so you are going to want to get more specific. fun can be an autocross car, track car, fast in straight line, something that is slow but looks and sounds good etc.....really need to define what your use case is for the car for us to be able to say which is best.

id aslo say define what goals you may have, at least in terms of power.

from there, we are happy to help guide you into what would be the best option.

also if you can swing the sti over the wrx, it's a massive difference in what i call the fun factor. but as said above we might have different opinions on what fun is.











also welcome

 

Fun is too subjective. Some people think fun is getting from point A to point B quickly but in our subie EJ257 world, our "fun" is not knowing if we will make it from point A to point B because the engine might randomly blow up. The surprise factor is the fun! haha just kidding.

I want to try the new VB WRX but owning my first manual and subaru (2020 STI base), I have no thirst for other cars because I thoroughly enjoy my car. I also heavily modded my car and daily drive it. Almost 40k miles now, never had a serious issue.

wrx owners: "i wish i have gotten a STI"
sti owners: "I LOOOOOOVE MY CAR!!!" - no STI owner in history has ever wished they had gotten a WRX instead.

The new VB WRX seems as good as they come for the newest rendition, since there is no STI variant.

 

wrx owners: "i wish i have gotten a STI"
sti owners: "I LOOOOOOVE MY CAR!!!" - no STI owner in history has ever wished they had gotten a WRX instead.
The new VB WRX seems as good as they come for the newest rendition, since there is no STI variant.

This right there says it all. If you're going to get a wrx then it should alteast be the new VB car. It may make more power easily, but it still falls short in compared to sti in my opinion.

 

a lot of the well-known tuners have been singing praises about the FA24 in the vb. it also has stronger internals, so sounds like that's what you're looking for, for "fun reliability"

 

My only issue with the VB (besides not having an STI variant) is how polarizing the aesthetics are. The WRX has certainly never been an overly attractive car, but I feel like the VB is particularly tough in that regard with the cladding. Given how well the VB responds to mods I certainly gave some thought to buying one just to have my own start without dealing with a car with prior owner history, but I just couldn't do it.

That said, if the WRX by Prodrive concept was the new STI, I'd have plunked down my money without thinking twice.

 

Well there is another option, the WRX TS. Its as close to an sti as you're going to get for a new car. Bigger and better brakes (brembo), sport and electronic suspension, and some other stuff. Of course that coming at much higher price range. You would probably be looking at around 50K for that thing.

 

Yeah, the SUV looking cladding just plain suck ass on the newer WRX. Even if it was painted body color it still wouldn’t look good. Looks too much like cheap added on aftermarket parts to me.

 

I saw my first VB WRX the other day, it looks bloated and the black cladding looks not good. IDK why but the wing also just looks super tall. VC WRX will be an EV crossover sedan thing like the x4 or nu crown i bet

 

^^ I see VB's all the time by me. A couple of us subaru guys park next to each other at the gym, mainly VB's & me. One of them has an sti replica wing on his VB. While it looks kinda cool, at the same time I know its not supposed to be there. I will say the VB's do have a bit of an off look to them. Its like a small squished front face and and ugly back. I really dont like the tail lights and all the black plastic stuff on the back of them. They can however be made to look good but you have to put some money into the exterior of the car. Kind of defeats the purpose in my opinion.

 

I agree totally! It’s like the Crosstrek design team got given the keys to design the WRX. FTL

 

I have seen quite a few and test drove a couple for shits and giggles. They do look sharp on the front and sides minus the black cladding but holy hell the the rear completely ruins it for me. I havent had a lot of seat time in them, it did feel like a refined VA WRX but still not an STI.

 

I like the VB for easy cheap power, but needs 6 speed swap if you really want to add significant power. I think they look good lowered, lower offset wheels, front lip, with color match cladding.

I’ve never had a WRX, just 3 STis over the last 18 years. There has always been one in the garage or drive way. Go for an STi.

If looking to build, any year STis good. You will be putting a short block in eventually most likely

If keeping stockish, go for lowest mileage VA with RA block. 2019-2021