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PostPosted: Sat Nov 23, 2013 9:01 am
 


ShepherdsDog ShepherdsDog:
There was an undercover investigation and they found that American dealers were refusing to sell to Canadians shopping for cars in the States, because they wanted to keep prices higher in Canada. I imagine if you went far enough south you could find a dealer, but places along the border like Bellingham, Detroit, Buffalo and such were actively refusing......Regina posted a link


I live in northern Iowa, nearest part of Canada is International Falls MN/Fort Francis ON--6 hrs. north.

My local Subaru dealer sold a car to a Canadian once. He didn't want to do it, said it was a hassle. Turns out that Subaru of America won't count it as "sold" for purposes of the dealer's allotment or number of cars that a particular dealership is given. In other words, that dealer will get 1 less car that year.

That sounds to me like Subaru of America is in cahoots with Subaru of Canada.

There is also the warranty issue--if my car is still under warranty and it breaks down in Canada, the Canadian dealer will fix it, but I have to pay cash and then SOA will reimburse me directly. I guess the same works in reverse.

But if you live right on the border, that shouldn't be a problem. If I was a Canadian living in Vancouver, Winnipeg, around Toronto, or Montreal, I'd be some pissed I couldn't make an hour trip and save $5000--and take it to the US dealer if something went wrong.

I also dont recall that the Canadian-made Fords I bought in the US didn't cost any more than the same Ford did in Canada. Maybe Subaru can gouge because they're much in demand, who knows.

All of this stuff sounds like little crafty ways to subvert free trade. Like they say, the devil is in the details, right?


Last edited by pineywoodslim on Sat Nov 23, 2013 9:10 am, edited 1 time in total.

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PostPosted: Sat Nov 23, 2013 9:08 am
 


Jabberwalker Jabberwalker:
$1:

My last car was a Subaru (Forester)which I drove from cradle to grave. What a fantastic car. My needs have changed, though. I'm commuting 150 kms+ a day, now so I need a one man fuel sipper (and something smarter than a Smart Car. My wife can do the big car thing for herself + kids. This time around, it will be a small Honda. Form follows function.

Anyway, cars don't really have nationalities anymore. There is a very good chance that a Honda, for example, has more Canadian/North American content than a Chevy.


Got my new outback 2 1/2 yrs ago and it now has 57000 km on it. Includes two 9,000-10,000 trips to Canada--Newfoundland and BC. No problems at all and it runs better now than new.

Wish Subaru had a diesel in North America. Europe gets all the good stuff. I'd trade in a minute for an outback diesel.

I'm 62 yr. old and got to thinking I needed a good snow car (yes, it snows in Iowa) and something that would last until I got too old and they took my license away. lol


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PostPosted: Sat Nov 23, 2013 11:54 am
 


$1:
Got my new outback 2 1/2 yrs ago and it now has 57000 km on it. Includes two 9,000-10,000 trips to Canada--Newfoundland and BC. No problems at all and it runs better now than new.



I put 300 grand on my Sube in nine years. Right now, I'm driving 50% farther than that, per unit time. I drive a lot!

It is a great snow car in a few ways. They accelerate well in the snow. I never got stuck once, and I lived in Quebec (where they get deep snow) for a bit driving it. Mine had a manual transmission which made it an excellent snow car because you can slow down to a complete stop by downshifting and, because of the all wheel drive, it always stayed in a straight line when you did so. Rear wheel drive straighten out when you use engine compression to decelerate but front wheel drives can "pendulum" with the rear wanting to swing forward. In any case, engine compression is the preferred method of decelerating on ice or snow and the brakes should be avoided and used as a last defence only (hopefully, you have ABS). It was a grippy car that never got stuck, but you still have to drive properly. The AWD will not substitute for knowledge of Newtonian physics.


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PostPosted: Sat Nov 23, 2013 11:58 am
 


Years ago a friend told me how he bought tires in Washington for his 4x4 and a cop pulled up because he thought they were slashing tires in the parking lot.
He was cutting all those nubs off the new tires with hie girlfriend's nailclippers. The cop laughed and directed him to a dirt road where he could dirty them up before he crossed the border.
I didn't realize there was still a huge difference in price. Has anyone checked the prices of Canadian made Michelins in the US?


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PostPosted: Sat Nov 23, 2013 12:01 pm
 


herbie herbie:
Years ago a friend told me how he bought tires in Washington for his 4x4 and a cop pulled up because he thought they were slashing tires in the parking lot.
He was cutting all those nubs off the new tires with hie girlfriend's nailclippers. The cop laughed and directed him to a dirt road where he could dirty them up before he crossed the border.
I didn't realize there was still a huge difference in price. Has anyone checked the prices of Canadian made Michelins in the US?

Bignell said Michelin tires manufactured in Nova Scotia are sold at a lower price in Michigan than they are in the province.


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PostPosted: Sat Nov 23, 2013 12:02 pm
 


Wow, where to start. I've gone for good spin on black ice just lifting off the gas in a rwd, but true enough, fwd with snows on front but not in back is worse. Downshifting is going to cause much bigger load on the driven wheels than gently lifting off the gas. With automatics they actually say put it in neutral if possible, so the trans doesn't keep driving the rear wheels - admit I've never tried that myself. But I did hit ice in my 240Z, and found I had to put it in neutral because the gearing was just too high, using the brakes works better. But with summer tires in freezing rain, nothing works particularly well - taught me a lesson.

But subie awd is very good, had a legacy wagon myself (before they came out with the outback). Still, best thing for snow and ice are snows on all 4 wheels, preferably the "studless" ice tires. Take a fwd with those vs a awd with all seasons in many cases.

I did have a little Dodge 4wd wagon in the states (no center diff) with Goodyear all seasons that did very well in Colorado, often passed Grand Cherokees and such in bad weather with it.


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PostPosted: Sat Nov 23, 2013 2:35 pm
 


$1:
Downshifting is going to cause much bigger load on the driven wheels than gently lifting off the gas.


All wheel drives downshift "symmetrically" ... evenly and the car stays straight. You are right, though foot off of the gas is the best if you have nice long distance to slow down.


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PostPosted: Sat Nov 23, 2013 3:18 pm
 


Jabberwalker Jabberwalker:
$1:
Downshifting is going to cause much bigger load on the driven wheels than gently lifting off the gas.


All wheel drives downshift "symmetrically" ... evenly and the car stays straight. You are right, though foot off of the gas is the best if you have nice long distance to slow down.


Subies maybe, since all 4 wheels are driven all the time, but most AWD's are in front mode unless the front loses traction.


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PostPosted: Sat Nov 23, 2013 3:37 pm
 


andyt andyt:
Subies maybe, since all 4 wheels are driven all the time, but most AWD's are in front mode unless the front loses traction.


Of the small SUVs Subaru has a symmetrical all wheel drive and the rest are basically a front wheel drive with a 'power assist' to the rear wheels if slip is detected on the front. The latter is OK until you have a situation where you only have traction on one of the rear wheels. Then you will be stuck. Subaru's system will usually be able to get you out of trouble. Larger SUVs do come with a lock up feature that will get you out of the more difficult situations. Of the small SUV's Subaru has the best system of the main stream vehicles. Audi's is a bit better, but there is a price to be paid.

On two wheel drive vehicles if you have an automatic shifting into neutral emulates pushing in the clutch on a manual. An automatic left in drive will still push you in slippery situations (e.g. icy intersections) Automatic and manuals both have their advantages and disadvantages. On ice I would rather have a manual for stopping and an auto for starting.


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PostPosted: Sat Nov 23, 2013 4:01 pm
 


On ice, using engine braking is just going to lose you traction unless you've downshifted before you hit the ice, can do that with an auto too. I've had plenty of instances with both manual and autos where just lifting off the gas caused me to lose traction. Downshifting would just have made it worse. I wouldn't select one over the other for being an advantage on ice - rocking a car is way easier with a manual tho.

For subies, anybody taking it on rough roads says autos are better, because the manuals are just geared too high. The autos will pull better when starting off with the torque multiplication the auto gives.

Lots of vids on youtube of audis not being all that in low traction situations can't put the power to the wheel with traction. The BMW, for instance did much better. Also a vid of an MDX going up an icy hill that the Audi Q7 just couldn't deal with. The old quatros used to manually locking diffs front, rear, and middle. In real slippery situations I would take that over electronic wizardry anyday.


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PostPosted: Sat Nov 23, 2013 4:38 pm
 


andyt andyt:

But subie awd is very good, had a legacy wagon myself (before they came out with the outback).


Really wished they still made the Legacy wagon here. I love my outback, but the handling on those old wagons was far superior to the high clearance Outbacks on the road now. It's a tradeoff I guess.

My veterinarian has a 2008 subie Baja and has to make farm calls out on gravel roads before they've been plowed. He says when it hits 12 inches (30 cm?) of snow, it just climbs on top of it and keeps going!

andyt andyt:


For subies, anybody taking it on rough roads says autos are better, because the manuals are just geared too high.


Yep, I've got the 6 MT in my 2011 Outback. I knew it was geared high when I bought it. Some folks have problems pulling a boat up off a ramp with it. The CVT I've been told does much better. But on some rough mountain rutted gravel/dirt roads at 3000 meters in Montana, it's done just fine.

Still, the Outback is pretty boring to drive, and with the MT I can play around more and get that "boxer burble" and pretend it's a WRX, lol.


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PostPosted: Sat Nov 23, 2013 4:54 pm
 


The CVT has it's own problems. People say it won't back up worth a damn, say you're stuck in snow, or trying to back up over a curb. Also, IMO, CVTs still have to prove themselves for durability, and repair costs, apparently, are astronomical.

Did you ever get the steering wheel shaking many people had with pre-13 OB's?

Looks like a good car, but I think they made it too big. The earlier model seemed like about the right size.


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PostPosted: Sat Nov 23, 2013 4:59 pm
 


$1:
Of the small SUVs Subaru has a symmetrical all wheel drive and the rest are basically a front wheel drive with a 'power assist' to the rear wheels if slip is detected on the front



I drove that manual Subaru for a decade of winters and I have never seen nor driven a better winter car. There is still no substitute for thinking, feeling though. if you think that your drive train makes you somehow invincible, reality will pull you into he next ditch ... where you belong.


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PostPosted: Sat Nov 23, 2013 7:13 pm
 


Any Wrangler owners on the board? Want one for offroading and fishing, but scared shitless of short wheelbase things on snow.
Worst thing I ever drove was my monster truck Bronco when I moved up here. The ex's Dodge Caravan was safer and better on snowy highways.


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PostPosted: Sat Nov 23, 2013 7:19 pm
 


Wrangler Unlimited.

Broncos had a 104" inch wheel base, that's not really that short. Did you have monster tires on it, mud tires? Funny to see the off road crowd try to negotiate ice with monster mudders - no traction at all. For ice you want many small biting edges - small blocks with lots of siping.


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