Thoughts on 2015 WRX vs 13/14 BRZ

[BadMoon]

I love the new STI.

[m.wood0213]

Id rather have a 13-14 WRX hatch

[OICU812]

Ugly family car IMO...

[Djratrap]

The new chassis in the new impreza alone vs the 2011 is a night and day. Interesting to see how that will translate with the new wrx/sti. Will it finally beat the Evo (in terms of handling)?

[CiViCKiDD]

I love the BRZ, but already have a coupe (wife's hand-me-down 2011 Accord 5sp) and it's not fun taking the baby seat in/out. Plus, I drive 140-150 miles a day (3 days a week) to get to/from work so RWD in the northeast makes it tough.

That's my justification to picking up a 2015 WRX.

[thill]

Originally Posted by CiViCKiDD

I love the BRZ, but already have a coupe (wife's hand-me-down 2011 Accord 5sp) and it's not fun taking the baby seat in/out. Plus, I drive 140-150 miles a day (3 days a week) to get to/from work so RWD in the northeast makes it tough.

That's my justification to picking up a 2015 WRX.

On the flipside, the BRZ gets much better gas mileage. I was able to exceed the EPA numbers in my BRZ even though I flogged the engine a ton. The WRX? Not so much. Would be happy to hit the EPA numbers..

But, if you are dealing with carseats and kids and driving a lot in bad weather then that is all the justification you need

[ricerocket]

Personally I'd be willing to trade off the extra 7-10mpg for the extra power and awd. I mean in essence it really just is a 4 door, factory turbocharged and awd FR-S/BRZ and for around the same money give or take. As much as I loved the exterior design of the 2011-2014 WRX hatches, the fit and finish of the interior was just the worst. The entire interior was basically all plastic sans the seats and the stock stereo royally sucked. The new one looks to be a very big step up from the outgoing model though even if there won't be a hatch model available.

[ghdana]

I would consider one if they make a hatch down the road. Even stock, the red hatches are perfect IMO.

Down the road when I can finally afford a new car it will be a tough decision, but I might just pick the BRZ because I wouldn't have the STi teasing me in my head. And living in a city daily I'd rather not drive stick, but it's an option.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

[SirBrass]

Originally Posted by ricerocket

Personally I'd be willing to trade off the extra 7-10mpg for the extra power and awd. I mean in essence it really just is a 4 door, factory turbocharged and awd FR-S/BRZ and for around the same money give or take. As much as I loved the exterior design of the 2011-2014 WRX hatches, the fit and finish of the interior was just the worst. The entire interior was basically all plastic sans the seats and the stock stereo royally sucked. The new one looks to be a very big step up from the outgoing model though even if there won't be a hatch model available.

Having come FROM an STI, let me tell you that the 7-10 MPG loss really hurts. Unless you live in an area where you'll need AWD in the winter, it may not be worth it.

For a long time, I thought the STI was my dream machine. I was happy with my WRX but I wanted more, and the STI had more, so I figured the STI was therefore what I wanted.

After having gotten the STI, it was indeed more than the WRX and quite a bit of fun. But the costs really really hurt. And then I test drove a BRZ.

I'm asked if I miss the power of the STI. My response is always "Eh, just a little sometimes." The BRZ, however, is so much fun to just drive whether my foot is in it or not (more fun with my foot in it, though) compared to the STI that I don't miss the power all that much, b/c what I get in return is so much better. Because in essence what the STI and WRX will never be is a BRZ/FR-S with turbo AWD. The RWD is critical to the entire feel of the twins. Add in power-robbing AWD and the weight imbalance that comes (gotta have the transmission over the front axle to allow for the trans-axle being driven, and therefore the engine is now out in front of and over the front axle) from AWD, in addition to the big difference AWD brings to the handling game and you have nothing like an FT-86 twin. The only thing they may share in common is a similar power plant, and that's it.

And I'm saving a LOT of money on gas and insurance that can go into putting the power I lost into the BRZ.

Not saying the STI isn't worth it. It may be, but consider that some of us came from STIs and are very very happy with the switch to the twins.

[ricerocket]

That's very true and you do have a point, but I guess what I was trying to say is I would personally trade it for the new WRX because I already have a daily driver/family car heh.

[thill]

Originally Posted by ghdana

I would consider one if they make a hatch down the road. Even stock, the red hatches are perfect IMO.

Down the road when I can finally afford a new car it will be a tough decision, but I might just pick the BRZ because I wouldn't have the STi teasing me in my head. And living in a city daily I'd rather not drive stick, but it's an option.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

I don't think you will see a hatch for this generation WRX/STi. Subaru already invested in the platform to be a sedan and they are at capacity right now from a car production standpoint.

There is a rumor floating around that the 2015 STi will offer a dual clutch automatic... We will find out soon

[thill]

Originally Posted by ricerocket

Personally I'd be willing to trade off the extra 7-10mpg for the extra power and awd. I mean in essence it really just is a 4 door, factory turbocharged and awd FR-S/BRZ and for around the same money give or take. As much as I loved the exterior design of the 2011-2014 WRX hatches, the fit and finish of the interior was just the worst. The entire interior was basically all plastic sans the seats and the stock stereo royally sucked. The new one looks to be a very big step up from the outgoing model though even if there won't be a hatch model available.

I find the complaints of the 2014 WRX interior to be overblown. My BRZ Limited was a touch nicer, but the WRX was not nearly as bad as the reviews made it out to be. The dash plastic is actually pretty nice to the touch. Some of the other plastics are hard, but the BRZ has some hard plastic throughout the cabin as well. The steering wheel feels just as good as the BRZ to me. The steering wheel audio and phone contols are nice to have vs the touchscreen in the BRZ. BRZ front seats are definitely better, but the WRX is fine for my commute.

The stock stereo is really bad, but there is a hidden menu option to defeat the stock EQ and it does sound better, but I am going to replace the head unit and speakers anyway. But let's be honest here, the touchscreen NAV in the BRZ is just awful too. Subaru just sucks at radios and speakers in their car but I suspect most people prefer aftermarket anyway since you can get so much more for your money.

The new WRX sounds like the interior will be even better than the BRZ. Which is a good thing.

[chas3wba0]

Don't know about the incoming model, but my friend with a base 2014 STi was thoroughly impressed and jealous of my BRZ interior, especially the seats... perhaps Toyota's involvement in that department paid off. And yea, the touchscreen head unit is pretty clumsy, but I've gotten pretty good at pressing the buttons while in motion and it's bearable, to say the least.

Really, the money you pay for a WRX or STi all goes to the motor and drivetrain

[thill]

Originally Posted by chas3wba0

Don't know about the incoming model, but my friend with a base 2014 STi was thoroughly impressed and jealous of my BRZ interior, especially the seats... perhaps Toyota's involvement in that department paid off. And yea, the touchscreen head unit is pretty clumsy, but I've gotten pretty good at pressing the buttons while in motion and it's bearable, to say the least.

Really, the money you pay for a WRX or STi all goes to the motor and drivetrain

And the money you pay for a BRZ or FR-S is going to the suspension

Which is fine with me. The FR-S and BRZ also get beat up for having spartan interiors, but I actually prefer it. When I test drove a Focus ST recently I hated how busy the interior was and how many buttons there are. I prefer simple. Which is why I like the WRX interior as well, it is just very simple.
Maybe I am just getting too old