Hello from Fort Collins! '15 LX

[bhakjdlmn1]

Just replaced my lifted '08 Forester XT that died in a road trip with a shiny new (to me) '15 LX with only 42k miles. I'm excited to be a part of the MUD community!

First thing: replace the 22" wheels with stock 20"s. It was definitely a pavement-only car up to this point.

 

[Sandroad]

Welcome! Great first thing to do, for sure. Any particular plans for it? Coming from an "08 Forester (even a turbo'd one), the LX must seem like a supercar!

 

[bhakjdlmn1]

Thanks, Sandroad! The lb/HP ratios are pretty similar, with the FXT @ 14.8 lb/HP and the LX @ 15.9 lb/HP. The FXT was definitely a fun, nimble wagon (3320 lb curb) and it got us through lots of forest service roads and fire roads with aplomb. A mild strut lift and upgraded struts and springs greatly increased the wagon's capability, but it was still noisy and rough. Wind noise, tire noise, limited interior space, and a unrefined ride made roadtrips exhausting. It had limited tech ('08 Subaru, after all) but I kind of liked it that way - fewer doodads to break and fewer distractions. I'm grateful for the FXT and the places it took us to and was sad to see it go.

The LX is like a spaceship in comparison! Smooth, plenty of space, and QUIET. On the drive back from Houston, TX (fly, buy, and drive), the miles rolled by so easily! Instead of being worn out from driving, I was relaxed and ready to keep going. The ML audio system is worlds better than the FXT, and the chiller compartment (which I initially rolled my eyes at) was nice for keeping my water fresh. I'm still on the fence about the chiller, but we'll probably get good use out of it for longer trips.

No particular plans at the moment, maybe some Tundra 18"s with larger tires, but we'll roll stock for a while to let the bank account recover a bit.

 

[lx200inAR]

Totally agree on the Subaru thing. I love the idea of having a station wagon and the AWD platforms are great for any light duty bad weather and off road. But man, they suck on the highway. In the rain, i always thought the puddles were going to come up through the floor board they were so thin. I had a 2006 Saaburu 9-2x (WRX in disguise), and while it was super fun to drive on short trips it was terrible for anything else. I ended up trading it in on GTI after only 8 months. Luckily I bought it after GM had already given up on it, so paid 4k less than the Subaru version. I didn't take too much of a beating trading in a 8 month old car with 10k miles. I drove the GTI for 6 yrs after that. It was great for what it was.

 

[bhakjdlmn1]

Got some RW wheels locally and a spare from Mud! Threw on 285/70r17 BFG KO2s from a brand new Rubicon and we hit the road to Utah for the weekend. Ran plenty of gravel roads to visit various trailheads in the area and even stopped by Swing Arm City OHV area on the way back.

 

[bhakjdlmn1]

Leaf peeping in Wyoming!

 

[bhakjdlmn1]

Took a trip out to Marble, CO for a long weekend. Did the Lead King Basin Loop clockwise (the Very Spicy route). LX did great, and the traffic was (fortunately) very light.

Shelf road from the fork up to Lake Geneva was in good condition, a few narrow spots, some short rocky sections, but overall pretty easy. Lots of big water bar whoops, but never scraped front or rear or high-centered. A handful of Jeeps and a full size Ram were ahead of us. Great views and the hike to Lake Geneva is incredible. Did a little fishing at the lake, but nothing was interested.

Road from Lake Geneva down to Crystal was considerably rockier and narrower with a few tight turns on very narrow very rocky sections. We were lucky to only encounter two SxS on this section who were able to back down/pull over.

Road from Crystal Mill back to Marble is easy compared the other sections of the loop, but at this point, we were racing daylight. Encountered a few trucks heading to Crystal for a party, but the road between Marble and Crystal is wide enough in most places for a careful pass. Arrived back to town with a little light to spare and had some good BBQ at Slow Groovin.

The whole loop was done in 4Lo, center diff unlocked, no crawl needed. Tire pressure was ~30psi, probably would have been more comfortable at 20psi, but traction wasn't an issue. Picked up plenty of pinstriping on the section between Lake Geneva and Crystal.

Overall, a really fun trip!

 

[Trukk]

Next time you go to Crystal, head up the punch bowl over to Crested Butte, and I'll buy you a beer!

 

[Supra Turbo]

Took a trip out to Marble, CO for a long weekend. Did the Lead King Basin Loop clockwise (the Very Spicy route). LX did great, and the traffic was (fortunately) very light.

Shelf road from the fork up to Lake Geneva was in good condition, a few narrow spots, some short rocky sections, but overall pretty easy. Lots of big water bar whoops, but never scraped front or rear or high-centered. A handful of Jeeps and a full size Ram were ahead of us. Great views and the hike to Lake Geneva is incredible. Did a little fishing at the lake, but nothing was interested.

Road from Lake Geneva down to Crystal was considerably rockier and narrower with a few tight turns on very narrow very rocky sections. We were lucky to only encounter two SxS on this section who were able to back down/pull over.

Road from Crystal Mill back to Marble is easy compared the other sections of the loop, but at this point, we were racing daylight. Encountered a few trucks heading to Crystal for a party, but the road between Marble and Crystal is wide enough in most places for a careful pass. Arrived back to town with a little light to spare and had some good BBQ at Slow Groovin.

The whole loop was done in 4Lo, center diff unlocked, no crawl needed. Tire pressure was ~30psi, probably would have been more comfortable at 20psi, but traction wasn't an issue. Picked up plenty of pinstriping on the section between Lake Geneva and Crystal.

Overall, a really fun trip!

View attachment 3434590

Need more photos

 

[bhakjdlmn1]

Not many pictures of the route, but the Marble area is incredible!

Mill Site Park - the mill isn't there any more, but there are still massive blocks of marble strewn about.

A small flat nearing Geneva Lake

The backside of the Maroon Bells!

Crystal Mill - nice and quiet in the early evening

 

[Trukk]

Not to hijack this thread, but here is my trip to Crystal Mill in 2021 (ish; bumperless, so it was a while ago). I'm certainly not as good at photos as @bhakjdlmn1 !

 

[bhakjdlmn1]

@Trukk, did you do Schofield Pass at that time? I had read reports that skids/sliders are recommended, but I've got neither. If it can be done stock with minimal damage, I'd be up to try in the future.

 

[Trukk]

@Trukk, did you do Schofield Pass at that time? I had read reports that skids/sliders are recommended, but I've got neither. If it can be done stock with minimal damage, I'd be up to try in the future.

I did not do it this time, but I did do it later in the summer, once I had my skids and front bumper on. I had skids and sliders when I did it. There are some narrow spots there're, I definitely used my kick outs on the sliders. If you are very careful, I think you could do it without skids, I'm not sure I'd take that risk. On that trip I did not go to crystal mill, rather did Lead King over to Marble for some Pizza a Slow Groovin.

 

[bhakjdlmn1]

Took a trip up to Telluride last month. Did Last Dollar Rd into Telluride and Imogene Pass east to Ouray while we were there. Imogene was very cool! Aired down to 20psi for comfort, but you'd have no issues with traction at highway pressure. You'd get bounced around a lot for sure! Only a few sections where high clearance is necessary, and usually some alternate paths around the tough stuff. Took a few scrapes on the front chin and the rear bumper but we did try a few of the more 'fun' lines. No rocker or undercarriage hits. Can be done easily with no damage. Great views, not too much traffic on a Thursday morning. Our 6mo girl (in a car seat ofc) loves the bouncy motion, it lulls her to sleep, ha!

Planned to do Ophir back, but we took too long taking pictures and having a nice leisurely late lunch in Ouray that storm clouds rolled in. Next time!

At the Red Mountains overlook on the east side of Imogene Pass in full low mode (easy exit is nice!). Most people skipped right by this, even though it's 30 seconds from the main trail. We had this all to ourselves for 15 minutes while we had a snack. The (very short) path up is pretty fun, too, with a steeep grade.