The throttle response in Intelligent mode is quite soft, designed to make stop-and-go driving, for example in freeway jams, smoother. It's not the mode for abrupt throttle application. We found a stunning lag when our foot hit the floor; in fact, we drove down the highway pumping the gas pedal on and off the floor, and the car never felt a thing: not a single lurch or waver from our 50-mph cruising speed. The engine uses electronic throttle control (ECT), which eliminates mechanical linkage to the throttle pedal and theoretically improves response; however, because it's electronic it's mapped, and the mapping can be the culprit behind most anything that's not an improvement when it could or should be.
The throttle gets more responsive as you move the dial from I to S to SS, although it's still not immediately responsive until the tachometer needle approaches the lofty height of 5000 rpm.
Intelligent mode doesn't provide strong acceleration, but the dial can be used to fix that; on a freeway on-ramp, when we weren't satisfied with the acceleration, we moved the dial to Sport Sharp, and the car zoomed as if it had been kicked in the rear license plate: not surprising, considering it was an instant addition of nearly 50 horsepower. Our spec.B test car felt like it had an Indy Car's push-to-pass button; and come to think of it, the dial could be used like that during passing on two-lanes.
Subaru says Intelligent mode delivers about 10 percent better fuel mileage (91 octane required), so if you used it half the time, figure 5 percent. That's about the same claim that Chrysler and GM make, with their variable displacement egines, which can switch from eight cylinders to four when your foot is very light on the pedal. During a 180-mile drive with other automotive journalists, the highest mileage anyone got in a GT was 25 mpg, and the lowest was 18. That was us.
The engine incorporates AVCS, or Active Valve Control System, which electonically varies the camshaft and valve timing for optimum efficiency in pusuit of the sweet spot between torque and horsepower. The Engine Controle Module (ECM) regulates the AVCS based on input from various sensors.
The four-channel anti-lock brakes on the GT are big and solid, with vented rotors measuring 12.3 inches in diameter in front and 11.3 inches in rear. The feel is heightened by a tandem booster like that used on some expensive European sedans.
There's also a new Torsen limited-slip rear differential, and the spec.B gets a stronger, four-pinion front differential.
The roads in Quebec were pretty bad, with a lot of unfixed potholes from the previous winter. But our GT spec.B was never uncomfortable over the many sharp bumps, despite being very firm on its Bilstein shock absorbers; this versatility is the mark of an excellent suspension. Only once did we feel a harsh thunk like bottoming, when a rear wheel clipped a pothole at speed.
We also threw the spec.B around as many corners as we could, and it responded with the same kind of stability and tightness, thanks in large part to the excellent inherent balance of the boxer engine with horizontally opposed cylinders, which can be mounted lower in the chassis. And the Bilstein shocks, of course.
One disadvantage to the spec.B is that, because of its larger wheels and tires, its turning circle is 38 feet, compared to 35.4 feet with the GT Limited.
We also drove a GT Limited wagon, and were startled to find that the suspension felt much the same, even without the Bilsteins and inverted struts. It wasn't quite as stiff, but clearly the Subaru suspension engineers have paid attention to a firm ride and tight handling, throughout the line.
We tested the five-speed automatic transmission in the GT Limited wagon, and it was excellent: sharp and obedient, with controls for the Sportshift mode located on the steering wheel. The transmission shifts or holds its gears more aggressively, as you move from the I to S to SS modes.
The six-speed manual gearbox in the spec.B was adapted from the Impreza WRX STI, with the same special synchronizers for smooth downshifting, but we found the spec.B shifts less positive than those with the WRX, which we recently tested. With the upshifts, the issue might have been lagging throttle response; the spec.B doesn't respond well to quick upshifts and return to full throttle. The downshifts were sometimes even rougher, probably because of the cramped brake and gas pedal. Shifting in the spec.B takes some learning.
But one nice thing is the anti-stall feature. You can release the clutch from a standstill with almost no throttle, and if the engine falters, sensors give it more gas and prevent the stall.
We've also driven the standard Legacy 2.5i models.
The five-speed manual transmission in the Legacy 2.5i models makes better use of the engine's power than the automatic, but it's not the most precise gearbox in this class, and downshifting with confidence takes some practice.
The suspension on the 2.5i models soaks up road bumps and joints, though the 17-inch wheels produce some resonance (vibration). Washboard pavement in corners unsettles the car enough to notice, but not enough to cause any anxiety. The Legacy is stable at interstate speeds, though we noticed it was susceptible to cross winds and turbulence generated by 18-wheelers.
