Test-driving Subaru’s all-wheel-drive Impreza STI is always a bit awkward for me. In the great STI vs. Evo debate, I’ve always been a Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution man. But for 2011, Subaru has implemented a series of changes that almost seem like a custom-tailored effort to win me over. Has it worked? Read on.
- Very fast and very grippy
- Now available with nicer creature comforts
- Surprisingly docile in day-to-day driving
- Expensive
- Doesn’t “wow” like the Lancer Evolution
- Fastest Impreza gets more amenities, sedan body style, and improved ride and handling for 2011
- Price range: $34,720 – $38,070 plus options
- Powertrain: 2.5 liter turbocharged horizontally-opposed 4-cylinder, 305 hp/290 lb-ft, 6-speed manual, all-wheel-drive
- EPA MPG estimates: 17 MPG city/23 MPG highway; premium fuel required
- Best rivals: Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution, Hyundai Genesis coupe, skydiving lessons
Let’s start by charting the changes. Most noticeable is that the STI, previously available only as a hatchback, now comes as a sedan, and at $34,720 (including destination) it’s $1,000 cheaper than last year’s STI hatch. (The 2011 hatchback is $36,720, $1,000 more than 2010.) I generally prefer hatchbacks, but in the case of the Impreza I think the 4-door is the better-looking car. Besides, Subaru says the sedan is more aerodynamic, so it tops out at 158 MPH — 3 MPH faster than the hatch — which means it’ll get you to work faster. The sedan also comes in a new Limited model with leather seats and a sunroof, and all STIs offer an improved navigation system with Bluetooth phone and audio. There are more changes under the skin: Stiffer springs, thicker sway bars, lighter wheels, and new suspension bushings designed to increase handing response without excessive harshness.
So how does it all work? Quite well, actually. The 2011 STI feels noticeably tigher and sharper than last year’s car, and it no longer gives me the uneasy feeling that it’s poised to turn around and bite me in the backside. And yet despite its improved handling, the STI cruises so quietly and comfortably that it’s easy to forget you’re driving Subaru’s penultimate hot-rod.
But are the improvements enough to get me to switch sides? The STI is very fast and very grippy, but it still doesn’t deliver the physics-defying thrills of the Lancer Evolution. Push the STI hard enough to break its prodigious grip and it understeers like a front-wheel-drive car. Where’s the fun in that? No matter how much I fiddled with the user-selectable center differential (which alters power distribution between front and rear axles), I couldn’t feel much change in the STI’s balance. It’s a stark contrast to the Evo, which has a computerized all-wheel-drive system that makes the most inept driver feel like a cross between God and The Stig.
That said, in virtually every other respect, the STI blows the Evo out of the water. Compared to the Subaru, the Mitsubishi’s interior is cheap and crappy, the ride borders on abuse, and the small gas tank means you can only enjoy the Evo in twenty-minute increments. No question, the STI is the more pleasant car to live with — but that said, were I shopping in the 300-hp-all-wheel-drive-screaming-terror class, I’m not sure that “pleasant” would be at the top of my priority list.
Actually, if I was looking for daily thrills, the car I’d look at is the STI’s younger sibling, the 265 hp Impreza WRX, which has also received a round of handling improvements for 2011. The WRX may not be quite as fast as the 305 hp STI, but it’s every bit as enjoyable in the curves and it costs a whopping $8,500 less in sedan form and $10,500 less as a hatchback. If I wasn’t going to punish myself with an Evo, the WRX is the car I’d buy. But that’s just me. If you want the best in speed, handling and grip that Subaru has to offer, that’s the STI — and for 2011, it’s better than ever.
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