2013 FRs vs 2017 WRX
 

As the title states the two cars shall be compared. I own both. Technically, I'm an idiot, and making payments on both. However, that is not the point. First off some information about my cars, of which I am the first owner of both. The FRs is a 10 Series with about 54k miles on it and it has experienced what some may call a rough life. Check out my journal in my signature for details, it is not stock, but still naturally aspirated and will remain so. The WRX is a base model, and except for about $10k in hail damage is stock, with less than 4k miles on it as a commuter car.

First the stuff anybody can see, the size differences. The newest WRX is huge in comparison to the FRs. Of course there is more room inside a four door car than a two door, but it is more nuanced than that. I'm a tall, lanky white guy, and I sit closer to the steering wheel than we're told to in airbag equipped cars. I also sit with the seat cushion at the lowest setting. I have to recline the seat in the FRs when wearing a helmet. I have not put a helmet on in my WRX yet, but know I will have plenty of head room. I also commute 30 miles each way to work. I can't lean my head towards the side window of the FRs without rubbing my head against the room liner above the door. I don't move my shoulders any, it is just a way to stretch the sides of my neck. There is plenty of room to wiggle my head around in the WRX. The extra doors and big windows of the WRX also make it a much brighter cabin, and much easier to see out of. Although, both cars are terrible to see out of looking over my right shoulder and directly out the back window while reversing. Yes, the WRX has a backup camera as mandated by the government. I hardly use it, as I am so accustomed to swiveling my head to know my surroundings.

The doors of the WRX also are much nicer to open and close for me. I don't really like the way that the FRs scoots the window down when the door opens. I understand that it has to happen due to the body shape of the car, but that seems unnecessary to me. It is something that the design and ergonomics committee could have taken out of the cars' persona if they had chosen. The doors and seals also sound much more substantial in the WRX when opened, ad especially when closed. I know that having the full framed doors is a big part of this, but it is a noticeable difference.

I am surprised at the fuel efficiency of the new WRX. I started using the Fuelly tracking program when I got the FRs and it has averaged 31.5 mpg over it's lifetime. The WRX has only covered about 9% of the distance but has a lifetime average of over 30 mpg. Granted, I don't get into the boost very much or very hard, but that is a nice surprise for me. The WRX has a bigger gas tank, so it can travel further between fill ups, easily 100 miles further when cruising.

Now, onto what enthusiasts really want to know, right? The driving experience. I was amazed how flat the new WRX corners when I first drove it. The car must have some big sway bars...That said, the FRs has so much better feel. I'd like to get some dual drilled wheels so I can swap tires from car to car and eliminate that variable, but as should be expected, the RWD car has better tactile feel than the AWD one. The suspension tuning on the WRX is nice, it floats over the road better, but without wallowing all over the place.

The brakes on both cars are stock, and feel very similar. I dislike the 'hill-holder' feature. I've been driving stick shift cars for over 15 years, so I'm glad that Subaru tells you in the owners manual how to turn that off in the WRX. I was fighting the hill holder when moving away from a stop. I do however think the feature could be a way to get a launch control type feature for rallycross if I ever do that with this WRX. And speaking of rallycross, the location of the turbo puts it at risk of getting hit by road debris. At least it has its own metal skid guard from the factory. The FRs has the whole underside of the engine protected in this manner as stock.

The throttle response of the WRX seems to be artificially touchy. I know its got an equal length exhaust now and a twin scroll turbo, but the car is a bit, ... jumpy as I vary the throttle.

Finally, the interactions I have with the cars themselves. My FRs has the RFID keyless access and start. A very nice feature. I often find myself having to pause at the door so I can remember to remove the key from my pocket when driving the WRX. Silly, but true. The WRX also has a crazy amount of buttons on the steering wheel. Some of which I feel don't need to be there. I like the way the FRS has the buttons to the left of the instrumentation to toggle the information. The WRX steering wheel lights up like a christmas tree at night. The outline/silhouette in the display screen of the WRX before start up is cool though. The steering column of the WRX also telescopes much further than the FRs. I like that adjustability. I also like the speed sensitive volume boost for the music in the WRX. And I think the shuffle feature when playing tunes from a USB drive is much better in the WRX. My FRs just uses the same 15-30 songs over and over when it has over 1500 to pick from. Both cars have an automatic climate control and the controls themselves are equally pleasant, but the FRs seems to like puting the system into recirculation mode EVERY time you shut the car off, and that is annoying.

The short version: The FRs is a much more driver focused car. Its more nimble, more communicative, more fun when the goal is having fun. The WRX is a great car, and much more of a utility tool. It is very good at a great many things, but not excellent at any of them the way the FRs can be.

Wow. You're comparing an apple to an orange or perhaps trying to figure out which one to get rid of. The FRS should be thought about as a weekend track car. Small, nimble, quick in the curves but certainly something you wouldn't consider taking down a pothole ridden dirt road. Now the WRX was certainly developed for an entirely different type of driving. You mentioned utility. That it is, a Swiss Army knife type of car. Good on asphalt good on dirt good in snow. It's a general purpose rocket. If it came down to having to choose one car for where I live it would be the WRX. However since I have a winter car I'd have to say the FRS is one of the finest rides ever put into production. The thought for the driver, the engineering, produced what Toyota wanted, a drivers car, well worth every cent. Now, in your case you have two exceptional autos and I'm seriously envious. The WRX can be tweaked but will never match the purpose built design of the FRS. Just get out there and enjoy them both.

I almost owned the FRS and a 07 STI but I chose the base impreza due to the significant markup in price with the STI WRX in conjunction with fuel economy. Like stated above, not much similar in terms of design besides the power unit (but then you're doing an NA vs Turbo etc etc) and build quality.

To be completely honest, I think the impreza is one of the best cars available but I wouldn't own the FRS without having a DD and the 2.5i is basically perfect for that. The WRX just wasn't practical for me to daily, especially coming from a Honda Fit lol.

The only STI's worth buying around here weren't that much cheaper than brand new or like new models, so that also played into why I didn't buy one. I was considering selling both vehicles and buying a new WRX STI but it's still not practical for me and I love the 2.5i to death. Don't get me wrong if the opportunity arose I'd def purchase the WRX but probably not alongside the FRS.

Now, find me a cheap low miles STI motor for the impreza and now things get interesting.

Its a pretty common comparison considering the BRZ and WRX are in the same price range and produced by the same company.

Nice review. I don't think it's too off the wall to compare or cross-shop the 86 with the WRX. Two different vehicles, yes, but both very fun and catered to enthusiasts. The WRX offers a nice balance of performance and practicality, along with the safety of AWD, but it is a jack of all trades that makes some compromises. The 86 is a precision tool, so it can look and drive even more sporty without having to worry about practicality. The ideal situation is to have both cars. :D

I always think a little less of people who think you can't compare an apple to an orange. It's really not that hard.

I don't see how writing a review is any indication of intent to sell either car, not that that should be anyone's concern.

I have no intent of selling either car. I just wrote this piece to provide information since I didn't see a similar comparison when I did a quick search, especially considering I own both simultaneously and can do back to back comparisons at will.

I got the WRX for $10,000 off because of hail damage. Otherwise the car was brand new. I have a small S10 quad cab truck that can be used for family duty, but it's no fun on a 45 minute commute. The FRs can no longer reasonably accommodate a growing boy in the back seat, he's 8 now, especially when mom is in the car too. It is really amazing how much room there is in the VA chassis Impreza compared to the old GD...

Do you have pics of both your cars? Curious to see the WRX especially how it looks after repairs.

We recently bought a 17 Impreza hatch for the wife and I am very interested to see what they do with the WRX/STI on that new platform. It should be very impressive indeed.

What repairs? It is still dented from the storm. Zero safety concerns from the damage, so I bought it "as is".

Yes, it has bigger sway bars comparing to ours. The STI has even bigger. Traditionally, as the model goes heavier and faster they increase the size and strength of them.

And the window drops when the door is opened because the FRS window is frameless and this way the window fits into the weather stripping.

I was once told that this was done because the car is airtight and the windows would explode...

And the first thing a good rallycross driver does to a fwd or awd car is disconnect the front sway bar to get the thing to rotate...

i find that hard to believe. that can mess with rake and camber and all sorts of things. its probably not a good idea.

Sway bar has no effect on rake or camber, in a static environment. The purpose of removing the sway bar is to soften the effective spring rate in a cornering situation. This promotes weight transfer in order to take weight off of the rear end so that it can slide more easily. Chassis slip angle is your friend, up to a point, in loose surface competition.

However, that is a discussion for else where. Not something relevant to this comparison of cars.

i understand what youre saying but youre still wrong. removing a bar will allow a inside wheel to droop. the inside wheel with the sway bar will not. that changes rake which can do some things to roll axis and camber changes. its something people do and its a compromise. it isnt the first thing a good driver or builder does, however.

i think its weird you think a topic you brought up isnt relevant.

I found this to be interesting and useful post.

I've got a new 86 on order. It's replacing my '92 Toyota Celica All Trac. For those who don't know what that is, the All Trac was the US version of the Celica GT4, Toyota's homologation model for WRC. 2.0L turbo, 5 speed, AWD. In the same category as the WRX.

I'm going to miss the turbo and especially the AWD but it's time to move on after 11 years and I'm tired of fighting the rust.

It's good to see comparison between these two platforms from someone who owns. It answers some questions that some coming from the rally car type platform have.

I'm looking forward to getting my car. Hopefully it will be here next month.

My best friend has a 2017 WRX....all I have to say is this: he'll ask to drive my car before I'd ask to drive his car...

I bought a '17 WRX Premium on New Years Eve, just 7 months ago. Last week I traded it in on a new BRZ w/ PP, and I couldn't be happier. Discovered that awd turbos just aren't my thing, esp. when Subaru provides such a crappy tune from the factory.