Which late-model Subaru has the best off-road AWD system?

[RubiconGeoff]

Hey Rubicon! We miss you over on ClubSX4!

About the center coupler overheating on the SX4. We've long since come to the conclusion that running ESP while doing hard wheeling is what overheats it. The braking of the wheels causes a lot of stress on the drivetrain and a lot of strain on the clutchpack eventually causing it to shut down to cool down. I personally run without ESP on and find it's MUCH better in hairy situations like mud, sand or long hill climbs. Running with ESP really kills your momentum I've found. I've never had my center clutchpack overheat with ESP off, and I've put my SX4 through just as much as off road abuse as you put yours through, if not more!

Come back on over to ClubSX4 sometime, plenty of us are still abusing the crap out of our SX4's and they keep asking for more! I'd hate to guide you away from Subaru, but why not pick up a used Grand Vitara? Better off road than any subaru you can buy, much cheaper, dead reliable and great fuel economy with the 4cyl. It's the natural progression down from a jeep if you still want the off-road capability and a real 4wd system with low gearing.

Thanks, I miss the great community there! As for the clutch pack overheating, mine only ever did it when I was playing in snowy parking lots, drifting and spinning the car with ESP turned off. I was just working the system harder than it was intended for longer than it was intended.

I don't plan on replacing my Rubicon anytime in the foreseeable future; there's no other substitute for its ground clearance, low gearing, and proper set of diff locks front and rear for real off-road driving. The consideration of a Subaru would be for my wife because the availability of a turbo would satisfy her need for speed. She loved my SX4 but found it gutless, even with the manual transmission. We currently have an R53 Mini Cooper S (onto which I've installed a 17% overdrive pulley on the supercharger and some other tweaks to put some more hair on its chest) and she absolutely loves it, but the lack of traction from front wheel drive (in spite of sticky summer tires it'll roast its front tires in the first three gears) and the miniscule ground clearance (it drags its chin on everything!) means at some point a turbo Subaru might be the right option. As much as I'm a fan of Suzuki, the 4-cylinder and V6 Grand Vitaras just don't have suitable power or handling. And we already have an SUV. An X-Mode Turbo Forester would be great, but the lack of a proper manual transmission is pretty much a deal-breaker.

 

[WagoneerSX4]

Gotchya! Just thought your main concern was off road capabilities not speed! Haha.

 

[rdub315]

I know this is an old post, but how would you SX4 guys feel about ice racing in one? I'm looking for a newer ice racing vehicle, and these are within my budget.

Format is three 20 minute heats, with a track length of approx. 1.5 miles. 11-12 rather hard laps per heat. Can the diff handle this type of abuse?

 

[RubiconGeoff]

I would say no. Their e-diff would probably want to cool down after 10-15 minutes of hard use in those conditions, and the computer would likely shut down the AWD system and revert to FWD.