Topic: Mango's U.S. Spec 2010 WRX Limited *UPDATE*

[tpl]

Looks real sharp. This is a way better looking car than it used to be.

Van Bortel - I know it has been mentioned some where on here from before, but where are they out of? I should check it out since the Legacy goes next year and it might be worth the drive to.....?

Google maps will tell you exactly.   Google "van bortel subaru"  A 300 km drive from Guelph so a bit more from TO

I guess that you fly into Rochester to pick up ?

[tpl]

Congrats.  Very nice.   Are you required to change the speedo and odo to metric?

Thanks

No changes of any kind are required. The speedo shows KMs.

DRLs?   already there or just a computer change at Van Bortel ?

[Vmango]

DRLs come with the car. Funny enough, a lot of American guys mod the car to turn off this feature - I don't really understand that. Although, those guys on NASIOC do a lot of weird things to their cars. I'll never understand "Hella Flush."


I drove down to Van Bortel (Victor NY, a nice Suburb of Rochester) with my retired father. I drove back on my own in my new car. The area is gorgeous. I was surprised. They're about two hours from the border.

I was close to going with the Legacy GT. You can pick up a fully loaded GT Limited through Van Bortel for roughly 28K. Just google them, go to their website and click on their "build a car" link. They start negotiations at $400 over invoice. Karl is the guy you'll want to talk to. His contact information is on the site.

I paid $2000 and change under American MSRP.

PM me if you have any serious questions regarding importing - specifically from Van Bortel. I would be happy to help. As I've mentioned, it really is easy as pie.

[Railton]

Congrats.  Very nice.   Are you required to change the speedo and odo to metric?

Thanks

No changes of any kind are required. The speedo shows KMs.

DRLs?   already there or just a computer change at Van Bortel ?

On late model BMW's the DRL's are already there as well. There's a switch to toggle on/off. Of course, once you get to Canada with your purchase BMW Canada requests $2k to "permanently" switch them on for you. to have the car accepted into Canada as a full-fledged BMW.
Railton

[Flinter]

Congratulations Vmango, your WRX looks very sharp indeed.

[toolatecrew]

Wow great car and great deal. I like the gunmetal stock rims although I'm sure the "secret summer rims" will be even better. The interior is really pretty decent. I had that momo shift knob on my 02 Impreza. Had to buy an adapter for it to fit but it has a nice substantial feel..watch out though the parts that are not covered in leather get hella hot in the summer and icy cold on the winter. Aluminim looks nice but doesn't feel nice at extreme temps.

How is that 10 speaker stereo. Every Subaru I've owned or been in in years the stero blew chunks.

[Vmango]

I'd be lying if I said the stereo was great, BUT, it's not bad either. The system could use a woofer but the added speakers make a difference over the stock 4. A car costing 40K in Canada should have a better system (my Cobalt SS had a better stereo). These seem to be the things you accept when you buy a Subaru. It's fine by me.

I generally only listen to tunes when I'm on a long road trip. Otherwise, it's just the boxer rumble and turbo whine for me (maybe some FAN590).

I swear the turbo whine is much louder than when I test drove the WRX.

[vdk]

Hmmm.. That's one hell of a car. And for pennies to boot. Those seats on the limited look nice! Do we get that here in Canada? I'd buy one from the States just for that.

[rrocket]

Congrats!!!  Very nice!  Love the AWD!

[evil_twin]

Looks sweet Vman!  I'm definitely jealous of the HIDs (and the $$$ savings obviously).

Regarding the questions on the Limited Package:  They are different in the US and Canada.  The US one includes HIDs and that 10 speaker stereo which aren't available AT ALL in Canada.

Whereas the Base WRX in Canada (i.e. mine) comes with the cold weather stuff (heated seats, wipers, mirrors) standard, but are part of the Limited Package in the US.

Basically the US packaging makes an awful lot more sense and Vman's got the absolute loaded beast.

I'll be very keen to see what you're planning as far as rims.  Just spend the import savings on some BBS 18s? 

[dave]

Very nice Vman.  I guess we know who wears the matching beanies now....

[Zombie]

Verry nice, I did the exact same thing 3 years ago, same place, same guy.
In the end what did it all end up costing?
Three years ago a WRX premium with some options cost me $32953 all in, vs the $41,485 it would have cost in Canada.

For those interested, Van Bortel Subaru is located just outside of Rochester, NY.
4 hours from Ottawa and 2 1/2 hours from Toronto.

http://www.vanbortelsubaru.com/BuildYourCar.asp

[Vmango]

I'm still reeling from massive bank account emptying, but I ended up spending about 34K all in, registered, etc.

Not even including the extra options not even available here (HIDs, STEREO), or the short-throw shifter of shift knob, up here my quote was for 43K and change for the (inferior) CAN limited.



Dave: touche!

[Julie]

Awesome!!  Great looking car (i really like the shifter) and what savings!     Congrats!  

[safristi]

..ya could say!!!!................tha Reign in Maine stays mainly on the Gain.............. ..My gawd I thinks HE GOTTIT...............

[Vmango]

Well - I'll post and update. Here's the car with new rims, tires and ceramic tint.

The rims are 18 inch Prodrive GT1s. Prodrive is the company that constructed the World Rally Subaru cars as well as the ALMS GT1 Astons. They still manufacture a number of Subaru Rally cars for different championships. Even going up to a larger wheel (17 to 18) I'm saving about 4 pounds a wheel. I installed them using McGard Spline Drive Lugs.

The tires are 225/40 R18 Dunlop Direzza Z1 Star Specs. Total overkill for a daily driver and so sticky that they pick up everything on the road (wrappers, stones - you name it). Totally worth it though, IMO.

There is a significant performance difference with the tire upgrade alone. The lighter wheels have definitely improved turn-in.

A special thanks to Rrocket for being my Windsor-Detriot chaperon, and letting me drive the out of his modded IS 350. The enthusiasts on this site should get together more often.

The car is really dirty but here are some pics nonetheless.

[HeliDriver]

Ooooh... fantastic choice! Love the Prodrive rims, and they look seriously badass in black on that car. 

And great tire choice, also. I considered the Direzza Z1 Star Specs for my car, but in the end figured they'd be more hardcore than I needed. Now you'll have to get that car out on a track for a proper thrashing! 

[Weexy]

Wow!  Really nice!! 
Love the rims 

[Railton]

Boss.
And cheers to RR for helping you out.
Railton

[Turbo Bob]

Great choices vman. On the tints, are those 30% or 35%?

On another note, Prodrive were just down the road from Vodafone where I used to work in the UK, used to see some nice cars coming out of there, they used to prep the Ferrari 550 GT cars. I remember reading an article about a girl that worked there who was paid to work on the rally cars in the day, and then she would work on the Ferrari's at night just because she loved the job so much...