2011 WRX STi finally here

[DierwulfBL]

Hey guys, so I posted a good while back that I was in the market for a used STi in the for sale/trade forum. I had been looking for months and every car I thought would be decent ended up not being as advertised. My parameters were too narrowing and I finally realized the car did not exist(except in Maengs driveway). So around September 16th or so, not sure exactly, I went down to Johnson Subaru of Cary and ordered myself a stripped down 2011 WRX STi Sedan in WRB, no additional options.

Fast forward to around October 20th or so, I get a call from the sales manager car came in that morning with another STi, great news. Bad news was the wing got caught on the clam shell or some shit and got ripped off, mangling the trunk in the process. I go to the dealership after work to check out the damage and there was no way I was driving that off the lot with 6 miles on the odometer and a Carfax report. This is when I place order #2 for the exact same car, I wanted the SPT boost gauge but its back-ordered til at least March.

Fast forward to Monday, I pick up my shiny new WRX STi sedan in WRB after work. Here's my experience so far, things I like that I haven't ever had/haven't had in a while cause the CRX is stripped down:

1. Heated seats/Engine heats up super quick - WOW is all I can say, all these mornings ive been shivering on the way to work cause the little 1.5l couldnt warm up fast enough.
2. Power steering/Power windows/Power Locks/Remote/CD Player/Cushy Suspension/Engine has torque - You know all those little things most people are accustomed to that I've gone without for years
3. Boxer Grumble - The stock exhaust note on the 2011s is noticeably more grumbly than previous years at idle, the dual mufflers setup might have something to do with it, UEL headers FTW!
4. HIDs - WOW, shoulda put some on my cars previously helps so much seeing at night

Things I don't like so much:
1. Hill hold/Incline hill start assist, w/e the hell they're calling it these days: This function is horrible, Ive been in an old Subaru that had this and it was great, the brakes let go as soon as you engaged the clutch and off you went no rolling back. This is some electronic crap and if you're too soon off the brake then engaging the clutch the brakes aren't done holding, caused me to stall twice. Luckily in the STi you can disable this, if I had gotten a WRX I would be stuck with it.
2. Gas mileage: theyre claiming 23 highway, people averaging 18/19 mixed, Ive gotten 120 miles out of a half tank and I'm taking it super easy on the throttle for break in. I've never owned a car that gets less than 30mpg so itll take a little more getting used to but it'll def be worth it

I've only put 120 miles on it since I got it but plan on doing some cruising around this weekend to help with the break-in ensuring to vary rpm and gear consistently. Most of my driving is pretty busy so once its broken in it'll probably be hard to find an open on ramp to really see what its got 0/10-70. My plans with this car are to keep it 100% stock until the warranty is up and to just finally enjoy a decent car since I've been driving piles of rice for as long as I can remember . Also, anyone in the Triangle, NC area that wants a ride post break-in lemme know.


Cliff Notes: Took 3 months but it's here and I'm super excited!!!!

[ScottyB]

welcome to the Suby posse :thumbup:

Things I don't like so much:
1. Hill hold/Incline hill start assist
2. Gas mileage

i'm 99% sure that a tune will delete #1 and 100% sure a tune will improve #2. late model subaru's have notoriously junky stock tunes. TurboTime or 42Autosports could probably do a nice tune for you if you don't want to buy a "canned" tune from Accessport or whoever.

Also, anyone in the Triangle, NC area that wants a ride post break-in lemme know.

i'm in Carrboro, let me know if you're bored sometime and let's meet up!

[CaptainHenreh]

Pics or gtfo

[Apoc]

Pics or gtfo

+1

late model subaru's have notoriously junky stock tunes. TurboTime or 42Autosports could probably do a nice tune for you if you don't want to buy a "canned" tune from Accessport or whoever.

This... I want to learn more about this.

[ScottyB]

This... I want to learn more about this.

i'm not going to do the best job of laying it out perfectly considering how much info is out there, but the basic understanding is that in recent years subaru has had to run the stock tunes dangerously lean to remain competitive in fuel mileage and emmisions.

there are obviously nuances between the N/A and turbo cars but essentially subaru likes to run the cars dangerously lean until openloop crossover and/or heavy boost at which point they run it pig rich. you can check out my project thread as an example (the DBW 4-cyl N/A cars are basically all the same FYI).

reports of ringland failures, spun bearings, and low compression in stock-tune turbo cars suspiciously increase heavily starting around 2006 which is apparently when they started to really lean out the factory tunes. regardless, an aftermarket tune is not only safer but will net you better power and smoother response while getting better highway mileage.

[Kaan]

Pics or gtfo

No new car posts without pics! I think it's in the rules somewhere!

[WRXtranceformed]

Nice pick up, would love to see some pics! I still have quite a bit of Suby nostalgia. I'm not a *huge* fan of the aesthetics of WRX/STis post 2005 but it's pretty clear from what I've read that they are a much better tuning platform now then they used to be.

I feel like most of the newer Subarus I see now are riced out and are driven around like they own the road. It's good to hear you're going to keep it stock and hopefully only keep the asshattery to the on-ramps

[DierwulfBL]

Sorry, all I got are cell phones picks cause I actually dont own a digital camera thats not attached to my phone, I'm also a horrid picture taker and only have 2 pics.

Obligatory super low mileage pic:


Picture of the two Rexs, this pic really doesnt do this new STi justice when I snap some more I'll post em up:


What Scotty says about the stock tune is very true, all stock tunes dyno AFRs are right around Stoich even under full boost o.O. Some people in Arizona report constant pre-ignition knock under WOT during the summer, they only get 91 octane there. Supposedly they got the tunes figured out around late 2009 though and all those cars with the old tunes could be brought to the dealer for a reflash. I wont be getting AP or any tunes on this car because that would most likely get me a denial on any powertrain warranties should I need to use them. I'm going to be putting money away into a modding fund so when I hit 60k/5 years if I'm tired of the current power levels I'll probably slap a 20g with supporting mods and a pro tune, figuring around 350whp would be a nice bump considering the stock 2011s are hitting around 220-250whp depending on the dyno. I haven't even put this thing in sport sharp though and its pretty torquey so I'm pretty sure this level of power will be sufficient for a GOOD long while. Sorry for lack of decent pictures.

[WRXtranceformed]

I wouldn't even do a turbo swap. A buddy of mine has an 06 STi and he's at 350+whp with the stock turbo. He threw a meth kit on and some fuel mods + tune. If I had to do *another* Subaru all over again, I'd keep it as stock as can be other than a beefed up fuel system, meth and a tune.

[DierwulfBL]

350whp is running just about the limit on the stock STi turbo, but that would be the very first steps after warranty is up/I give up waiting and the boost rot creeps in. First things would be 3" TBE, UEL headers/uppipe with EWG, intake, boost controller, bigger injectors, walbro or two, wideband, and prolly a super loud BOV to satisfy the ricer in me. After all that it would be an Open Source pro tune, most likely done at Turbo Time cause I met the guys and they're cool. I would really like to hop on the E85 bandwagon later down the road which would really negate the need for meth. The guys at turbo time have a bad ass typhoon running E85 so I'm sure they know how to tune for E85 as well, just have a map for 93 and E85 in case I'm stuck somewhere that doesn't have E85 but I'm guessing that won't be much of an issue by the time I would be doing it. Would probably blow up the stock turbo before I switched to something bigger as well, unless some poor chap was looking for a used VF34 before I swap, this is years in the future though. I'll try and get some better pics tomorrow, by the way the wheels are the stock Enkeis, I didn't want to dish out 2500 for the BBSs cause theyre both the exact same size/rubber BBSs are just 3.5lbs lighter per wheel and you can't get gold this year. If I ever buy wheels they WILL be gold and close to stock size. Anywho, end rant time for dinner hope everyone has a happy new year!

[DierwulfBL]

[1 Year Update]

So I picked up my STi about 1 year ago and I have put almost 14,000 miles on it so far. I took it to Susquehannock Trail Performance Rally in Wellsboro, PA to volunteer and I must say that summer tires were never intended to grip on gravel at all :lol:. We all had a blast watching the pros and camping out. It mostly gets used as my daily driver and we take occasional road trips back up to VA to see family. On one of those road trips I got my first (and only so far) speeding ticket in it doin 62 in a 50 on 29N in Southern Albemarle County.

The boost bug has seem to bit as well as I've already got accustomed to the 305bhp and will be looking to go stage 2 + e85 within the next year or so. I picked up a spun bearing shortblock out of a 2005 forester XT for 150 bucks and will build that up in preparation of the stock pistons cracking a ringland immediately after going stage 2. Picked up an AMR 76mm MAF CAI, Megan Catless DP, HKS SSQV with TMIC flange, 6spd short shifter assembly with kartboy shifter and bushings. Ive been taking my time getting parts and getting great deals on everything. Last winter we had some winter weather and the tires sucked real bad so I picked up some IDM (Italian Domestic Market) 17x8 Evo Corse gold wheels and put some 215-50-17 all seasons on to help.

Took the car down to Fayetteville's quarter mile and my best time was 13.6 @ 100mph with a 1.85 60', just as a stock baseline and I met up with some Subaru guys down there. On that run I beat a 2011 Mustang GT by a car length as well which was pretty surprising considering the power difference, I just really killed him off the line, he trapped 106 so he was catching up fast.

Plans this year, participate in at the very least 1 of the 6 local AutoX and at least 1 of the 6 local RallyX events, and if time permits an HPDE at VIR would be nice as well. Overall I'm very pleased with the car and wouldn't have done anything different, it still puts a big smile on my face when i get a nice open on ramp so I can hit full boost. Only thing that sucks is now I don't even want to drive or work on the CRX at all. Here's a pic after I put the "winter" wheels on:

[CaptainHenreh]

Do 3rd gen wrx's outnumber E36's yet?

[D_Eclipse9916]

Do 3rd gen wrx's outnumber E36's yet?

Nope just picked up an e36 m3 chassis last night for Mike D's track build. :lol: