Car News Articles

Subaru is becoming the king of premature model updates.

After ‘quick’ styling fixes in recent years for previous Imprezas (who can forget ol’ ‘bug eye’?) and the Tribeca, the Japanese car maker has now turned out a new WRX just 16 months after the all-new-generation model went on sale.

This blog isn’t going to be too harsh, however, because Subaru deserves credit for responding promptly to WRX loyalists who complained the third-generation model had gone too soft.

While acknowledging that Subaru is a relatively small player in the global automotive world – and that they should have got the product right in the first place – there are few car makers who would have started work so quickly on a revised version of a car that had only just launched.

Subaru Australia says it was liaising with Japan HQ in late 2007 on a new WRX – creating a suspension that is unique to our market (the third-biggest Subaru market globally after Japan and US).

At Winton Raceway in Victoria yesterday, back-to-back tests with old and new ‘Rexes’ revealed dramatic improvements.

You can read our first drive for more details on the WRX’s handling improvements, but the general gist is that Subaru’s cult car is sharper than its predecessor.

The WRX has also closed the performance gap to the more expensive ($59,990) STI. Subaru says the new WRX is half a second faster than the old WRX in the 0-100km/h sprint, making its 5.3sec time just a tenth slower than the STI.

If I were an STI owner who had paid an extra $20,000 over the $39,990 WRX, I’m not sure how comfortable I’d be with that news.

And call this a big, er, call, but I actually think the WRX has a better all-round engine. While the STI’s turbocharged ‘boxer’ four is a mild-or-wild experience (but entertainingly maniacal above 4000rpm), the WRX is consistently strong throughout its rev range while now boasting a much better top end.

There is some consolation, however, in that the STI’s superior equipment includes bigger brakes, a six-speed manual gearbox, better-bolstered seats, different wheels and tyres, and a driver-adjustable centre differential.

Of course we shouldn’t forget that the uprated WRX coincides with the belated arrival of a sedan version – the shape that helped make the car famous.

Styling is subjective, of course, but I reckon the sedan has been beaten fewer times with the ugly stick than the hatch.

The addition of a boot gives the sedan better proportions, helping to balance out the third-generation Impreza’s long snout.

Regardless of body style, though, the new WRX is clearly better. This cult performance car has always been about delivering bang for your buck.

And now Subaru has ensured it delivers the appropriate amount of bang, for the same amount of bucks.

Jez Spinks