With the return to saloon body style for the Impreza, Subaru purists heaved a sigh of relief. The arrival of the revised WRX saloon last year was a positive sign, and now hardcore enthusiasts can rejoice – the four-door STI is back!
What’s more is that Subaru claims it’s not just an engine transplant, as the revised WRX STI also benefits from substantial suspension tweaks to take the title of “fastest WRX STI ever” – referring to the new Nürburgring Nordschleife lap time of 7 minutes 55 seconds.
According to a Subaru Southern Africa release “there is no doubt that the STI sedan has a near-iconic place in the minds of performance aficionados and particularly in South Africa that is the case. While the hatchback continues to be available overseas, we have taken the decision to switch exclusively to the four-door because of feedback from the marketplace.”
In a similar move to what Nissan did with the GT-R, Subaru has positioned the WRX and WRX STI as a separate “extreme performance” platforms, apart from run-of-the-mill Imprezas and the rest of the Subaru model line-up – meaning that WRX and WRX STIs are no longer prefixed by the Impreza logo.
Both models feature aggressive bodywork; the redesigned front bumper juts out further than before a larger, more rectangular lower air intake, while the profile is enhanced with significant wheelarch bulges. At the rear, even though trademark ironing-board spoiler is only 250 mm clear of the bootlid at its highest point, it’s no less striking – and is supplemented by a quartet of exhaust tailpipes and integrated diffuser-look panel.
Both models make use of Subaru’s turbocharged 2,5-litre horizontally-opposed powerplant, which have been virtually unchanged. In the WRX it produces 195 kW and 343 N.m of torque, while in the WRX STI it develops 221 kW and 407 N.m of torque.
As usual, there’s a heavy-duty manual gearbox (five-speed in the WRX and six-speed in the WRX STI) directing the torque to all four wheels via Subaru’s symmetrical all-wheel drive layout. New to the STI badge however, is the option of a five-speed Sportshift automatic – with maximum torque lowered to 350 N.m and optimised ratios.
Although the automatic model doesn’t have the Driver Controlled Centre Differential (DCCD) manipulator of the manual model, it does feature Si-Drive control, with three engine management maps to suit driver mood or conditions; namely Intelligent (economical and relaxed setting), Sport (default start-up setting) and Sport Sharp (increased throttle response).
The suspension on the STI has been heavily revised, with larger front and rear anti-roll bars, stiffened spring rates, harder rear subframe bushes and aluminium lower control arms for reduced un-sprung mass among many other changes.
The interior hasn’t changed that much, the most notable additions include satellite Bluetooth controls on the steering wheel, as well as a USB port to supplement the existing Auxiliary/iPod jack.
Prices
WRX R379 000
WRX STI AT R489 000
WRX STI R499 000
Pricing includes emissions tax and a three-years/75 000 km maintenance plan.
