Subaru Impreza WRX STI 2006 Review

7-day Test

Our test STI arrived sporting battle 'scars' from one (or more) of our colleagues. Like a thoroughbred ridden hard and put away wet, it initially was bordering on lame. The drive home diagnosed four flat-spotted tyres, warped brake discs and a rattle from behind the dash that would have woken the dead. Not a good start.

Then there was the recalcitrant four-digit PIN-coded antitheft alarm. If you hold your mouth like this, point your nose east and wink three times, then type in the secret number... You get the idea. No wonder thieves can't get the things to start! Neither car journos!

In normal circumstances it would have been straight back to Subaru for, at the very least, a fresh set of the STI's standard semi-slick asymmetric Bridgestone RE-070 tyres. However, deadlines and other commitments meant that our drive had to be done the very next day – or we would have been writing about a week's worth of the commuting prowess of Subaru's hottest street offering.

Having jumped straight from the standard WRX into the STI, the contrasts were marked. Even outrageous rear wing aside, the STI's stance is far more purposeful than the cooking model Impreza turbo. Those great looking fine-spoked alloys with the big (326mm fronts!) Brembo brakes for all to see, extra bits of bodywork and so on... Top stuff.

Inside, it's still a trip back into the '90s but at least there's a little race-car pizzazz to soften the blow. Two-tone re-profiled sports seats, alcantara-style highlights, shining pedals, chunky gearshift and the like. Befitting a car that is supposed to be a homologation special, it's thoroughly boy-racer.

And around town it behaves like one. The one-inch wider, low-profile race-style rubber and aggressive, heavily-cambered suspension settings means the STI tramlines like a real racecar on surface irregularities at around town speeds. The suspension is hard -- no ifs, no buts -- and magnifies any bumps and yumps. No mistaking the out-of-round rubber in this one!

The clever-electronically controlled centre diff can't silence the front and rear diffs and the whole drivetrain grumbles purposefully when you do a U-turn or manoeuvre in tight confines. The brakes squeal and whine under light duty. You could be forgiven for thinking you're in a touring car making your way to the starting grid.

But... And it's a marvellous but, it all comes together the very moment you point the STI at anything twisty with any sense of urgency.

Unlike its standard sibling there ne'er a hint of understeer in the STI's fast road manners. That steering, which has a mind of it's own at low speed, loads up beautifully and is both precise and communicative. The drivetrain, so taut underneath you, translates the STI's not-inconsiderable 206kWs of power and 392Nm of torque to instant drive everywhere (see DCCD below).

And the brakes -- pulsing from the warped discs aside, are nigh-on perfect. A serious step up from the standard WRX in stopping power and the (excellent) standard car's equal in feel and feedback.

The hills around Melbourne are threaded with great STI-style roads. Short, sharp straights separated by tight bumpy and at times off-camber corners are this car's happy hunting ground. Nothing shy of its sworn enemy Evo IX will keep an STI in check in this sort of going.

Like the Evo the STI offers the driver the choice of 'tuning' its 'smart' computer-controlled centre diff via a rotary knob on the centre console. Once only available in the rarified realms of WRC and the like, the STI's Driver Control Centre Differential (DCCD) features a torque-sensitive gear-type LSD ahead of an electromagnetic clutch. Left in auto, the centre diff reacts continuously to apportion drive and (like the Evo) measure steering wheel angle and yaw to help steer the car. The DCCD allows the driver to manually set the front-to-rear torque split across six settings (torque can be split fr:rr 41:59, compared to the last model's 35:65) or it can be left to the computer. We left it to the computer and enjoyed the ride!

Throttle back from nine-tenths and the whole plot works well. Surprisingly, even with its hard spring rates, the more precise damping control of the STI means it's no less comfortable on the country 'transport' stages than the standard WRX. The better seating probably plays a part here.

The STI's extra cog helps too. Though fitted with a bespoke close-ratio six-speed gearbox, the STI's overall gearing is taller than the standard car. On the open road this calms the engine -- at 100km/h in sixth it's turning in the low 2s -- yet in the twisties gives you a gear for every corner. Shift quality is more positive than the standard car too.

If you're interested in economy figures, then you're looking at the wrong car. Suffice it to say the STI's appetite for 98 RON fuel is no worse than that of the V8s it eats for breakfast. We returned similar stats to the standard WRX driven over the same loop.

We didn't even turn on the higher-spec six-speaker stereo that's part of the upgraded spec that comes as part of the STI's $16,000 premium over the standard WRX. We played with the adjustable shift warning buzzer and intercooler water spray though -- it's that sort of car.

That the STI was reluctantly handed back after such an inauspicious arrival speaks volumes for the car's abilities. Yours Truly is one of those people who wouldn't be seen dead with his name on the registration papers of a WRX, but an STI... Well that's different...