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ROAD TEST: Subaru STI packs a lot of muscle (and price)

Tom Incantalupo | ROAD TEST

March 14, 2008

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Subaru's hottest model has matured for '08 - gotten a little bigger and more powerful and been given some new electronics to control the engine, the all-wheel drive and the stability control. Happily, though, the Impreza WRX STI's personality remains the same: It's a serious car for serious driving, not luxury grand touring, and it's not for everyone.

Its price has matured, too, the '08 tester listing for $35,878.

The body style has changed; it's a four-door wagon-like hatchback now, not a sedan with a trunk. Much more practical, but it remains to be seen how the change will go over with Americans, who tend for reasons unclear to shy away from hatchback cars.

The Impreza line was redesigned for '07, with most versions arriving at showrooms beginning in the summer. But the STI was delayed until January and arrived as an '08.

Tom Incantalupo E-mail | Recent columns

The WRX STI is not to be confused with the just-plain WRX, which first became available in the United States in 2002 with a 227-hp., 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine and returns for '08 with 2.5 liters of displacement and 224 hp.

The STI, first offered here in 2004 and developed by the motor sports unit of Subaru-builder Fuji Heavy Industries, is in essence a rally car for the street, with unique engine details, including a high-boost turbocharger and what Subaru calls "dual active valve control." It also has its own suspension and interior.

The 2.5-liter intercooled and turbocharged four-cylinder engine under the STI's hood rips out 305 hp. - 12 more than the '04 model. Torque still peaks at 290 pound-feet but does so 400 rpm earlier, at 4,000 rpm. Second-gear starts are easy and even third-gear starts are possible, should that be appropriate on ice or snow.

Zero to 60 is accomplished in just under 5 seconds, according to Motor Trend - three-tenths of a second slower than an '06 STI, the magazine said, despite the horsepower gain. The new STI still is a bit faster than its archrival, the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution, and the magazine said in its March issue that the STI stopped a little quicker than the Evo. But it said also that the Evo cornered a little better than the Subaru in track tests and, overall, handled better.

The STI's hood scoop, brake-cooling air intakes and engine-heat outlets are functional. The standard high-intensity discharge low beams are manually height adjustable, presumably so that drivers can extend their reach in conditions when blinding oncoming drivers isn't an issue.

Subaru says the STI's brake rotors are larger for '08 and that the body is stiffer and the rear suspension new.

The Imprezas' wheelbases are up by almost 4 inches, adding a little to the front and rear legroom and improving ride quality and stability. The STI's overall length is up by 2 inches, but the car still is classified as a subcompact and still a little smaller than the Evolution.

Driving the STI is great fun. Like its predecessor, it offers tight handling and a firm suspension without exacting much sacrifice in ride quality. Enthusiast types might wish for a little more feedback from the power steering.

I had complained about the absence of sufficient driver's seat adjustments in an '02 WRX model I sampled, but it didn't do any good; the '08 has a manual height adjustment but none for lumbar support or bottom cushion angle. And, even for almost $36,000, it's all manual, not power-operated, which usually provides more fine adjustments.

My other gripes are with some of the center console controls for the center differential and suspension - a bad location, it seems to me, far from the driver's line of sight for switches most likely to be needed while driving.

As you'd expect, the STI's engine shines brightest at higher revs - though it seems to run out of breath 1,000 rpm shy of the redline. Happily, there's a first-rate six-speed stick shift (up from the previous five-speed) to help the driver make the most of it. Automatic is not available in the STI.

Its throws aren't particularly short, but it slips precisely into each forward gear. The shift into reverse is clunkier. The clutch pedal effort is moderate, but is easy to get used to and to engage smoothly.

You might think the sixth gear would quiet things down a little at highway speeds but it doesn't; the STI's engine is turning at a given highway speed at the same revs as most vehicles - 2,500 at 70 mph, for example. This is a noisy car that can get tiring on a long trip.

Brakes are heavy-duty Brembos; antilock and stability control are standard and the '08 Imprezas are top-rated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for frontal and side crashworthiness: five out of a possible five stars. Even the tougher Insurance Institute for Highway Safety calls the Impreza a "top safety pick" for its frontal, side- and rear-impact protection and the availability of stability control.

The previous Impreza was one of Consumer Reports' recommended models, with better-than-average reliability.

Unique to the STI is Subaru Intelligent Drive with three engine performance modes: Intelligent, Sport and Sport Sharp. Intelligent is for leisurely driving or for bad weather and features the least throttle response for best fuel economy and reduced chances of wheelspin.