Road Test: Subaru WRX 2015

Subaru WRX 2015 Road Test

I didn’t get off to the best of starts with this Subaru WRX. Its engine hadn’t smashed a record output for a 2.0-litre turbo, the 0-100km/h read like that of only a brisk performance model  and our early test unit was CVT which I superficially judged. Then there was the style; a return to the three-box sedan albeit sleeker than before, and yet when viewed from any angle other than the front, a touch generic. But Scooby’s have always been confrontational (remember the Bug-Eye) so I let its styling marinade and when a manual six shifter arrived for full test my feelings had swung.

As a precursor to the STi, the Subaru WRX has to juggle a more mature role of being practical, comfortable and easy to drive. Its styling translates these new objectives by toning down the spoilers and making it more approachable. In doing so they’ve subsequently leached that intimidation factor.The boot spoiler is reduced to a small lip and the wheels get a charcoal treatment in a 17-inch design that disappear into arches seemingly made for much bigger wheels. The front end follows the Hawk-Eye design but the lights now boast LEDs and the front scoop is slimmer, but also more effective in funnelling cool air onto the top mounted cooler – as per all models before it. And you get four pipes, parted by a diffuser insert, with tips dipped in chrome.

Is it this best looking Subaru WRX? That’s a tough one but what I will say is it is the most global one with the least amount of quirks and foibles. And when you drive it, you quickly don’t care much. This new WRX is better in every single way than even the outgoing STi.
Subaru has returned to the 2.0-litre layout as part of downsizing but has managed to slightly eclipse the old Subaru WRX’s figures; now pushing 197kW and 350Nm. Of more importance is how it delivers power in a far more linear way: boost comes in with greater fluidity but the ratios are still short so in the manual you get through them pretty quickly – I’m not complaining, gearboxes this good don’t come around often.

Besides the manual Subaru have developed the best CVT auto in the business and although it doesn’t have the complexity and recoil of a dual clutch system, it responds well, is highly configurable through its different modes and makes none of the whining noises exacerbated by other CVT boxes. That said the six-speed manual not only feels faster because of the greater interaction by virtue of the short throws, the instant bite of the clutch and the way it climbs into boost but its 6.0sec 0-100km/h time is three tenths quicker than the CVT. The manual sounds better too, somehow. It has a deeper thrum to it but it could still do with a set of aftermarket pipes.

We miss the frameless doors when entering the cabin but it’s an altogether nicer place to sit. The carbon trim manages not to look cheap, the seats are contoured in just the right places (and come with electric adjustment) not to mention low enough to engage with the road and the steering wheel has a flat-bottom edge. So it may lack the exact fine quality of a German rival but it carries enormous spec for the money, the centre touch screen has novel features like an electronic boost gauge which will have you chasing 1.2bar all day long and the only thing you can buy as an option is the navigation system, and even that is a bargain at R8700. Did I mention spacious? Better rear legroom than its classmates and a larger boot now swallows anything you throw at it.

The ride is firmer than most hot hatches and if the STi is going to be firmer still, we truly are worried. In the Subaru WRX every bar and strut has been stiffened but the real nugget of engineering is the steering which features a quicker lock-to-lock ratio. Light but bursting rich in feel and together with the AWD system provides an organic connection that has you driving the new WRX fast within minutes of setting your mirrors.

So it’s a massively improved car at roughly the same price as the previous WRX. It offers more living space, a huge boot and specification that could easily add another R40 000 if you shopped elsewhere. Its closest rival in body form would be Audi’s S3 sedan but the price difference between these AWD, turbo charged machines is wide enough to matter. Better strap yourself in for the arrival of the STi.

What we like
Handling, Spec, Price

What we would like
Boxer noise, More brake Feel

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