bit too much body roll during quick cornering and switchback turns. I probably notice it a lot more because of how flat the Evo was, and the average person probably would never notice. I think with a nice set of springs and a larger, possibly adjustable Rear Sway Bar the car would be that much better in the corners. I'm not saying the car won't handle, the 2011 suspension is a hundred times better than the suspension on the 2008-2010 WRX, it just needs a bit of performance refinement.

I've added an XM radio and tinted the windows, since I took delivery. I'm averaging 23 mpg cruising at 80 mph on the highway. The one thing I dislike about the car is the "Hill assist" feature of the traction control. When you're on an incline the car will not roll backwards when the car is in gear and you take your foot off the brake. This feature probably comes in real handy if you live in a hilly area, but The only inclines I see is my driveway. The Hill assist makes it really hard to crawl up the driveway and into the garage. It feels like the car wants you to fly into the garage and slam the car into the house.

The WRX isn't as flashy or a flat out performance as the Evo was. But it still has the power to be incredibly fun and very competitive in it's class, has a way better suspension than previous iterations of the WRX that with a bit of tuning would have a boat load of potential. It's also a versatile and comfortable car that you can live with everyday. I'm very impressed with this car, and In my opinion it can only get better with some my trademark improvements.

MoxHair wrote:and she said that there "Is plenty of room" in the back seat.

MoxHair wrote:It feels like the car wants you to fly into the garage and slam the car into the house.

I'm glad you enjoy the WRX, Travis. I still think it's ugly as sin though.

I'd rock a new 'rex in a heartbeat. Glad to hear you like that car. Although if I was new car shopping, I'd have a hard time passing up a new 4-door GTI. I just fell 100% in love with those after having mine.