Friday 2nd May 2014

WRX STI vs Golf R: PH Blog

The Golf R should wipe the floor with the WRX STI; does it though?

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Finally driving the Golf R so soon after experience of the reborn Subaru WRX STI has resulted in a surprising conclusion. And rather overturns a number of lazy assumptions I'd made about the two cars based upon the on-paper stats. If nothing else it goes to show how little numbers can tell you about how a car will make you feel.

Wet B-road, turbo 4WD car with blue paint ... oh

Accepted wisdom has it the Golf, A45 AMG, S3 and others have annexed the ground Japanese rally reps once claimed as theirs and theirs alone. And even as a bit of a Subaru fan I felt resigned to the WRX STI feeling like a bit of a relic; the old fighter who really shouldn't have attempted one last comeback.

Basically the Golf R is a (stereo)typically Germanic and ruthless piece by piece annihilation of any remaining selling points the Subaru had left, wrapped up in coolly conservative design and mainstream acceptability. They've even contrived some sort of off-beat engine noise fakery to make it sound a bit Scoobyish and painted it metallic blue. What chance the winged and scooped 90s throwback with its drinking habit and plasticky interior?

In fairness to the Golf we've only had it for a short period and I've not had That Drive yet. Whereas the Subaru was gifted with a launch event and weather that played perfectly to its few remaining strengths.

Wait a minute though; old dog still has tricks

But where I got behind the Subaru with zero expectation I did the same in the Golf off the back of a considerable wave of hype and glowing reviews. First impressions on the handling track seemed to confirm all those suspicions about the Subaru too; it felt like the last 15 years hadn't happened. While from the off the Golf grabs you by the scruff of the neck and impresses you with the sheer explosiveness of its performance - those 300 German horses feel stronger than their Japanese equivalents from the off.

But after longer in both cars those respective first impressions were turned upside down. The fast, hydraulically assisted steering in the Subaru at first felt a bit a bit light and vague. But then all that discussion in the tech presentation about significantly increased stiffness in the suspension and steering components and transparency in response started making sense. There is some electronic control over the diff in the Subaru but fundamentally the four-wheel drive system is mechanical and once you understand its quirks you can use that to your advantage. Likewise the honesty of the feedback from the passive dampers and the satisfaction of a typically mechanical feeling manual shift.

It's not for everyone, but then it never was

A DSG equipped Golf R is a very different experience. From that engine note to the variable assistance to the steering, adjustment to the dampers, everything feels a little synthesised and artificially augmented. The engine is tuned to give you a punch in the back before the rev counter has passed 2,000rpm but runs out of puff just where the Subaru is giving its best. Latest generation or not, the Haldex four-wheel drive retains fundamentally a front-driven bias too while a fiddle with the Subaru's diff switch at least offers some adjustment to counter its natural understeery tendencies.

A WRX STI remains a niche choice and for the committed only; it's not going to tempt any Golf R buyers but then it wouldn't have done back in the day either. As a pure driving tool it still has some lessons to teach the VW though, which based on the on-paper stats I'd have never thought possible. Nice to be proved wrong sometimes.

Dan

[Andrew[MG]]

Feel a bit let down by the headline since there's no real Sti vs Golf story here

[Ved]

Same here. Come on Dan, gives us a long term view over a week or so! I'm happy to help if you get bored

[anonymous-user]

I don't see why the Subaru should be classed as a niche choice. It's got 5 doors and is designed for daily use.

The badge; road tax; interior quality; and the lack of heated seats and Harmon Kardon stereo are too distressing for your average Golf driver to even think about.

[RacerMike]

anonymous said:

[redacted]

Whilst I agree, you can disable the synthesiser, and there were a few nearly new high spec Rs on VWs approved site for around the £32k mark, which seems more reasonable.

[richs2891]

Fingers crossed for a back to back test of the WRX STI v Audi S3 v Merc A45 AMG v VW Golf R

[J4CKO]

Golf's do absolutely nothing for me, sort of a fast car for non car enthusiasts, a Sony Aibo vs a real Dog.

Sure it is great, VW makes some nice cars, but I just dont want one, however fast it is, would have to go for the 135i if I needed a Junior Supercar.

[Ved]

RaymondVanDerDon said:

I don't see why the Subaru should be classed as a niche choice. It's got 5 doors and is designed for daily use.

The badge; road tax; interior quality; and the lack of heated seats and Harmon Kardon stereo are too distressing for your average Golf driver to even think about.

I use mine (Blobeye) for long distances with work and blatting around. I accept it's got a harder ride than a 3 series diesel and is louder than a Leaf. It's a saloon car with more power and less faff. Just like a lot of others. It's also better built than anything of the same era and I don't give two sts for the plastics on some parts as I don't touch those 99.9% of the time I'm in it.

[Ved]

J4CKO said:

Golf's do absolutely nothing for me, sort of a fast car for non car enthusiasts, a Sony Aibo vs a real Dog.

Sure it is great, VW makes some nice cars, but I just dont want one, however fast it is, would have to go for the 135i if I needed a Junior Supercar.

Junior supercar. Never fails to make me giggle

[Swedespeed]

Residual value after 3 years /60k
Looks
Interior quality
Build quality
Dealer network

As a daily driver the Golf destroys the Scooby.

[anonymous-user]

Not if driving thrills are your priority...

[ode]

Swedespeed said:

Residual value after 3 years /60k
Looks
Interior quality
Build quality
Dealer network

As a daily driver the Golf destroys the Scooby.

But for anyone really into their cars, the Golf wouldn't even be on the list. I hate the Subaru's image, noise, and interior, but I'd probably still choose one over the VW.

[My Evil Twin]

but end of the day.. it was conceved to be a shopping cart that has had the engineers play at it.
The Subaru was I presume designed from day 1 to be a STI and if they decide to sell any shopping trolly version then thats all well and good.

and what would you rather open the front door to each morning...
or another way, a car that you have to explain to your mates/colleague.. "yea but its the R32 version with xxhp and yy lb/f not the 1.6" or you could just say "I drove the Subaru to work this morning" and they will nod in a semi-knowing way that means they think its probably a pretty fast car.

[GravelBen]

My money would be on the Subaru for better build quality and reliability.

[aarondbs]

Swedespeed said:

Residual value after 3 years /60k
Looks
Interior quality
Build quality
Dealer network

As a daily driver the Golf destroys the Scooby.

Whether we agree on these point or not, and I might take issue with build quality, none of the them refer to driving!!

[JackReacher]

ode said:

But for anyone really into their cars, the Golf wouldn't even be on the list.

Yes that's right, nobody into cars could possibly want one of the best all round hot hatches. Hot Golf's from Mk5 onwards (and early versions) are very good cars, possibly lacking involvment above 8/10ths but for a daily driver they make a lot of sense.

[dukebox9reg]

My Evil Twin said:

but end of the day.. it was conceved to be a shopping cart that has had the engineers play at it.
The Subaru was I presume designed from day 1 to be a STI and if they decide to sell any shopping trolly version then thats all well and good.

and what would you rather open the front door to each morning...
or another way, a car that you have to explain to your mates/colleague.. "yea but its the R32 version with xxhp and yy lb/f not the 1.6" or you could just say "I drove the Subaru to work this morning" and they will nod in a semi-knowing way that means they think its probably a pretty fast car.

The R is also designed from day 1 to be a R. They dont just make the base models and say, 'hang on, lets stick 4wd on it and wind the turbo up to 11'

And the the majority of the last Impreza's hatch here were 1.5R's and Td's that looked the same as the WRX's (So you still had to explain it)STI obviously stood out a tad.

Your arguments are a bit weak really. Everyone whos into cars if they know what an Subaru STI is (as its not an Impreza) know what a Golf R/R32 is.

In the UK if you drive a Subaru to work nowadays most people will think its a diesel Legacy with a CVT box.

Why cant you fit a Haldex controller? Wind more rear bias on. Not an expert on the haldex system.

[pppppppppppppppp]

J4CKO said:

Golf's do absolutely nothing for me, sort of a fast car for non car enthusiasts, a Sony Aibo vs a real Dog.

Sure it is great, VW makes some nice cars, but I just dont want one, however fast it is, would have to go for the 135i if I needed a Junior Supercar.

I've got a new Golf R on order, which is due to arrive in a few weeks. I looked at the M135i and decided that, for a family car, it was frankly too small and impractical. Not much space in the boot, which is odd given that it looks like an estate, and rear legroom is crap too.
I didn't even drive it, mostly because the salesman was dicking around and left me standing there too long, but partly because I knew that if I loved it I still wouldn't buy it.
That's the thing about these sort of cars. It's not all about driving experience. It would be great if it was, but the practical stuff comes first. If I didn't need a hatch I wouldn't buy one: I'd have a two-seater.
Then there's the way it looks. The BMW looks crap, but that doesn't massively bother me. I actually love the way the current gen Subaru looks, but I wouldn't want the attention that it draws. Which is another reason I went for the Golf. If I could have one with no R badges and a single, normal-sized exhaust pipe, I would. If the Subaru looked like like a standard Impreza, it would be more attractive.

[moffat]

Swedespeed said:

Residual value after 3 years /60k
Looks
Interior quality
Build quality
Dealer network

As a daily driver the Golf destroys the Scooby.

+1 and I am really into cars.

Also add:

Worse mpg
Higher CO2 / VED

I think that this is Subaru's last attempt in the UK and it's come at the very hardest time in terms of 300bhp+ hatch / small saloons (S3, CLA/A45, Cupra R, Golf R, M135i, M235i, Focus RS).

[Clivey]

My Evil Twin said:

but end of the day.. it was conceved to be a shopping cart that has had the engineers play at it.
The Subaru was I presume designed from day 1 to be a STI and if they decide to sell any shopping trolly version then thats all well and good.

and what would you rather open the front door to each morning...
or another way, a car that you have to explain to your mates/colleague.. "yea but its the R32 version with xxhp and yy lb/f not the 1.6" or you could just say "I drove the Subaru to work this morning" and they will nod in a semi-knowing way that means they think its probably a pretty fast car.

Waiting for the joker to arrive...

[Crunchy Nutter]

aarondbs said:

Swedespeed said:

Residual value after 3 years /60k
Looks
Interior quality
Build quality
Dealer network

As a daily driver the Golf destroys the Scooby.

Whether we agree on these point or not, and I might take issue with build quality, none of the them refer to driving!!

Ooooh, butthurt. He's got a point: if you want a daily driver then buy a 2.0 TDI. Assuming your reasoning is correct, a diesel Golf has everything you list and is much cheaper. And as a daily driver, its increased fuel economy, longer tank range and invisibility to thieves mean it would destroy the R version. Your reasoning destroys itself.