Subaru has flown me up to northern California to have a look at the 2022 wrx, the all-new next generation model, to commemorate the classic subaru wrx’s 20th anniversary.
Now, full caveat, I don’t yet know how much this wrx will cost, but I can tell you pretty much everything else about it.
The first thing to know about the new Subaru WRX is that it is no longer a performance impreza; in fact, Subaru claims that it is as closely related to the current generation impreza as the forester is to the impreza.
It has different engines under the hood, different transmissions, different all-wheel drive systems, and every component of the body is different than the impreza, including the doors, hood, a-pillars, roof, underbody, and everything else.
Led headlights are standard; led fog lights are optional, although they’re found on most trims, and if you purchase the top-end wrx, the headlights steer in the bends.
As you work your way around the vehicle, you’ll notice that the wrx isn’t just an impreza with a tighter greenhouse and tacked-on fender flares.
In fact, these somewhat controversial cladding components right here are flush with the body; they don’t pop out, and they’re not what’s giving this model the clearance for the 245 tires that it has.
The 235 with tires is standard, and the 245s are available, but they’re all summer tires from the factory, not all-season.
At 183.8 inches long, it’s somewhat longer than the Subaru Impreza.
a lot of it occurs in the front and rear bumpers, which is obviously tied to the impreza, but it’s not just a sportier version of the impreza, which is essential to remember because it makes the wrx’s design appear much more unified than a lot of performance trims out there.
Most performance variants of mainstream vehicles share about 99 percent of their body in white with the mainstream vehicle.
The body in white is the structure of the car basically it’s the sheet metal and structural metal of the vehicle that make up the car itself without everything that’s bolted on no interior no doors no hood etc it’s the very structure of the vehicle for most performance variants that’s 99 the same from the bottom end to the top end but the wrx it’s completely different.
Under the hood, which is supported by struts rather than a prop rod, we find a functional hood scoop top mounted intercooler as we’ve seen in subarus for a while and a new 2.4 liter turbocharged boxer engine which we’ve seen in subarus for a while and a new 2.4 liter turbocharged boxer engine which we’ve seen in subarus for a while and a new 2.4 liter turbocharged boxer This engine is similar to the one found in the Subaru Ascent, but it’s been tuned for service in the WRX, not just to boost horsepower and performance compared to a crossover, but also to improve durability at various rpms.
The standard transmission is still a six-speed manual transmission with the viscous center coupling, which will send power 50 to the front and 50 to the rear in most situations unless of course you need more torque.
The horsepower comes in at 271 peak torque at 258 pound-feet, so a little bit more power about the same torque as before but the big difference is the way the torque comes on this has a much broader torque curve than the previous engine and you will really notice that out on the road a total of 21 If you pick the Subaru performance automatic, you should be aware that adaptive dampers, which are offered in the WRX, are only accessible with the automatic due to the basic manual gearbox.
With a manual transmission, you can’t get adaptive cruise control or some other safety systems known as eyesight, so this one doesn’t have a dual camera setup right here behind the windshield, it only has a single camera right there behind the rear view mirror.
Some active safety tech is standard, some is optional, but you’ll only get the complete suite if you get the cvt each t each t each t each t each t each t each t each t each t Subaru continues to provide us with 60-40 folding rear seat backs.
When companies try to share a structure between mainstream and performance variants of the same vehicle, we often get struts back here or they completely block off the folding rear seat, but Subaru was able to keep this feature and then strengthen the body around it to ensure you can still get the best of both worlds.
We have those split folding 60 40 seats in the back if we go under the load floor we fi One thing that surprised me is that Subaru still provides a threaded mount point for a spare tire, even though we don’t have one, and as you can see the well is clearly spare tire shaped.
Why no spare tire? Subaru won’t say, but it’s most likely due to curb weight.
The WRX is three to five hundred pounds heavier than a Subaru Impreza, but keep in mind that the WRX is much more of a performance oriented vehicle, so a lot of the As I mentioned before, the upholstery changes trim level to trim level.
This is a limited trim so we have the faux suede here in light gray and dark gray sections that’s not an optical illusion there red stitching on the sides pretty aggressive bolsters on the seat back cushion and on the seat bottom cushion but I had no problem finding a comfortable driving position.
If you get the base version of the wrx, you’ll get a twin screen setup similar to what we see in the base outback, but all the other trims will have this large lcd base models will have a key this is where the key goes, and it’s a little disappointing that there’s just a plastic cover there instead of a different steering column trim start stop button right there for the rest of the trims.
There are two USB connectors down here, as well as a spacious storage section where you may store those larger cellphones.
This is the six-speed manual transmission shift pattern reverse is exactly where it should be right over there to the right and then down we still have a little lockout for it so you can’t just go from first to reverse you have to pull on that in order to do that hand brake as you’d expect two large cup holders right here and then a fairly small center console storage area on the driver’s side we find a partial lcd instrument cluster trip com on the passenger’s side we find a partial The multi-function lcd is controlled by these buttons, which are located between the speedometer and tachometer on this side, we have buttons for regular cruise control; if you have an automatic, you can get adaptive cruise control, but that system is not available here on the road.
The first thing you’ll notice about the new wrx is the wider power band from the 2.4 liter engine.
Some people prefer peaky engines, but I prefer an engine with a slightly broader torque band.
This engine still revs up to around 6000 rpm, and peak horsepower occurs just under 6000 rpm, but the nature of the engine is definitely different than before, and perhaps a little bit closer to my taste because there’s so much torque you don’t have to do many gear changes if you’re out on your favorite winding mountain road like this.
The opposite is true for Subaru, where 85 percent of wrx customers choose for the manual gearbox.
It’s simple to understand why this has a nice feel to it.
The shifts aren’t too long, so it doesn’t feel like I’m driving a tractor.
I’d like a slight improvement in clutch engagement, but this is just about perfect.
I prefer the clutch feel in this to the clutch feel in the civic si.
I feel like the travel in the clutch pedal in the civic si is just too long, and the way all the pedals meet together in that, or in the gli or the gti for me, has just a slight discrepancy I was surprised that there isn’t a factory all-season or winter tire option.
I’d love to see Subaru offer some sort of interesting wrx winter package that includes some really really grippy winter tires and possibly a different wheel set, especially since the target market for something like the wrx is someone who lives in the snow belt and wants all-weather fun.
I’d for example really love to see Subaru offer us two sets of wheels, one with all-season tires and the other with winter tires Back to the paved road that I’m on right now, the wrx handles absolutely incredibly they’ve done a lot of chassis improvements this vehicle they’ve reworked the steering they’ve reworked the suspension design they’ve reworked the attachment points to the body this now rides on the same global platform as everything else in the Subaru lineup and that’s definitely paid dividends when it comes to engineering synergy but this wrx handles absolutely incredibly they It’s a little difficult to talk about fuel economy at this point, but according to Subaru, this model should get 21 mpg.
Now that I’m out on a bumpier section of road, you’ll notice the wrx is very firmly sprung.
This suspension has a little bit more suspension travel than before, and they’ve re-tuned the dampers significantly over the previous version, so I think the ride quality is a little bit better.
You won’t get the same type of overall package as we do in the wrx, and you won’t get the same level of cornering accuracy.
This car hugs bends really nicely, and the suspension, although a touch bouncy at times, isn’t as bobble-heady as previous wrx models, and the rear suspension doesn’t get agitated on fractured pavement in turns.
If you want to get your hands on a new Wrx, you’ll have to wait until spring of 2022 to do so.
Unfortunately, Subaru has not said how much the WRX will cost.
This information will be released closer to the on-sale date, which is expected to be anytime in january or perhaps early february.
Subaru has stated that the premium trim will be the most popular model.
The premium and restricted trims are the ones I spent the most time with today.
The basic trim will come standard with a significant lot of stuff, as well as summer tires, though 235 isn’t quite as wide as these tires.
17-inch rims Although the infotainment system will be different from the one shown on this model, android auto and apple carplay will be standard.
A two-screen arrangement with two seven-inch LCDs will be available on the basic trim.
The automated temperature control is a single zone version of the dual zone climate control we saw in this car.
The ordinary trim comes with led headlights, but they don’t steer in the corners.
The premium trim, which is expected to be the most popular, adds led fog lights.
18-inch rims This variant has an 11.6-inch LCD screen, two-zone temperature control, and keyless entry.
Start with the basic model, which requires the use of a key, then go up to the restricted trim, which has steering headlamps.
power driver seat with blind spot monitoring This specific trim is currently available in a limited quantity.
If you want all of the options, the gt trim will give you the adaptive suspension system.
I’m sad it’s the only one that gets adaptive suspension; I’d love to see a limited with a manual transmission and an adaptive suspension system.
You’ll also get recaro seats and reverse auto braking.
I can’t comment on value because I don’t know how much the wrx will cost, but logically the limited version of the wrx, which is this orange one right here, should cost under $35,000.
The current generation model is just under $33,000 plus destination tax title and all that good stuff, and at that price point, I think the wrx is an excellent buy if I were shopping in this segment and was really torn between a wrx and a wr Alex, please instagram all of your other social media accounts, and I’ll see everyone later.