3.3L Stinger GT vs. 2015 WRX (non-STi)

[jthrelf]

After a couple months of ownership of my Stinger and having previously owned a 2015 WRX (base trim) completely stock for 7 years, I wanted to share my perspective.

The WRX beats the Stinger at pure cornering speed and ability (both being stock). There's just no way around it. The Stinger feels bigger (of course, it is...) and has significantly more body roll. And this isn't even a measure of grip where tires would skew results - this is purely feel, body roll and cornering ability. You can just come into a sharp corner faster in the WRX. Bumps around a fast corner make the Stinger feel a bit uneasy, whereas I never noticed that with the WRX on the same roads. Even after 7 years the WRX always surprised me with what it could do in corners.

Everything else, the Stinger wins. The biggest thing is comfort. The Stinger has a much more comfortable ride. Quiet, smooth, plush (but not floaty), whereas the WRX is harsher over bumps. This of course is closely related to the handling difference. This does also, I suppose, align well with my point in life (in my 30s now whereas I owned the WRX mostly in my 20s). The Stinger is overall a more sophisticated car (no surprise there, it's just a different class of automobile).

Power of course goes to the Stinger - with about 100hp more (though it's 700 pounds heavier) and much more torque. Straight line acceleration it's not even close.

So far gas mileage of course is less in the Stinger, but not as much as I anticipated. My lifetime accumulated mileage in the WRX was a bit over 27MPG and I think the Stinger is close to 25-26MPG for the 1300 miles I have on it so far. This is with similar driving styles.

And of course there's a $10K+ price difference but the Stinger's tech is much better - the Bluetooth phone connections in the WRX was absolutely horrible and the radio was pretty poor as well. Additionally the Stinger has, which the WRX does not: LED headlights, leather, heated seats & steering wheel, Android Auto, rear climate vents, power fold mirrors, auto dim rearview, LED interior lighting, tire pressure data, automatic passenger window, EPB, better backup camera with larger screen, push start & proximity key, parking sensors, rear cross traffic alert, blind spot monitoring, 19" wheels vs. 17" and probably a couple other things I'm forgetting.

I think the WRX is one of the best performance cars sub $30K, but the Stinger is just a different animal. Both absolutely fantastic cars.

 

[87and66]

If you want to address the body roll, change your sway bars. I've never driven a WRX, so I don't know if it will get you to that level or better, but I can tell you first hand sway bars make a huge difference on the Stinger in corners, and I am on the softer setting for both front and rear. I have Whitelines, but they are all good.

Also, I think I know one other guy who has shared a similar experience. @WRXtoStingerGT

 

[jthrelf]

Fb

If you want to address the body roll, change your sway bars. I've never driven a WRX, so I don't know if it will get you to that level or better, but I can tell you first hand sway bars make a huge difference on the Stinger in corners, and I am on the softer setting for both front and rear. I have Whitelines, but they are all good.

Also, I think I know one other guy who has shared a similar experience. @WRXtoStingerGT

For sure! It's on my mind. But this brief comparison was just stock to stock .

 

[RM7]

I had a 2004 WRX Wagon. I loved that car to death and put around 130K on it. I changed the timing belt at around 100K and I had it set up stage 2 for the engine. But really, I should have done something to the suspension. It leaned so bad in turns when driven aggressively and trying to slow from 140mph was pretty scary too, as in the brakes were fairly inadequate. But it was still a fun car. I think that sways on the Stinger would probably help, but it kind of depends on what your goals are. To keep it soft and not punishing, once you start down the road of sways (yes, sways do this), it will get less and less comfortable. Sways won't totally ruin everything, but the better handling you make it, the less comfortable it'll get. The WRXs suffer from massive understeer followed by snap-oversteer at the limit, due to the engine in the wrong spot (in front of the front axle). Welcome aboard.

 

[Maljey]

Awesome OP and thanks for the thoughts. If it wasn't for the Stinger I'd probably be in a WRX today.

I really wish Subaru continued the Legacy GT Spec B line. I wanted that car soooooo bad back in the 2000s. I was too poor for it lol. If it had cotinued it probably would have been a good match for the Stinger today.

 

[Nocostinger]

26mpg in your Stinger? Need to flip that into Sport mode and drive it harder! You're having fun when your mpg is in the lower 20's lol

 

[ChaneRZ]

Sport mode all day!

 

[briguy]

26mpg in your Stinger? Need to flip that into Sport mode and drive it harder! You're having fun when your mpg is in the lower 20's lol

How about when it's around 10 or even under? Haha

 

[jthrelf]

26mpg in your Stinger? Need to flip that into Sport mode and drive it harder! You're having fun when your mpg is in the lower 20's lol

My commute home is 30 min and not highways. If I do the direct route I'll get 28mpg for the trip in comfort. I'm good at timing lights and traffic patterns.

If I take the scenic route with some curves and opportunities to get on it a bit in sport or paddles, it drops to 25mpg.

How about when it's around 10 or even under? Haha

Now that's just showing off ...

 

[klvn]

Awesome OP and thanks for the thoughts. If it wasn't for the Stinger I'd probably be in a WRX today.

I really wish Subaru continued the Legacy GT Spec B line. I wanted that car soooooo bad back in the 2000s. I was too poor for it lol. If it had cotinued it probably would have been a good match for the Stinger today.

My daily right now is an 09 Legacy GT spec b with a stage 2 tune. It's a beast of a car and it saddens me I have to sell it soon. I think I'm in the same boat as @jthrelf where I'm now in my mid 30s and still want something fun, but more comfortable? I've only owned Subarus so I don't have a lot to compare to..I find they're noisy (cabin noise) and lacking in quality like soft plastics/tech where Kia has really dominated recently. It's convinced me enough to put an order last Friday for a 2022 Stinger GT Elite (equivalent to the state's GT2) in California Red! Now I have to patiently wait 3-4 months for it to arrive from the factory due to the chip shortage. And I carry this stress of having to let go of my spec b :'(

 

[briguy]

Now that's just showing off ...

I wish it were! I basically get around 10-11mpg on short trips here in LA when there is standstill traffic around town or going stop light to stop light, basically driving normally. If I do that and push it harder, I basically get below 10mpg. This car is definitely not meant for stop and go traffic!

 

[jthrelf]

I wish it were! I basically get around 10-11mpg on short trips here in LA when there is standstill traffic around town or going stop light to stop light, basically driving normally. If I do that and push it harder, I basically get below 10mpg. This car is definitely not meant for stop and go traffic!

Are you using your Idle Stop Go?

 

[Maljey]

My daily right now is an 09 Legacy GT spec b with a stage 2 tune. It's a beast of a car and it saddens me I have to sell it soon. I think I'm in the same boat as @jthrelf where I'm now in my mid 30s and still want something fun, but more comfortable? I've only owned Subarus so I don't have a lot to compare to..I find they're noisy (cabin noise) and lacking in quality like soft plastics/tech where Kia has really dominated recently. It's convinced me enough to put an order last Friday for a 2022 Stinger GT Elite (equivalent to the state's GT2) in California Red! Now I have to patiently wait 3-4 months for it to arrive from the factory due to the chip shortage. And I carry this stress of having to let go of my spec b :'(

Awesome dude! The spec B is a unicorn. I barely see any Legacy GTs from that generation anymore either.

I can't compare the two, since I've only driven the Stinger but I'm sure the Stinger's suspension is more softly tuned than what you have on the spec B. It's a heavy car as well, but I don't find that it feels like 4150 lbs.

I'm assuming you test drove the Stinger? How did it compare to your spec B?

 

[klvn]

Awesome dude! The spec B is a unicorn. I barely see any Legacy GTs from that generation anymore either.

I can't compare the two, since I've only driven the Stinger but I'm sure the Stinger's suspension is more softly tuned than what you have on the spec B. It's a heavy car as well, but I don't find that it feels like 4150 lbs.

I'm assuming you test drove the Stinger? How did it compare to your spec B?

Yeah I test drove the Stinger but didn't push it too hard around the corners. I wanted this to be a true GT car for long trips while also being a great daily driver. The spec b had a relatively sportier suspension with the Bilsteins but the function of the two cars are vastly different. The one thing I did notice was how planted the stinger felt, and not in a bad way. For me, truthfully I was drawn to the looks and technology, performance was just the cherry on top

 

[briguy]

Are you using your Idle Stop Go?

I'm not, but even when I've had it on it doesn't make much of a difference, as often times the engine isn't off long enough, so I just turn it off. I also hate the stop/start feature, especially because it cuts off the A/C.

 

[WRXtoStingerGT]

I had a 2014 WRX sedan with upgraded pads, rotors, discs, tires, aftermarket exhaust, custom tune, aero, and some minor weight reduction. It handled significantly better and with a much more "raw" feeling to it than my current car. With that said though, I still prefer the Stinger 9/10 times to the WRX as my daily and only vehicle!

 

[jthrelf]

I had a 2014 WRX sedan with upgraded pads, rotors, discs, tires, aftermarket exhaust, custom tune, aero, and some minor weight reduction. It handled significantly better and with a much more "raw" feeling to it than my current car. With that said though, I still prefer the Stinger 9/10 times to the WRX as my daily and only vehicle!

I think we are on the exact same page...

 

[WRXtoStingerGT]

I think we are on the exact same page...

Great minds think alike!

 

[AdamNZ]

I came from a 2017 WRX Limited, and I think a lot of these comparisons are on the money. The WRX handled better in stock form, and with sway bars the WRX was/is light years ahead of the Stinger (I also upgraded the Stinger with sway bars which helped a lot, but you can't beat intertia and gravity). The feeling of the WRX around corners was just fantastic. Some other things that I thought were better in the WRX are the rear cross-traffic alert system (the WRX picked up cars from about three times as far away as the Stinger does), and the door handles (no chintzy buttons, just touch anywhere on the handle to unlock, and the top corner to lock). The leather in the WRX was much tougher, with no wear to the bolsters over the years I owned it (but then again the Stinger has much softer Nappa leather), and the paint was better/harder on the WRX (which is pretty amazing considering how terrible Subaru paint is).

The WRX infotainment system was hot garbage, but I never once had audio dropouts (which is an ongoing irritation in my Stinger) and it never directed me anywhere crazy (which the Stinger has, trying to send me down little private side roads into the backwoods a few times). Most of these things are minor annoyances, omissions, or general technology bugs. The WRX also had a TON of things that bugged me about it, but these were mainly around the driveline, engine and transmission, and that I ended up spending a small fortune trying to fix or improve (see below). These are, in my opinion, much worse (talking about the horrible manual transmission, the ridiculous rev hang, the crazy torque and power dips, the outright dangerous factory tuning of the engine that made many go bang, and Subaru why do you keep putting the intercooler in the hottest location possible?). I went from an '08 Legacy Spec B to a '15 Fiesta ST, then to the WRX and I thought the WRX would be the best of both, but it really, really wasn't. It was probably my biggest automotive disappointment.

The Stinger is much easier to live with, way more comfortable, and also way faster. Even stock, the Stinger was faster than my modified WRX (EcuTek tune netting 290hp at the wheels, 98 octane fuel, Cobb catted j-pipe, HKS Legamax cat-back exhaust, GrimmSpeed EBCS, Process West VertiCooler TMIC and piping, Whiteline front and rear sway bars and links, Boomba short-shifter, Perrin shift stop and brass bushing, Raceseng weighted shifter, Whiteline Positive Shift Kit transmission bushings and Group N transmission mount). Conversely, I've barely done anything at all to my Stinger, as I feel like it doesn't require modifying to fix anything. It handles so well for its size, is so comfortable, has every gizmo known to man, and just rides on an endless wave of smooth torque.

Crazily, the FA20 was barely any better with its fuel consumption, and it was noisy as all hell inside even stock (the 6MT layout meant you got more road and mechanical noise as well). The Stinger is just in a different class. Even today, the only thing that really annoys me are the damn door handles. Kia, would it really kill you to update the Lego door button?

 

[Aloneinthefog1]

After a couple months of ownership of my Stinger and having previously owned a 2015 WRX (base trim) completely stock for 7 years, I wanted to share my perspective.

The WRX beats the Stinger at pure cornering speed and ability (both being stock). There's just no way around it. The Stinger feels bigger (of course, it is...) and has significantly more body roll. And this isn't even a measure of grip where tires would skew results - this is purely feel, body roll and cornering ability. You can just come into a sharp corner faster in the WRX. Bumps around a fast corner make the Stinger feel a bit uneasy, whereas I never noticed that with the WRX on the same roads. Even after 7 years the WRX always surprised me with what it could do in corners.

Everything else, the Stinger wins. The biggest thing is comfort. The Stinger has a much more comfortable ride. Quiet, smooth, plush (but not floaty), whereas the WRX is harsher over bumps. This of course is closely related to the handling difference. This does also, I suppose, align well with my point in life (in my 30s now whereas I owned the WRX mostly in my 20s). The Stinger is overall a more sophisticated car (no surprise there, it's just a different class of automobile).

Power of course goes to the Stinger - with about 100hp more (though it's 700 pounds heavier) and much more torque. Straight line acceleration it's not even close.

So far gas mileage of course is less in the Stinger, but not as much as I anticipated. My lifetime accumulated mileage in the WRX was a bit over 27MPG and I think the Stinger is close to 25-26MPG for the 1300 miles I have on it so far. This is with similar driving styles.

And of course there's a $10K+ price difference but the Stinger's tech is much better - the Bluetooth phone connections in the WRX was absolutely horrible and the radio was pretty poor as well. Additionally the Stinger has, which the WRX does not: LED headlights, leather, heated seats & steering wheel, Android Auto, rear climate vents, power fold mirrors, auto dim rearview, LED interior lighting, tire pressure data, automatic passenger window, EPB (Electronic Parking Brake), better backup camera with larger screen, push start & proximity key, parking sensors, rear cross traffic alert, blind spot monitoring, 19" wheels vs. 17" and probably a couple other things I'm forgetting.

I think the WRX is one of the best performance cars sub $30K, but the Stinger is just a different animal. Both absolutely fantastic cars.

I know exactly what you mean about the body roll that's why I changed the factory sway bars both front and rear to ARK performance and believe me when I say it made a night and days difference! The set sells for around $500 usd (depending where you get them) and if you have access to a lift you can change them both out yourself in about 2hrs since they are direct replacement parts. In my opinion it's one of the best mods for the stinger especially if you like running country roads with a lot of switchbacks like I do