zeroptzero

While I'm trying hard to look at a new Honda Civic Type R, there are just a few things that don't make it practical as a daily driver for me. This weekend I test drove a Subaru WRX sport model and it hit all of the bases for me. I was very pleased with every aspect of the car, nothing that I did not like. If I purchase one it will be with the auto CVT tranny as my wife and son will need to drive it, I know this is against all of the purists out there, but I quite like the CVT they offer on the WRX. This must be the best CVT tranny on the market, as it is still quite fun to drive with various performance electronic settings possible, and shiftable up to 8 gear increments (though not having gears lol). The tranny feels very slick , much better than I expected and better than the CVT's on my two Hondas.

I'm a bit disappointed in Honda in that they are offering me less money than Subaru for my Honda Civic trade, that is a negative for me. I'm kind of liking what I see out of Subaru, they seem like a pretty decent brand though I've never owned one in my life. The resale values of the WRX's is kind of crazy, they have used 2017 and 2018 WRX's on the lot that are only like $1,000 less than their new models, which makes a new car purchase a no brainer. Their sales people don't get demos to drive, lol, so no demo models to be had on the lot.

I'm going to look at a CTR this week, but it won't work as well as a daily driver for me, and it is the only Honda I desire at the moment. I'm expecting the WRX deal to work out better for me at this time and based on my needs. Anyone here have a WRX , curious to hear about the ownership experience as I don't know anyone who has had one.

Chuck S

Trade-ins are a shell game the dealer always wins. If you get a high trade-in you get a low discount and vv. It's convenience you pay for. Either way the dealer makes out. In some states you only pay sales tax on the difference and that may make a difference. Negotiate a cash price and leave your old car out of it. If the salesman asks what monthly payment you can afford walk out.

The Subaru WRX with the CVT transmission has been faster in several tests then the manual gearbox. I admit I like Subarus. Our family has three (3) of them but none are mine.

When I lived in Ohio there was a WRX that showed up at the couple S2000 drives I was on. Never figured out why. Had no problems keeping up.

-- Chuck

mosesbotbol

I like Subaru less every decade. They seem to move away from what really made them what they are. If find they excel best on the lower end of their portfolio. I can tell you from 1st hand experience if you think you're WRX is going hold any value like you see on their sales lot; you got another thing coming... Not sure why they priced those used cars so high on the lot. Hopefully you'll won't need to trade in within 2 years or you'll get the reality slap on what it's really worth. Have had 4 Subaru's in my family. Parents own a Forester.

My old WRX could really go fast on the highway. Had no problem 120+ and was super stable. New England has it's own Subaru importer that's different than the rest of the country.

zeroptzero

Thanks Chuck. Yeah the process of selling cars these days has lost a lot of transparency, and all dealers seem to be moving that way. As soon as you walk into a dealer the first thing the salesperson asks is how much do you want to pay each month, right then you know you are off to a bad start. lol. I know the business of taking trades has changed for the worst too as dealers no longer keep used cars on the lots like the old days, they just want to send them to a wholesaler and then pay less for the car. My only complaint is that my Honda dealer wants to offer me less for a Honda that I bought and maintained at their dealership, and a Subaru dealer will pay me more. When I bought the Honda the salesperson says the extended warranty and lifetime rustproofing warranty would get me more money on the back end, then when you talk about a trade with them 3 years later they say the extra warranties add nothing to the value, lol, bastards, all of them just the same.

I'm not overly concerned about the performance differences with the WRX , it is just a nice all around package. Although I did see a drag race between a manual and auto tranny wrx on youtube and they appeared dead even. The lineartronic CVT in the WRX is very nice IMO, works very slick. .

darcyw

We're in the family car buying zone too- but the 2016-2018 Forester Manual hits the bases for us (2019 has no 3 pedal option). As you know, Joey, our family only drives manual as we've sworn off all 2 pedal cars of every ilk- but, if you have to drive one, a 2L flat4 turbo won't steer you wrong. They're easy to work on and boat loads of fun to drive in the winter. Sit at a stop light in the snow, and when it turns green...you're gone! I can recall years ago in my GTX mazda driving like an absolute hooligan in the snow, 4 wheel drifting around corners late at night...fck that was fun!

pictures!

darcy

zeroptzero

oh yeah awd cars from a stop in winter snow and ice is plenty fun, much better than spinning two wheels. I was contemplating making a trip to Sarnia to the Subaru dealer there, but the London dealer seems to be saying all the right things at this time. I'll see how my visit goes tomorrow at Honda and then I'll make a final decision. That's very cool that your wife drives stick, I've taught my son to drive a manual tranny but I doubt my wife would ever come around on that. So I'm getting as close as I can get with the Subaru lineartronic tranny.

rwheelz

Perhaps that explains the outrageous prices. You'd think you were buying an Audi.

zeroptzero

You can get into a lower level WRX for relatively cheap, their optional packages are kind of odd, you get one thing that is useful and the other 5 things are useless to me, so the Sport package is about all I need. A fully optioned top level WRX is the same price as the Honda Civic Type R, at that price level I'd rather have the Civic. STi is even more expensive, but I like the 2.0 L motor just as good.

zeroptzero

Well the deal is done, we have a 2019 Subaru WRX Sport, in rally blue colour, Lineartronic tranny. I really enjoyed dealing with Subaru, they have a different kind of sales approach compared to the last couple of Honda purchases, very pleasant and transparent and no high pressure sales by the business manager. Just great.

mosesbotbol

Subaru is generally low pressure sales. Congratulations on your new WRX.