The New Subaru Crosstrek for 2013

My wife and I have been driving Subaru's since 2007.  I had bought a 2007 sport wagon to drive to work and use as a second car, however, my wife claimed it the first hour I owned it and I was back to the Kia. In 2009 I bought an Outback Limited for myself, and in 2010 we replaced the sport wagon with an Impreza Outback Sport in two tone silver (the car my wife fell in love with the first time she saw it). My wife is from South Africa where she never had to worry about snow. Driving the Subaru in Ohio makes her feel free to drive in bad weather. In fact after the Subaru she would actually leave the house when it was snowing. In December 2011 I traded in the 2010 Outback and bought a 2012 Forester Touring which is built on the Impreza frame but has a higher ground clearance and more cargo capacity. Great for those times when you need a little more space. You can read more about our Subaru cars by following this link.

When I read about the XV Crosstrek I was curious to see it in person. It is also built on the Impreza frame and fits in between the Impreza and the Forerster. That seemed a little strange to me, but it actually looks more like an "Outback Sport" than my wife's actual Outback Sport. If that makes sense?! You can read a lot about the Crosstrek elsewhere on the internet, but my opinion is that some people would prefer the regular Impreza and the feeling of a smaller sporty car and others will like the SUV feel of the Crosstrek. The Forester probably isn't very likely to appeal to those two groups.

If you are looking for a small SUV but interior capacity is key then the Forester is the way to go. Plus the Forester still has the bigger engine. If you want something more sporty looking then the Crosstrek might be more appealing, but with the 2.0 engine certainly not for performance. Like all Subaru's the suspension is always well tuned and handling is very good regardless of the Impreza version you want. I think the diesel version of the Crosstrek might be the ticket, but that isn't a US option yet. Of course there are many opinions on diesel engines and their usefulness compared to the more modern engines of today.

So, would my wife want a 2013 Crosstrek? Nope, she likes the smaller Impreza Outback Sport because she feels it lives up to it's "Sport" name. Her Outback Sport is just the right size and color for her. The Crosstrek with its 8.7 inch ground clearance would be a great car for all those people wanting to get off the road and want a smaller car with good gas mileage. Would I want a Crosstrek? There are times when you just need a bigger car so not as my only car. However, I do like the Crosstrek and if I was in the market I might try to talk the wife into the Crosstrek instead of the Impreza. I would feel more comfortable in it and the gas mileage is a nice plus over our 2010 Outback Sport. Aahh, in the end though the wife would win out and she would have her smaller sporty car that handles great in the snow and is fun to drive. Did I mention the two tone silver? She loves that color combo, are you listening Subaru?

The Forester has the larger interior capacity, but the Crosstrek has the better miles per gallon. If neither of those count then picking your car is a matter of personal taste and options wish list.

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2007 Subaru Impreza Sport Wagon

Here are a few pictures of our 2007 Subaru Impreza Sport Wagon. This was the first of our 4 Subaru's. I originally leased it as my work car but as soon as my wife saw the car she claimed it for her own. I owned it for a total of 1 hour. We replaced it with a 2010 Impreza Outback Sport that we bought in March 2010. I liked red but my wife prefers more muted colors. I liked the car because it was a great handling car with a lot of pep. You could plow through the snow with no problems at all.

You can find plenty of information on the Sport Wagon for 2007, but here are some pictures of what it looked like brand new when we drove it home in February 2007.

1959 Corvette

One of my favorite pictures, it was taken in July 2011 in Brunswick, Ohio.

I am a big fan of the Chevrolet Corvette in general and the 1959 Corvette is no exception. There is something about every body style that I like, and each car was a statement for it's time. Here are a few pictures of  the 1959 Roadster. I hope you enjoy them and image you are back in 1959 seeing the new Corvette for the fist time. Remember, every Corvette body since 1953 has been made of fiberglass. Every year the salesman would tell you that this was the last year for the fiberglass body or the last year for the Vette. I drove a 1959 in the early 70's and what a shock that was. The steering wheel was gigantic compared to my 1972 and the clutch required a body builder to push in. Still, it was cool driving it around town.

Here are a few pictures I took in 2011 of two different cars. The blue car was at the car show in Brunswick, Ohio sponsored by  Brunswick Family Restaurant. The red car was at the Riverfront Mall Cruise-In in  Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. I try to go to a couple of car shows a year. I normally take my camera with me, and if I don't I will regret it. The government managed to ruin cars completely starting in 1974. They have made their come back over the years but my favorites are still the classics from the 50s through the early 70s.

There is a lot going on with the front bumper of this car. It was a different time but the car had a character all its own.

In its time it was a low rider!

I love how the seats feel like they are actually a part of the car and not just in the car.

Now that is a steering wheel! The 1958 to 1960 Corvettes were similar to this design, In 1961 the rear of the car was changed and that carried forward into the Stingray years starting in 1963 and the famous split window coupe.

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2010 Ferrari Car Show

Gervasi Vineyard, Sunday, Sept 26, 2010 and the Ohio Chapter of the Ferrari Club of America. The day was overcast and a little on the cool side but that made for some dramatic photos.

You can leave a comment here on my Blog site or on my Photography site if you wish. Vote for your favorite car!

Click on the picture above to see a larger version of the 575M.

I love to get pictures of cars up close and look at the detail that otherwise is missed by looking at the entire car from a distance. I know that my friend and I used to research older cars when he was doing a restoration. This type of information is invaluable when doing detailed restoration.

There were over 20 cars on display including a Maserati and a Lamborghini. Yes, there were plenty of red cars to look at, but there were some yellow, black and silver cars as well. Gervasi Vineyard hosts the car show each year and the 2012 show include several vintage cars as well. Look for my post of the 2012 show coming soon.

[color-box color=red]Click on this link to see my gallery of over 40 photos from the Ferrari Car Show at Gervasi Vineyard in Canton, Ohio.[/color-box]

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Super Cruise 2012 Salem, Ohio

My friend Zakeer was visiting from Leeds, UK this past weekend, and when my neighbor called and asked if we wanted to join him at the Salem Super Cruise, it was a definite yes. The cruise starts at 4 p.m. Thursday and ends at 7 p.m. Sunday. Now that is a cruise! This is the same weekend of the Steel Valley Super Nationals at the Quaker City Raceway. I had never been to the Super Cruise and didn't know exactly what to expect. I knew that it wasn't the typical car show and this was a chance for my friend Zak to not only see the cars, but hear them as well. It beat an evening at the local mall!  As usual I took my Nikon D90 along, but decided to shoot some video from my iPhone 4S. It is just easier to do. The picture quality isn't as good, but I would get a better result with the focus! Besides, I just wanted to record the sound of the cars driving by.

The Super Cruise consists of several parking lots where everyone shows their cars, stages with local bands, plenty of cars driving down the main drag of town and of course the food vendors. A root beer float was in order after an hour or so of taking pictures! There are a variety of cars to see from the 1940's to present and street rods galore in the numerous parking lots. I was there in time to see the parade cars rumble by and see new Mustangs, old caddies and army jeeps.

Everyone brings a chair and sits along the parade route to watch the cars drive by, listen to the drivers revving their engines, and hearing the variety of car horns (including the train horns). The fun also comes with being with your friends talking cars.

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1967 Pontiac GTO at Riverfront Mall Cruise-In

 

What a beautiful car this 1967 GTO is. Still looking good in 2012! I took this picture with my Nikon D90 on August 22, 2011 at the Riverfront Mall Cruise-In, Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. The ISO is 200 which is what looks great when using a Nikon. I shot the picture around 7pm which gave me some dramatic lighting.

I typically run and gun and very seldom use a tripod. I used to shoot a lot of cars with my 35mm Canon years ago, and would use a tripod if I was being paid for the pictures. In those days the picture of your car on drift wood was very cool! Always a winner!

Go to a car show and get some exercise walking around looking at the great cars!

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