IMPREZA WRX: Not what we expected.

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Unless you are a rally fan or a Subaru fan its unlikely you have any idea what a WRX is and why some North American automotive enthusiasts are now going gaga over it. The WRX is the legendary nomenclature of the World Rally-dominating Subaru race car that for years humiliated its oppornents. Subaru has also offered a street trim version of the WRX for a while now but only in Europe and Asia. Finally NA gets its WRX - and it is and isn't exactly what we wanted.



The prime component that makes the WRX an impressive performance car is the turbocharging of the 2.0 litre iteration of Subarus ubiquitous flat-four boxer engine. Turbocharged, intercooled, and running a maximum boost pressure of 14.8 psi, the tiny odd little motor produces a stout 227 hp and a gutsy 217 lb-ft of torque. Despite the torque peak at a rather, um, peaky 4000 rpm, there is a strong plateau that swells from about 200 lb-ft at 2000 rpm on upward. Getting the most kick out of the WRX though doesn't require spinning it out to its redline, just short shift and feel the boost carry you through like a wave.

If you are seeking maximum thrills the WRX will tear off 60mph in less than 6 seconds, though the act isn't one most owners will do frequently. To get these numbers one is required to keep the quivering at about 4500 rpm and then unceremoniously letting out the clutch, with a bit of slip at first and then just letting it go once the threat of bogging is gone. First gear is ripped through almost instantaneously and its but a Honda-like snick to second and then third. Despite the torque the overall gearing conspires to require a fair amount of shifting which is fine in some cases but overall its unrewarding in the WRX. Especially when one has just stepped out of the equally quick automatic, which more than one tester likened to a slingshot.

The boxer engine emits a distinctive and throaty sound when accelerating hard but hushes to near silence when cruising on the highway. The engine's overall demeanor is smooth but it will never be confused with BMW's inline sixes.



There is no question that the WRX possesses plenty of thrust, but what about its chasis prowess. Well its kind of a mixed bag frankly. The steering is light but nicely weighted - though there isn't as much info about what's going on at the wheels as there is in say an Integra. The ride is comfortable enough but that really isn't the point of this car and as such there is too much body roll. The problem seems to lie in the too tall 16" tires. They just don't help transmit the feedback the driver of this car needs. The overall ride height is leaning too much toward off road and not road course. The solution here is to lower the WRX and fit a larger rear anti-roll bar to give the car more neutral handling. As it stands the WRX doesn't offer better handling or at-the-limit feel than many cars with less illustrious nameplates.

We have no such reservations about the ABS equipped four-wheel disc brakes. Not known for their brakes, Subaru has equipped the WRX with strong, fade-resistant brakes that offer decent pedal feel and modulation. Combined with idealy placed gas and clutch, the WRX can easily be heel and toe downshifted and driven deep into corners to be saved either by the brakes or the AWD grip.

This isn't to say that the WRX can't generate plenty of grip. With the AWD pushing and pulling the litle Scooby arcs around corners as if it were on a tether. More gas after you've entered a turn pushes the front wide, but sending as much weight forward underbraking and then nailing the throttle invokes the desired rally car style drift- on wet pavement, dirt and gravel roads that is. If you really have your heart set on sliding around on pavement you are going to have to invoke the parking brake and well, that really doesn't do anything any good. In any event the transitions from grip to slip aren't as smooth or as predictable as those of a well tuned RWD car but you can imagine what a blast the WRX must be on a snowy winter day.

The exterior style, despite its adventurous googly eyed headlights, drew positive comments from everyone that gazed upon it. Not so much a case of beauty as functional purposefulness. From the driver's seat the view of the bulging fenders, hood and giant intercooler scoop make every drive an adventure and add lots of visual interest from both sides of the windshield.



The WRX is about the same size as the Mazda Protégé which means that rear seat room is pretty tight, but the trunk is voluminous and the front seat area offers plenty of room in all directions. The WRX's seats, however, were way too small for yours truly but smaller testers raved about their prominent strong bolsters. At least they are multi-adjustable, as is the steering wheel. Speaking of which, the proudly emblazoned MOMO wheel is gorgeous and ads that much more flair to a pretty funky package. The rest of the dash design seems a bit overdone but certainly in line with the wild exterior.

US cars can be dealer ordered with gorgeous 17" BBS alloy wheels and more performance oriented rubber than the standard all-season stuff which promise to increase steering feel and provide more gradual slip angles. Unfortunatley they are rediculosly over-priced in Canada at $1200 PER CORNER!

Some people will never be able to accept a sub-compact cutesy-faced four door as an all out high-performance car. Well they had better keep an eye out for the blue-rimmed WRX badge at the stop light Grand Prix because sub-6 second 0-60 accelration is nothing to scoff at. Though not as precise and positionable as the best RWD sport sedans the WRX can use its abundant power and AWD grip to cover ground with remarkable pace.

If its what you you're looking for then there's hardly a faster, more well built sport machine. It would really turn my crank with just a few, relatively inexpensive supension mods. The down side here is an as tested price of $34,995 ($24,520 US) for the sedan and $36,995 for the automatic equipped wagon. That's pretty big bucks but don't forget that the WRX can slaughter any German sport sedan anywhere near its price AWD or otherwise. Refinement, prestige and comfort? Well that's another story.

At around $23,000 US the WRX will find lots of homes with college students and young enthusiasts but with the ensuing sticker shock the Canadian price invokes it will act more as a halo car. Exciting commercials, articles, TV spots and the general buzz will drive people to showrooms who will then either pass out or check out the wide variety of excellent Subaru machinery at the same price point. Better yet buyers will look at the cosmetically similar yet significatnly less expencive 2.5RS and TS wagon, both powered by a 165 hp 2.5 litre flat four, and go on their merry way.


Article and Photographs Copyright 2001 Micheal La Fave.
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