2008 Subaru Impreza WRX STI: Dr. McRolly

Desmo -- Sure is. Not good for traffic flow.

OR... make a nice livable suspension for the majority of the driving that the majority of STI purchasers do, then let those that want more upgrade their suspension. :) I bet you can get some pretty good bang-per-buck out of some new sway bars and maybe a $2k set of coilovers.

Shades of Motor Trend, which said the same thing.....
 
Isn't the Subaru WRX STI supposed to be a rally car derivative, with rally-style suspension travel and response?
 
Would it be fair to lable Lotus Elise as "bad" because its flat-cornering, track-oriented suspension bottoms like mad when driven on a rally course?
 
Still, perhaps next time around, Subaru will put an adjustable suspension on the STI so it _can_ do rally or track work?

yeah, I say: the suspension settings you recommend might be okay for the glass-smooth pavement of SoCal, but as you know Josh the pavement in the northeast is about as smooth as a third world country's. I bet Subaru also takes into consideration where the majority of its vehicles are sold: the frost-heave states.

Take the STI down a nice gravel path, or on a broken up chunk of road (say, Mulholland from the Rock Store to the beach) and you'll understand why its sprung the way it is. For pure tarmac driving, stiffer springs and sway bars make a world of difference.

Kurtamaxxguy,
 
Yes, it's a rally-car derivative, but how many STI owners are going rally-racing on the weekends? Maybe a lot do -- I definitely don't have my finger on the pulse of that community. But my guess is that most STIs stay on the street. If that's the case, all that body roll doesn't make much sense.
 
Gabbo, I dunno. Even if I were living in the Northeast, I'd be pretty disappointed with Dr. McRolly's handling compared with its direct competitor, the Evo. And let's keep in mind that the STI doesn't exactly ride like a luxury car -- there's still a fair amount of impact harshness over broken pavement.
 
-Sadlier

you might be interested in a C/D article from a while back - "Demon Tweaks" in which they installed stiffer anti-roll bars in a Forester XT and it made a world of difference. Perhaps the STI could use a similar modification.

James I would actually disagree with the Evo being the STI's main competitor these days. The Mitsu is about as related to a rally car as the BMW 3-series. Mitsubishi gave up trying to make a rally car for the street with the Evo IX and instead gave us a sport sedan with a crappy interior. I think the STI is more in a class by itself as a real rally car for the street, and when classified as such the suspension makes sense. Still, I am glad you mentioned it so that potential buyers know what they are getting into.
 
Also, anyone who classifies California's roads as "glass-smooth" has clearly never driven here. Our state's budget is so screwed up roads get neglected and pothole ridden.

Cobb Tuning has some new front and rear sway bars out that do a lot to improve the '08s handling characteristics and reduce the annoying body roll.

Anyone who thinks Evo isn't STI's main competitor is... oh geez, I can't do this any more...

louiswei, I was just arguing that with the current methodologies of Mitsubishi and Subaru the cars are nowhere near as related as they once were. The Evo X cannot be taken rallying in any form without causing serious driveline damage. The new Evo is really more of a sport sedan, a damn good one, but not a rally car anymore. The STI is not a great sport sedan/hathcback but it is a great rally car. If the two cars were first introduced as they are right now, no one would think of them as direct competitors. This competition comes from the years in which both companies approached speed in the same way.

The EVO is still better on the pavement, who really takes their 35K STI rallying?

As mercedesfan points out, CA (and OR, among others) roads have not been well maintained. My '04 Maxx survived a 170 freeway pothole run appeareing during a sudden thunderstorm only because it had a long travel suspension and hi-rise tires. Cars out there that are great on the track get eaten alive by that stuff (as many BMWs' with rubber bands parked on side of the freeway demonstrated).
 
Still, sounds like Cobb has an answer for those who want to track their STI's.

Oh the 170 is bad, the last time I road out there it looked 100yrs old. The 101 is pretty good except for when you start to get out into Ventura, some work needs to be done there (happening now)