California Highway 120, also known as Tioga Pass Road, is the northern entrance into Yosemite National Park, and if you look at a map, it looks like just the sort of road you'd want to be on with our long-term 2008 Subaru WRX STI.
Except when it's closed, which is six months out of the year; May 21 was the first day in 2008 you could drive on it. The STI and I were locked out over the weekend, but on Sunday it reopened and off we went.
The scenery is as majestic as anything you'll see in the Alps.
I have a lot of photos of our STI in the park, simply because I was so awe-struck, I had to keep pulling over so as not to hold up traffic.
That said, the WRX STI set the pace on Tioga Pass Road. The elevation is nearly 10,000 feet as you enter Yosemite, but you wouldn't know that from the STI's driver seat (which, by the way, is significantly less supportive through turns than a Recaro would be, but exceptionally comfortable for long-distance travel). The turbocharged 2.5-liter felt strong on this 35-degree afternoon, and we made quick work of the many sweeping turns along this route.
Heel-and-toe downshifts were especially satisfying: The longish clutch takeup that sometimes feels awkward in city traffic feels considerably more user-friendly when you're running at a brisker pace. And after each downshift, I enjoyed the sound of the boxer engine back up at high rpm.
In addition, I'm becoming a fan of the suspension's somewhat conservative state of tune. We hit some fairly rough roads on this trip, and the STI was composed and compliant over 85-90 percent of them.
Highway 120/Tioga Pass Road doesn't have any truly tight turns, so the car's softer setup was adequate here as well. It's important to mention the Subaru and I weren't running at an all-out pace, though. For one thing, this was like a vacation, and for another, I was concerned about black ice as the sun began to dip behind the mountains. If I owned this car, mind you, I think I'd want to do stuff to firm up the suspension, but after this trip, the standard setup wouldn't put me off from buying an STI.
The Tioga Pass Road empties into U.S. 395 at Mono Lake, which although depleted by decades of pumping on behalf of thirsty Angelenos, is still a breathtaking sight. (The lake is the strip of blue you see in these photos -- enlarging them helps.)
The frigid town of Bridgeport in 30 miles farther north, and the STI's outside temperature gauge recorded a low of 16 degrees, likely the lowest ever reading for our California-based car.
It got even colder at night, of course, and without benefit of a garage or block heater, I wasn't surprised by the longer crank times when starting the STI in the morning.
On one occasion, the engine stalled right after startup, but a second twist of the key revived it immediately. I can't imagine living here without a heated garage. The Bridgeport Inn is kind of an interesting, historic place to stay, by the way. It originally opened in 1877 to house miners working in nearby Bodie, California. The rest of Bridgeport I could take or leave. Not only is it cold here, but also the residents aren't exactly welcoming toward SoCal people. I'll be staying in Mono Lake next time.
Fuel economy for the 968-mile trip was 19.9 mph. Had I been willing to drive 75 mph on the highway, I'm sure the STI would have done better. However, setting the cruise at 80-85 for most of the 350-mile drive back to LA netted 22.8 mpg.
Erin Riches, Inside Line Senior Editor @ 11,668 miles
m_thrizzle says:
01:02 PM, 10/16/08
Great photos!
misterscoopman says:
01:25 PM, 10/16/08
How many stone hits did you have from the adventure? I see from the temperature picture that you were in Auto + mode -- did the DCCD setting for snow help/make a noticable difference?
eriches says:
01:31 PM, 10/16/08
As far as I can tell, the STI didn't take any significant damage on the adventure -- after washing off the salt and gunk, there were no obvious pits or scratches.
As far as the usefulness of Auto + mode, I can't really weigh in here -- simply because we had to be so, so careful with the summer tires. So in other words, this wasn't a great test of this feature. Sorry.
desmolicious says:
01:49 PM, 10/16/08
greenhorn question... I've never been on I395 past the road to Mammoth . I need to drive to Carson City, NV next Saturday (from LA) for a memorial. The car I was going to take was my BMW 330 but it has the summer perf tyres. Should I take my Jeep instead? I have no idea what the roads/conditions would be like...
p.s. great snaps!
eriches says:
02:43 PM, 10/16/08
Hi, Desmo. It was warming up by the time we left on Monday (40s) and was supposed to return to the 70s this week. So unless there's snow in the forecast again, I would think you'd be OK.
eriches says:
02:45 PM, 10/16/08
OK with the 330, that is
misterfusion says:
04:48 PM, 10/16/08
Ah, Lee Vining -- home to the most expensive gasoline (relative to the national average) I've ever purchased.
I haven't been to Mono Lake since its nadir in the 1980's-90's, but with the DWP restoration, the lake level should be much higher today -- even with the drought.
Oh, and what a lovely and informative post this was. Well done, Erin.
bbastyr says:
05:41 PM, 10/16/08
I found the stock suspension to be a good compromise between handling and comfort, particularly in the neglected urban streets of Chicago. I would definitely get a new set of sway bars and an alignment to eliminate the body roll. You guys really need to get a Cobb Accessport to at least move to a Stage 1 tune.
desmolicious says:
06:12 PM, 10/16/08
Thanks Erin. I'll check the weather forecasts.
estreka says:
06:15 PM, 10/16/08
Beautiful pics, Erin.
stevej2001 says:
06:26 PM, 10/16/08
The real reason not to push your car on the Tioga road is the radar equipped rangers all over the road. Most of it is 45mph with some 35mph stretches and they aren't kidding.
But since it's one of the most beautiful drives in the world, why hurry?
carmizvi says:
09:31 PM, 10/16/08
I'm going to sound like a parrot, but your pictures are absolutely inspiring. Appreciated your perspective on the suspension, too. Too bad one suspension tune can't fit all modes of use.
Or can it? Hmm...
sgude says:
07:12 AM, 10/17/08
Great post, great pictures. Dang, Erin -- you're showing the rest of 'em how this business of auto blogging is done! While others are crybabying over "low range" not stating an exact amount in the CTS or the slam quality of the xB (which is actually kind of pertinent), you're out DRIVING. Bravo.
I second you on the attitude of Bridgeport residents -- they can keep their snow and cold weather. I'll be in San Dog, chillin' in a different way.
johnmarco says:
07:51 AM, 10/17/08
Did you start on the West side? I'm confused by your route.
eriches says:
10:39 AM, 10/17/08
johnmarco: We just drove straight north from the LA West Side, using the 14 and 395. The idea was to drive into Yosemite every day for day hikes (thus getting in some cool driving before/after). But because of the snow, we only made it into the park on Sunday, and because it was so cool, we didn't end up hiking. Just driving. Which isn't a bad thing.
johnmarco says:
04:21 PM, 10/17/08
Gotcha. Thanks for the explainer and cool pics.
zjev says:
06:36 AM, 10/19/08
Great post Erin! I loved the info and all of the great pictures (and that you could blow them up slightly) I wish more of the posts were like this. Thanks
drphyzx says:
02:35 PM, 11/ 5/08
BTW, now that you are modding an EVO X GSR, does that mean you'll begin to go the same route with this car? Given your complaints about the car, I think you would be pretty happy if you did so:
- Accessport, downpipe and protune (much more power and much smoother power delivery)
- Stiffer anti-roll bars (less roll and firmer handling without seriously compromising ride)
- Performance alignment: more negative front camber and zero toe all around (together with stiffer bars eliminate understeer)
With these changes, it's a whole different car. Seriously... you wouldn't even believe it's the same car if you drove them back to back (I have).