Subaru WRX review: more grown up, less likely to punch you in the guts and steal your wallet

The rally-bred Subaru WRX was a sensation when it launched nearly 30 years ago. And the all-new “Rex” still rules.

Impressive: the new Subaru WRX RS

Now look, no one’s listening, it’s just me, so be honest – have you ever seen someone with a particularly large nose and wondered how, exactly, they see the world? Is it bifurcated? Does their view split in two, like a bird’s, or when you first look into a pair of binoculars?

I have spent a bit of time pondering proboscises, not just because my grandfather had a hell of a honker and I used to fear that mine, too, might one day start charging towards the centre of the Earth, but because Subaru’s WRX has long been my real-world, borderline-plausible dream car.

The WRX was, in fact, the first car to ever excite me (as an avowed motorcycling enthusiast I found “tin tops” effete and pathetic) and I believe my former editor, who was trying to talk me into writing about machines that might draw in more than three readers, insisted I drive one of the first examples in the country, back in 1994. The fact that a new WRX that still looks distinctly related to that first rally-bred road rocket has just adorned my life for a week is truly a marvel.

From the front

What made the Subaru unusual back in the mid-’90s – aside from its ability to transport criminals who’d just ram-raided ATMs out of the reach of police – was its all-wheel-drive set up, and the giant, eye-catching, occasionally bird-catching scoop in its bonnet, which fed its huffing, turbocharged engine (that horrible, loud and stupid whistling noise you may have heard “Rexes” making is largely the work of after-market enthusiasts). From the driver’s seat, this scoop looked like a nose, or even a beak, and it constantly obscured part of your view, but it also reminded you that you were driving something unusual, and a bit special – a car designed purely for performance with almost no consideration of style or care for looking attractive.

Subaru really put the passion of its fans to the test over the years, coming out with wild-looking WRX variants like the one dubbed “Blobeye” (2004) and others that should have been known as “Jellyfish Doing Yoga” or “Pig’s Breakfast”. It was a genuinely lovely shock to find that the 2022 model has been hit with the attractive stick, arguably for the first time ever.

Its lines have been shaved, it seems more svelte, even more purposeful than ever, and I must say I prefer the sedan shape to the hatch the WRX became for a while there. What’s particularly impressive is that the Rex was long based on the garden-variety Subaru Impreza (they’ve only just ditched “Impreza” from its name), which posed the designers a challenge akin to giving Ridley Scott a video I’ve shot on my phone (I should point out that my hands shake constantly, and inexplicably) and asking him to turn it into a Top Gear segment.

... and the back

So, I love the new look and particularly the fact that the bonnet scoop no longer looks like a giant postbox in front of me when I drive it (I did discover on the internet that some people hate the 2022 model, pointing out that it’s not “dramatic” enough; I fear they have somehow fallen in love with Subaru’s weirdness over the years and are failing to recognise that the firm has finally got this car right).

Less surprisingly, I also loved driving it, particularly because the company was wise enough not to lend me the CVT automatic version, which simply should not exist, and instead gave me the notchy, nifty and hugely fun six-speed manual.

The driver’s view

What makes the Subaru WRX such fun is its punchy, exciting acceleration and distinctive boxer-engine burble (its cylinders punch side to side, rather than up and down, just like a Porsche engine, and that makes it sound different), combined with steering so chunky you can carve it through corners, and lashings of grip.

While the doors still tink shut with a less-than-premium sub-thud, the interior is far nicer than it used to be – and it now comes with a big colour infotainment screen that would have made my head implode back in ’94. Unfortunately, one shocking change for me was the price of the WRX, which, in my mind, was locked just under $40,000 in perpetuity. The base model now starts at $44,900, which is still beating inflation I guess, but the RS manual I drove is $50,490. Next you’ll be telling me a Big Mac costs more than $5.

That money does get you more engine than ever, however, as it has grown from 2.0 to 2.4 litres and now makes 202kW and 350Nm, enough for a six-second sprint to 100km/h, which is adequate rather than scintillating. Really, though, it’s the Rex’s mid-range acceleration that makes me snort with glee.

Subaru’s WRX seems a bit more grown up now, a bit less likely to punch you in the guts and steal your wallet, and far less intimidating to drive, or at least I think so. Perhaps it’s actually me that has changed – and perhaps I should go and check my nose in the mirror – but what remains the same is that I still really want one. And today, in this form, I could enjoy looking at it, bonnet scoop and all.

Subaru WRX RS

ENGINE: 2.4-litre turbocharged four-cylinder (202kW/350Nm). Average fuel

9.9 litres per 100km

TRANSMISSION: 6-speed manual, all-wheel drive

PRICE: $50,490

STARS: 4.5 out of 5