We normally prefer to keep our reviews
focused on the cars, not what goes on behind the scenes. But a funny thing
happened each time someone climbed out of a 2015 WRX STI during the car’s media
launch at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. Without fail, the driver removed his
helmet and muttered, “holy sh**.”
We don’t use those words lightly. Well, I
do—I suffer from user-selectable Tourette’s syndrome, hypochondria, and I’m
from Brooklyn— but this time, I meant it. The new STI blew our minds. Because
it—in ways unlike any previous all-wheel-drive Subaru—really turns.
The
Subaru WRX STI is fast, grippy and offers immense value
Here is an all-wheel-drive Subaru that
actually wants to do another lap of a road course. One that doesn’t devolve
into front-tire abuse at the first hint of a dry racetrack. A quick flick of
the wheel will throw the new STI into a four-wheel drift, eschewing understeer
even as you pile on all the pound-feet the smooth 2.5-liter four can deliver.
The Subaru’s quick, hydraulically assisted steering is a revelation, with heavy
weighting and—what is this strange thing coming through the thick,
small-diameter, flat-bottom rim? Feedback? Whoa.
The unexpectedly sharp handling and
unexpectedly awesome steering is matched by the unexpectedly great shifter. The
Launch Edition STI comes with Subaru’s accessory short-shift kit, which makes
the STI’s rod-actuated shift linkage, already far better than the WRX’s cable
affair, nigh-on perfect. And most important, the Launch Edition comes with the
right color paint (blue) and the right color wheels (gold), just like Subaru
rally cars of old.
Cabin
detailing is racy, but taller owners will find the driver's seat doesn't drop
low enough
To no one’s surprise, the STI is still
epically capable on bumpy, twisty, curvy back roads. Then again, so is the WRX.
The difference between these two cars isn’t in their numbers, but in the way
they feel. All the small differences between the cars add up to make the STI
feel alive where the WRX feels like a computer simulation. The WRX is capable
when you push it; the STI begs to show you how capable it is.
Unlike hot-rod Subies of yore, this STI
doesn’t seem absurdly overpriced. The Impreza interior is now a genuinely nice
place to be; the view out is very good, and the interior materials feel
quality. The STI’s seats are comfortable, and we like the center-stack’s LCD
boost gauge. The car looks great in person, with the possible exception of that
garish thing at the back. Not the monster spoiler—that’s an STI trademark—but
the trunk. We’ve always liked our Subarus best with hatchbacks. (Speak for
yourself, Cammisa. McRae drove sedans —Ed.)
Picnic-table
spoiler is even bigger. It has had its upper surface raised so you can see
underneath it in the rear-view mirror
The previous car’s hatch body may be gone,
but Subaru’s disaster of a touch-screen radio remains. And it’s now available
with Harman/Kardon speakers that sound good but are limited by the fact that
it’s virtually impossible to get the stereo to play the song you want. One day,
if we’re lucky, Subaru will install a usable infotainment system in its cars.
If hell freezes over, it might even help you hold a hands-free conversation on
your phone. But for now, the only words you need to have inside an STI are the
ones you’ll direct at any friends considering a WRX.
You might even use an obscenity or two.
We’ll forgive you.
