Engine: 2.5L H4 turbo EJ25
Redline: 6500RPM
Power: 285 PS (210 kW; 281 hp) @6000
Torque: 350 N·m (258 lb·ft) @2000-5600
Transmission(s): 6 speed manual (5 speed automatic)
Drivetrain: four-wheel drive
Weight: 3250lbs/1475kg
0-60 mph/100 kmh: 5.0s
Top Speed: 250 KM/H
Extrerior colours: blue, white, black
Interiors: black leather, red stiches, STi badges everywhere and some aluminium
Wheel(s): 12 spoke sliver STi ones (whatever they are called)
Other info
let's not forget badass WagonWhether it’s a Legacy, Impreza or Forester, every Subaru car tweaked by the lads at STI until now has packed more power, sportier body kits, stiffer suspension, and sharper all-round handling than the stock versions on which they are based. So far, Subaru Technica International, the company’s motor sports and tuning arm, has launched souped-up Imprezas including the S201, S202, S203, S204, hotter Legacys like the S401 and S402, and even a Forester STI.
But as chief test driver Hideharu Tatsumi says, “Power isn’t everything. My R&D team feels that turbocharged Legacys have enough power for now. That’s why we’ve created tS, a whole new brand inside the company that bridges the gap between the performance-oriented ‘S’ versions and the base models.” While a mere 600 units will be made (and offered in Japan only), the tS focuses exclusively on sharper, more responsive handling, and — get this — better ride quality at the same time.
Tatsumi is talking about the first example of this new lineup, the just-launched Legacy 2.5GT tS, which, according to one STI engineer, stands for “tuned by STI.” But as Tatsumi explains, a “tuned by STI” moniker on the back of a car has always meant beefier performance as well as better handling. But that’s not what this car is all about. Having known Tatsumi for more than 15 years, and having just driven the tS, I’d interpret those letters to mean “Tatsumi’s Spirit” or, more realistically, “Tatsumi’s Setup.” Because it’s his 20-year stint as the company’s top test driver tuning Subarus at the Nurburgring that’s created this car’s suspension feel. It’s simply superb.
On the surface, the tS looks better. Better, that is, than the Legacy on which it’s based. The problem lies in its original design. The Legacy’s high beltline, stratospherically high hood line, and uncomfortably upslanting headlights makes the car appear to be perched rather than settled, while the solid front quarters make it look more like a crossover than a station wagon.
Specially designed STI parts including a front spoiler, boot lip spoiler, unique STI wheels and badges, and bigger tires make the Legacys look better balanced and more aggressive. But we think that STI designers stopped a little short of the mark. They could have been even more adventurous with their dress-up procedures. The STI theme continues inside with a 260km/h (160 mph) speedo, and special STI-badged leather seats with red stitching as well as a leather-bound steering wheel and gear shifter.
So where are the main revisions? Not in the drivetrain. STI has taken a stock Legacy 2.5-liter turbo, developing 282 horsepower and 258 pound feet at 2000-5600 rpm and, well, as we already mentioned, not modified those figures in any way. We’d lean toward the plucky sure-feel 6-speed manual over the 5-speed slushbox. With an STI muffler fitted, the boxer burble does sound raspier and meaner.
The full STI handling package means that the car, which comes in both a sedan and wagon variants, is fitted with STI’s unique inverted Bilstein struts and stiffer springs all around, a reinforced front cross member, flexible low stiffeners on the front, and pillow ball bushes on the rear. The tS is shod with wider 18-inch Potenza rubber plus new wheel settings that generate more negative camber, thus putting more rubber on the road, which in turn improves grip and cornering limits.
But the critical part that brings the whole package together, according to Tatsumi, is the tS’s “flexible tower bar.” It’s an upgrade boasting a flexible center joint that the company has been perfecting for some three years. We have to agree with him. The tower bar is like the Holy Grail of suspension parts. In concert with the revised underpinnings, the flex tower bar gives the tS more rigidity through the corners, with better feedback from the steering while delivering superb weight and feel on turn-in and nary a hint of understeer.
Astonishingly, this combination cleverly soaks up road imperfections and provides for a better, more compliant ride. Put back-to-back with a stock 2.5-liter Legacy B4, it was blindingly obvious just how precise yet responsive the tS’s setup was. With the flex tower bar as the tS’s secret weapon, this Legacy’s suspension setup resists initial body roll on turn-in, keeping the car flatter and more rigid through the corner, while the rear end follows the fronts with uncanny precision. We also noticed that the tS delivered significantly more information through the steering on road camber and surface imperfections than the stock Legacy, making the new STI a far more rewarding drive overall. STI tell us that it plans to build a limited run of just 600 cars, and that each car will be assembled after each order is placed. But if the 200 or so orders that have already come in reveal a pattern, then 80 percent of buyers will opt for the 5-speed automatic, while 70 percent of buyers so far have chosen the wagon.
With the tS, STI wanted to show that tuning does not have to always mean more power. They say that the Legacy’s turbocharged boxer and 4WD drivetrain already develop more than enough herbs. Like a chef creating a masterpiece, Tatsumi and his team felt that beefed-up performance was unnecessary and that focusing on fast, flexible footwork was their main aim with the tS. It’s a pity that none will be heading to the U.S. But all is not lost. One Subaru insider revealed that the company is considering offering the STI suspension upgrades, including that flexi tower bar, as options in the U.S. in the not-too-distant future. Oh yeah, and you can look forward to these parts being offered for the Impreza and Forester, too.
http://www.motortrend.com/cars/subaru/legacy/2010/subaru-legacy-25gt-ts/
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