A Pleasant Surprise

When my wife and I set out to buy a new car, we had already narrowed it down to a Subaru. They came highly recommended by friends and coworkers, test drives of the various models left us impressed with their handling, and we noted seeing an awful lot of older Subaru vehicles on the road. You know, late and early 80's, with over 200,000 on the odometer. That alone should speak for the mechanical quality of these machines.

So in January of '04, we went to Flemington Subaru of New Jersey. For the longest time, we'd had our hearts set on the Forester. But then we saw the Baja. We've seen this thing running around town before, and always dismissed it as a "quirky" and "strange" car. But just to have a well-rounded experience before we bought, we took a closer look. We were both impressed with the comfort of the cabin, both in front and in back. The rear seats had a surprising amount of room, though the headroom for a taller person (I'm 6') is a little tight. The drivers seat was very comfy, and the controls were laid out well, almost intuitively. The model we looked at was equipped with a bed extender, and it set up easily within a matter of seconds. The "Switchback System" as it's called (being able to knock down the rear seats to extend the cargo area) was great, and with the type of work we are doing to our house, a useful feature.

So after having all of our expectations of this weird car turned upside down, we took one out for a test drive. The steering was tight, the ride was smooth and surefooted (even on a couple of very harsh turns), and the breaking was quick. I should note that this is the first car I ever drove that had ABS brakes, and when I locked them up (you gotta test these things), the rattle I got out of the peddle scared the you-know-what out of me. I now see this as a good warning sign of bad road conditions. Acceleration was good, as I was able to quickly whip into traffic on a busy street. After my wife got behind the wheel and pulled into the dealership lot ten minutes later, she looked at me and said, "I want this car!”

We bought a 2003 Subaru Baja that day. As it turned out, we were able to purchase a very slightly used model (the previous owner had medical issues that precluded him from driving any longer, and the dealership graciously bought the car back from him). The one we got was owned for 4 months and had 4000 miles on it. It was fully loaded, came with the bed extender and a dealer-installed, color matched SnugTop bed cover.

We've had this ca-truck (my new word for this vehicle) for about four months now. It has exceeded our expectations at every turn. This past winter was a hard one, and I've got to tell you, this thing has absolutely no idea what snow is. It was able to plow through a foot of snow with no effort. Water puddles? In any other car, when you drive through one of those, the vehicle tends to pull towards the puddle. Not a Subaru. It goes right through it as if it were on rails. The combination of the bed extender and switchback system allowed me to haul home 8 boxes of 8-foot long, 10-inch wide, 4-inch high hardwood flooring! The SnugTop lid (of which Subaru is an Authorized Dealer) is a perfect match, as it keeps the cargo area dry when you are carrying delicate cargo, and lifts off in a matter of seconds when you need to carry a larger load. Why this isn't a standard feature on the Baja is beyond me.

So I love the car. I love how flexible it is for cargo purposes. I love how it handles. I'm even getting to love how goofy it looks. I mean, this is the ugliest "cool" car in the world! But to be fair, I need to pick out a few things I don't like.

First, the cup-holders in the front are positioned too far back. Anything sitting in those gets in the way of the emergency brake.

Second, the front armrest should have been positioned a little further forward. As it is, only my elbow reaches the thing (and I drive with the seat all the way back).

Third, with the sunroof open, there is a lot of wind noise.

Lastly, I'm surprised it doesn't get better MPG. I average about 320 miles per tank. This ca-truck has a 2.5l, 4 banger boxer engine. I've had a 3.0l V6 pull better MPG under the same driving conditions. I guess it's a trade-off for superior engineering?

All told, I would buy one again. This is my first Subaru, and I'll stick with this manufacturer in the future. It's a great vehicle that just "feels right". Sadly, the Baja is not selling very well, and from what I understand, it may be discontinued in 2006 if sales do not pick up.