Video Reviews Subaru WRX STi vs Audi S3 Saloon
- Thread starter JHF
- Start date
Cashmere
RPM Ruler
S3 sedan bliksems the STi
martinbo
Staff member
Thanks - I was expecting a snotklap.
STI is dated now. Its once-mad numbers from a 2.0 litre turbo engine [talking specifically JDM spec] were laudable years back but the Germans have now caught up and surpassed Subaru. The STI's old-generation, venerable EJ257 engine is maxed out now. The manual gearbox is great for die-hard enthusiasts (it's quintessential to the erstwhile STI experience) but Subaru's lack of a dual clutcher will prove to relegate the STI from Nineties-thru-Noughties giant slayer to outdated under-performer. Manual gearboxes are just not cutting it (however sad that may be) on paper in terms of performance or sales numbers.
SA Car has just done an STI test. What was once the car's forté - the off-the-mark 0 to 100 sprint - relative to other, fancier cars has now become commonplace in the segment. In fact it's gone backwards: 0 -100km/h in 5.59 secs. Previous tests yielded 5.14 secs and 5.21 secs for the same marker.
The only thing still in the STI's favour is its better AWD system which apportions a better balance of torque permanently front-to-rear than the reactionary FWD-based systems in the Merc and S3. In that sense, you'll get a "purer" driving experience - not that many people these days know what that is.
mini_cooper4
Autotechnik Ace
Damn what you just said sounds like an article... a good one!
Send some of your powers my way, old man!
Giannis
Staff member
I don't agree at all.
I feel that Subaru still dares to produce a raw product, a sports sedan that is actually engaging to drive, one that needs to be worked hard and has proper steering and is not that easy to go fast with.
Yes, the Audi is a much better overall product, but all I got from that road comparison is that the Audi has a much much better interior, better materials and is easier to drive. The Scoob has quick steering with great centering, nice break pedal feel, ample grip, great AWD system, rides good enough, puts a smile in your face, but that's not the point.
I'd pick a normal A3 over most cars in its segment any day of the week, but as far as the S3 is concerned, a proper "go-bonkers" sedan needs to be raw for me. Yes, I've grown old, I'm too old for this sith and I want my life to become easier, but I find no pleasure in doing things effortlessly.
Today is the third day that my Clio is in the shop and I already miss its un-assisted steering
Sunny
Premium
^The problem is there was a time when STIs (and Evos) were euro super car nightmares. 911s and M3s dreaded being stuck on the same patch of road with a STI or an Evo. That made the crap ass interior, peaky power delivery and the boy racer body kits ok - it even added to the whole rally car allure. But now even euro hot hatches routinely outperform these cars and the price difference is not that big either anymore.
ps. I still would love a STI wagon/hatchback.
ps. I still would love a STI wagon/hatchback.
martinbo
Staff member
Ed Zachery, Sunny.
Back in the day STIs weren't only things of intense driving pleasure but were also searingly quick relative to other machinery. An STI bothered by a hot hatch? Unheard of back then. Today's STIs drive no better than their predecessors - some purists will say that the advent of the EJ25-engined models outside of Japan bode for a diluted STI experience - and they no longer hold the dynamic advantage once only challenged by heroic arch-nemesis, the Mitsu EVO.
Those were the days when STIs went top-flight rallying, the days of forged pistons and connies, hollow inlet valves and sodium-filled exhaust valves. And those days are gone. Today's STI is a far cry from the ultra-tactile exhilaration of its forebears. In isolation, sure, the STI remains a concentrated and rewarding driving experience but stacked up against its competitors it starts to look old-fashioned. You'd be better off buying a Golf R. And that's sad.
Back in the day STIs weren't only things of intense driving pleasure but were also searingly quick relative to other machinery. An STI bothered by a hot hatch? Unheard of back then. Today's STIs drive no better than their predecessors - some purists will say that the advent of the EJ25-engined models outside of Japan bode for a diluted STI experience - and they no longer hold the dynamic advantage once only challenged by heroic arch-nemesis, the Mitsu EVO.
Those were the days when STIs went top-flight rallying, the days of forged pistons and connies, hollow inlet valves and sodium-filled exhaust valves. And those days are gone. Today's STI is a far cry from the ultra-tactile exhilaration of its forebears. In isolation, sure, the STI remains a concentrated and rewarding driving experience but stacked up against its competitors it starts to look old-fashioned. You'd be better off buying a Golf R. And that's sad.
Since when was an S model Audi a "go bonkers" type of a car?
Audi S models were always about offering a balance between everyday usability and comfort with a decent turn of speed and in my opinion the S3 hits that brief on the head.
What's shocking is that Subaru hasn't updated its product one bit, sure it's go a new set of clothes but it doesn't appear to have improved over the years unlike its competitors.
Audi S models were always about offering a balance between everyday usability and comfort with a decent turn of speed and in my opinion the S3 hits that brief on the head.
What's shocking is that Subaru hasn't updated its product one bit, sure it's go a new set of clothes but it doesn't appear to have improved over the years unlike its competitors.
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