Subaru Boxer question...
 

I've searched for this and can't find any specifics...

Hey guys, I'm completely new to a boxer engine. I have 6MT FRS.

Is there anywhere I can find out exactly what a boxer is SUPPOSED to sound like? This is my 4th Scion (1 tc and 2 b's), and the FRS is just SO much louder and more gutteral sounding than any car I've ever owned. I keep freaking out (in my head) about every little sound and thinking that it just sounds very "raw" - from ignition to shifting to idling, you name it. Can anyone with experience put my mind at ease at all. It doesn't help that I keep reading about little "glitches" and "squeaks" and "fitment issues"...

Just a scion lover trying to get used to this toyobaru...

-Scik Graeson

Drive another one just like yours. If they sound the same, then you're fine. Your tC probably didn't have a sound tube from the intake ducted directly into the passenger compartment like it is in the FR-S.

That's just how boxers sound, no need to have to jump into other ones. I forget the exact reasoning, but it has to do with the design of the engine (with the exhaust gases coming out of both sides) and the length of the headers varying, which causes the the exhaust gases (and the sound) to sound burbly and not smooth like in inline-fours.

I owned 1 Honda, 5 Toyota, and 1 Scion before this and I know what you're talking about.
I keep getting freaked out too especially the noise during engine braking from 2k rpm to 1.5k rpm.
It sounds like something is loose in there making a weird noise.

Here are some for ya

NA
Stock & cat back
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMrr9BG32Wk"]1999 Subaru Impreza Outback Sport - Stock Exhaust vs. Cat-Back Exhaust - YouTube[/ame]

borla replicas uel headers and a 2005 WRX Stainless Catback 2 1/2 inch
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TOcSmIewMTo"]Subaru Impreza Exhaust Non Turbo - YouTube[/ame]

OBX Equal Length Headers, catless, 2.5in piping and Magnaflow Muffler
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A0d71O7RfDI"]Subaru Impreza 2.5 RS OBX Equal Length Headers, catless, 2.5in piping and Magnaflow Muffler - YouTube[/ame]

STi w Kakimoto-R Exhaust
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIeGMfsgBuk"]Impreza WRX STI Exhaust Decat Sound - YouTube[/ame]

SPT Catback Exhaust
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sh4nrTK7r94"]2011 STi SPT Exhaust - YouTube[/ame]

Hope that's good enough vid for ya

I drove the shit out of a modded 2.0 wrx for three years. Three years of high rpms, downshifting, acceleration to redline and everything else you can imagine. In every season, road condition, altitude, and off road.

Subaru boxer engines are tough as hell. Just get used to that sound, you'll like it before long.

Besides, why ruin any drive with tension and worry about what might be going wrong? You have a warranty and 99% of the noises you'll ever worry about in a car are nothing.

i don't think the frs engine has the un-equal header like the wrx's do, so that "boxer" sound that is associated with them isn't the same on the frs. which is a shame, because i love the sound of a wrx with catback!

Agreed. I miss my prodrive.

That was something that I was thinking of too, as the unequal length headers is partially due to the turbo setup and layout of the piping (though correct me if I'm wrong). But regardless, the exhaust sound will still be pretty similar to other boxers, kind of like how I-6s and V-6s will almost always have very distinct sounds, particularly when going through the rev range.