8 Great Rides

Subaru WRX

Photography by E. John Thawley III

It seems like only yesterday we drove our first WRX. It was a 1997 WRX RA, a 2,600-pound bantamweight with the biggest factory turbo Subaru had dared use up to that point, rock-hard suspension, super-quick 13:1 steering and rally-short gearing.

At the time, it seemed like we were the only ones who understood that car. It was a white four-door with no wing in a town and a time when Subaru had zero credibility. I drove the car for a week, prowling the streets for a Mustang to embarrass or an Impreza to inspire. No Mustang driver would even look at the car. No Impreza ever appeared. That's right, in a week of driving around L.A., there wasn't a single Impreza to be seen.

My, how things change. Four years after the first U.S.-spec WRX rolled off the boat, it's hard to believe Subaru was so slow to realize what it had in the WRX. A turbocharged, all-wheel-drive sports car/sedan/wagon seems so obvious now. But at the time, believe it or not, nobody thought Americans would want a car that was both fast and practical.

Our traumatic collective American memory of Country Squire wagons was supposed to somehow prevent us from appreciating a station wagon or four-door sedan that attacks mountain roads, does glorious all-wheel-drive powerslides in the dirt, carries our skis, mountain bikes, dogs and junkyard gold, and can still pick up Grandma from the home.

It may not be the hard-core driving tool the RA was, but the WRX, with the freneticness tuned out, manages to be all things to an amazing number of people. For us it's the perfect raw material, the perfect chance to get back to the purity and raw performance of that first RA.

In stock form, the WRX is no longer the quickest thing around, like it was just a couple of years ago. It's 227 hp now pales in the shadow of the EVO/STi horsepower war, but its 14.6-second quarter-mile time remains significantly faster than several of this year's 8 Greats can muster. And, unlike the quicker 350Z, the WRX can haul your toolbox, extra set of wheels and tires, and two buddies to the dragstrip or the autocross.

Plus, the venerable EJ20 has the benefit of age. Take a fundamentally good engine, let it bounce around the aftermarket for a few years, and you end up with easy horsepower. The WRX tuning options are endless now, letting you build all the speed you could want and still haul the goods.

It may be a shade gray around its temples, but the Subaru WRX remains one of the eight greatest cars you can buy for less than $30,000.--Dave Coleman

Subaru WRX
Best feature: It delivers go-anywhere,do-anything versatility without sacrificing performance.
Worst feature: The control feel still reminds you of Subaru's roots.
First three things we'd modify:
1: Vishnu Stage 1
All the critical engine upgrades (up-pipe, downpipe, exhaust, underdrive pulley and an ECU reflash) conveniently bundled so we can count it as one part.
2: A big rear bar and steering rack bushings
OK, that's two things, but they both dramatically improve steering feel and handling balance.
3: Real tireserential
Subaru used crappy all-season tires to convince your wife to buy it. Now you can ditch them when she's not looking.