The other day, I wrote an article about riding a Subaru WRX STI owned by one of my blog readers, and this time my husband has shared his impressions. Please have a look if you’re interested.

Memories of the First-Generation Subaru Impreza

I wonder how many years it’s been since I last drove an STI. When I was younger, I often rode in a friend’s Impreza. I believe it was the first-generation Impreza 2-door WRX typeR STI Version.

When I had just started working, every Friday night I would finish work early and speed off with friends to ski resorts in Gifu, racing along highways and snowy roads. The Impreza STI was truly a quick machine for those ski trips.

A photo from back then. We often went skiing in this car.

I still vividly remember the thrill of driving it for the first time. The low-geared ratios combined with a 280ps turbo engine delivered intense acceleration. Even cruising at 5th gear, the acceleration when overtaking on the highway was so sharp I felt like I might crash into the car ahead. The overwhelming stability made me feel like I could easily take any highway curve at 180 km/h.

I still clearly recall being amazed at how fast and comfortable this car was.

At one point, a friend installed aftermarket lowering springs, a reinforced clutch, and a loud muffler, which threw off the balance and made the ride terrible and the car difficult to handle. But until then, it was truly a car I loved and have fond memories of.

Test Driving the Subaru WRX STI

Right in front of me now is the latest STI—nearly 20 years after that first one—the Subaru WRX STI.

The traditional EJ20 engine uses port injection rather than the now-rare direct injection, and extracts 308ps and 43 kgf·m from its horizontally opposed 4-cylinder layout. The peak power comes at 6400 rpm, and maximum torque at 4400 rpm, making it a high-revving turbo engine that’s rare these days.

The cabin, equipped with Recaro seats, is very comfortable. It gently wraps your body and makes it easy to find the correct driving position.

I shift into first gear. The throw is a bit long, and it’s not the crisp “click-in” type. Rather, it feels somewhat soft and rubbery—more like a regular manual car than a high-performance sports car.

The clutch isn’t very heavy and feels surprisingly easy to operate. The engagement point is a bit narrow and seems slightly closer to the pedal, but I quickly got used to it and started driving without any discomfort.

My first impression when driving off was that it felt “light.” “Light” can mean many things, but here it means that it doesn’t have the solid body feel or planted sensation typical of a high-performance sports car. Instead, it feels more like an easygoing, everyday car that moves along effortlessly.

Though my memory is a bit vague, compared to the first-generation STI, this car feels much more friendly and approachable. I tried taking a curve slowly. When I gently steer, the nose turns quite quickly.

“Yes, this is the feeling of an STI,” I thought, getting used to the engine’s character and the shifting feel.

The engine has relatively thin low-end torque and is fairly quiet. Compared to the 2.0-liter flat-four in the Porsche 718 Cayman, it feels much more subdued overall.

When I rev it a bit more, power definitely comes on strongly around mid-range. Thick torque surges, and the car accelerates sharply. Even at high revs, it doesn’t feel like the typical turbo lag or power drop-off. That’s the hallmark of a high-revving engine.

With 308ps, it’s not brutally fast, but it’s certainly quick.

When accelerating, there’s a brief sensation of losing contact with the road, but control quickly kicks in and the car grips firmly as it accelerates. Approaching a corner, I brake. The brake pedal has a somewhat long stroke and doesn’t require much force. It’s not weak, but since I’m not used to it, speed modulation felt a bit tricky.

Compared to the 718, the brake’s firmness and controllability are honestly not quite as refined.

Downshifting is easy—just blip the throttle lightly and release the clutch to match revs. Some cars require precise rev matching to avoid shocks, but this one isn’t so fussy.