2022 Subaru WRX owner review

I recently took delivery of a base-model 2022 Subaru WRX (VB chassis) with six-speed manual transmission. This was the cheapest option at $49,830 drive-away.
Owner: Mo

I recently took delivery of a base-model 2022 Subaru WRX (VB chassis) with six-speed manual transmission. This was the cheapest option at $49,830 drive-away. I’m in my early 50s, engineering professional, married with kids, and a typical suburban dad who likes to occasionally go out trekking, so the exact target demographic Subaru aims the current model of this car at.

I’d never really been anything of a hoon in my youth, I simply had the car I could afford at the time, which was usually a small hatch (I did love my 1990 Suzuki Swift, though, and thrashing it about with my mates). However, over time I came to appreciate that there are two aspects of a car that I really put before all others – performance and grip/handling! Needing to drive out to the country to visit family frequently puts you on single-lane country roads where the ability to overtake with speed and agile manoeuvring is a must.

But not just driving long stretches in the country, driving in wet weather, or on anything other than well-sealed tarmac, showed that the FWD cars I had experienced were always leaving me frustrated.

One of my previous cars, a Mazda 3 (2004 manual sedan), was good in dry conditions on normal roads, but as soon as it got wet I would get wheel spin when moving from a stationary start. Sure, you could get exceptionally good tyres that would minimise it, but it still wouldn’t eliminate it. And not just wheel spin, you could never feel fully confident that the back wouldn’t slide out in wet conditions even at normal speeds.

So the reason I came to buy the WRX was principally it’s the only performance AWD vehicle for anything less than $50K with its nearest competitor being the Golf R. The Golf R was not only much more expensive starting at $67K when I was in the market, but despite being slightly more powerful with a bit more torque, all the reviews I’d read as well as experience with a friend’s 2018 model showed it really was just a faster Golf. Plus it had a smaller boot, so I ruled it out.

The Audi RS3 is simply too far out of my budget being another $20K more than the Golf R. Sure, there is the Hyundai i30 N with near identical power and price points, which by all reviews I’ve read is a really outstanding car, but it’s still FWD. Even with its semi-magical differentials, what happens when the front two are both stuck in the mud or wet grass?

And while beauty is always in the eye of the beholder, I actually like the look of the 2022 WRX, black wheel arch cladding and all, more than either the look of the i30 N or Golf R. So I went with the Rex.

Having taken delivery in August 2022, I’ve been driving it almost daily since, with around 9000km now clocked up. And I’ve got to say, it’s a really enjoyable vehicle to drive, doing everything I ask of it without inducing any frustration.

The balance of the vehicle is excellent, taking even tight corners at speed, giving only the slightest roll and with complete confidence the rear is never going to slide (unless of course you want it to by utilising the handbrake, but that’s another story). This model is based on Subaru’s Global platform, which is stiffer by 28 per cent over the older VA chassis, so obviously I’m seeing the benefit of that. Handling and grip are very good in all conditions.

Select the appropriate gear for the speed and acceleration is also excellent, with boost kicking in and pushing me back into the headrest at around 3000rpm. Although it’s not a short-throw shifter, the gearshifts are precise and have a very mechanical feel about, and the manual is less abrupt than my older manual cars with a more tolerant clutch take-up.

I’d only driven the older VA (2015–2021) model once on a test drive. My wife hated it due to both the turbo noise and gear shock when shifting (to be fair, more due to my ‘vigorous testing’ of the vehicle than its innate roughness), but I can attest that both clutch and shifter on the new VB 2022 model are more tolerant.

Another nice feature is that the first gear is back-stopped, so there is no backward rolling of the car as you engage first gear up a slope from a stationary start before the clutch begins to bite.

The steering is also very accurate while being reasonably light, easily allowing precise turns with the right hand while the left is on the shifter. The combination of precise steering, AWD and the stiff chassis means you can approach corners and have full confidence the car will maintain the driving line.

Seating is quite good, even for this base model. I’ve driven it to Queensland and back to Sydney with two- to three-hour driving stints at a time before rest stops and the seats are comfortable for extended periods. And roominess is also good, having taken the whole family with me (three pre-teen kids and the wife).

Boot space is very generous for this size of vehicle at 411L. My family, principally the ladies of the house, like to bring everything on trips, up to and including the kitchen sink, “Just in case”. The good thing about the boot space is it could handle all the necessities after dispensing with the unnecessary (at least to me) extras.

The cabin is also very quiet compared to the previous VA. Even though this is the base model, the cabin feels very up to modern standards both aesthetically and in terms of comfort. You only hear the low hum of road noise (tyres on tarmac), and you really only hear the turbo when it spools up hard after around 4000rpm. With most driving being in suburban Sydney, I don’t hear the engine that often.

And this appears to be one of the main gripes of many of the enthusiasts towards this car. There’s no ‘Coco-Pops’ effect or ‘snap, crackle and pop’ and ‘flutter’ of older turbo engines due to the combination of the new electronic waste gate mitigating the suck back of reversed-flow air onto the turbo impeller when throttle is lifted as well as better injection management. It doesn’t sound like a Rex of old. How you feel about that is entirely up to you, but I’m very happy with the way it drives.

Visibility is excellent and the rear-view reverse camera is what you would expect in a modern car, giving a clear, reasonable-definition view even in the dark with wheel track overlay and line guidance.

The dashboard is a mix of a very modern 11.6-inch iPad-like portrait display above the centre console, while the speed dials are still analog (which I very much like) and between which sits the 4.2-inch variable digital display. This can be switched between multiple display modes such as boost gauge, fuel consumption etc, with an easy flick of the up/down toggles located on the left side of the steering wheel.

While the centre console is excellent, I have two main issues with it – no wireless CarPlay, you need to plug in for it for which you have two USB-A ports that can deliver up to 2.1 amps for relatively fast charging if your phone handles it. And you can’t pinch to zoom or swipe to move when in maps mode; instead, you need to use the unnatural on-screen direction arrows and +/- buttons. I’m not sure if this is Subaru’s implementation or just a restriction or CarPlay in vehicles.

Which brings us to fuel consumption. Admittedly, who buys a performance ICE turbo worrying about fuel consumption? However, you would always like it to be less rather than more, and reviews I’d read about this car prior to getting it implied it was a guzzler. Easily worst in class (small to medium performance sector).

My experience with it shows I get on average 10.5L/100km in normal light traffic suburban driving, 12.5L/100km in heavy traffic and 8.5L/100km on the freeway. Your mileage may vary obviously depending on the way you drive, but I’ve found that in suburban areas, where opportunities to use the performance aspect are more limited, I slip it out of gear and coast about 10 per cent of the time, which obviously reduces consumption.

I bought the manual not because it was cheaper (by $4000 no less) than the auto, but because the auto uses a CVT. Sorry, Subaru Performance Transmission (SPT). All the reviews I’ve seen online state it’s the best CVT ever. Which is undoubtedly true. But I just couldn’t bring myself to get it, it’s a CVT! The CVT is the primary reason Subaru has under-tuned the engine.

The FA24 is capable of so much more than a mere 202kW with 350Nm of torque, but the problem is the CVT is unlikely to be able to handle too much more torque. I plan to tune the vehicle over time, and so the manual is really the only option if you plan on doing this. Had they gone with an eight-speed dual-clutch transmission like all their performance rivals from Hyundai to Audi and AMG do, then I would’ve thought about it.

Another downside is that Subaru still hasn’t implemented auto-emergency braking for manuals (this only comes with the CVT). They’ll have to in this year’s update as all cars must have it by law this year. They appear to have gotten the memo for wireless CarPlay, though, as it is in the latest Crosstrek, which means it will roll out to all new models that use the same infotainment system platform when they’re updated.

I didn’t get the RS model as it was close to $7000 more at the time with only ‘nice to have’ luxury enhancements (such as sunroof, which I don’t really want as it tends to add weight). Rear USB-A ports would’ve been nice, as would rear air-con vents, but what I really wanted was a performance package. Only the tS (a CVT exclusive) includes active electronically adjustable dampers. I would’ve paid extra for that, and a Brembo brakes package, as was available on the STIs of old. I would imagine Subaru will offer these across the next few years along with the yearly facelifts.

The new VB will have a lifespan of at least six years before new rules and regulations across the world force increasing electrification (and the inevitable, sad end to the manual). But until that day comes, the manual Rex is the best value proposition on the AWD performance car market that I could find and I’m very happy with it.

Owner: Mo