Used 2016 Subaru WRX Consumer Reviews
Used WRX for sale
2016 WRX 1 year and 26,000 miles later
valerysbills@gmail.com, 11/30/2016
2016 Subaru WRX Premium 4dr Sedan AWD (2.0L 4cyl Turbo 6M)
2 of 2 people found this review helpful
Bought one after being urban and car-free for 2 years. Had SAAB turbos before and wanted something fun with a stick which is becoming harder and harder to get in the US. Always wanted a WRX and was hoping for a 2nd hand clean STI which turned out harder to find than I though. Bought new since the Prem was within my budget (should have ordered Limited for the lights alone). The Good: Nothing offers AWD and this much fun for the price. Tons of aftermarket goodies for tuning. Good fuel economy for a near 300 hp car. Little turbo lag. Beast in the snow when I put snow tires on it. Far better interior quality than that FisherPrice plastics that Subies have been known for. The Bad: Interior is still cheap with a lot of rattles. Stock ECU tune is crap... falls flat on its face at 4,300 rpm and a COBB tune is a must (or a pro-tune). Headlights on prem and base have poor output. Interior ergonomics are 3/10.... One-touch window for driver only (in 2016!!!), no light sensor to adjust dashboard brightness (in 2016!!!!). A lot of engine movement which leads to sloppy shifter feel. Good car for the money but you will spend a lot of time and $$$ on aftermarket bits to remove/resolve some of the penny pinching that Subaru did.
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It's true, all of it.
tone, 04/20/2016
2016 Subaru WRX STI 4dr Sedan AWD (2.5L 4cyl Turbo 6M)
2 of 2 people found this review helpful
It's true, all of it. Its fast, its fun, and its practical. I always wanted a WRX ever since I test drove the 2.5 RS in the late 90's. Now I'm 41 years young with 2 kids and I'm having a blast driving this car where ever I go. There is a distinct aura just driving a Subaru. A lot of Subaru owners flash there lights or wave and say Hi to other Subaru owners while driving on the streets. It's really cool and friendly. I have the base 2016 WRX 6-Speed with a short throw shifter. At 2500 RPM and above my car has enough turbo spool built up it can challenge anything. I really mean anything. I just press firmly on the throttle and the car just moves like I'm riding on a puff of air gaining so much speed. Mind you I only accelerate like this on spirited drives during on-ramps to get on the highway and never with my kids. The handling is great not excellent but just great for everyday driving. If you need more feel for the handling prowess obviously get the STI. I test drove both and I know I will never get close to the limitations of the STI. You can feel the hardware in the STI. But as far as acceleration I would put the WRX and STI neck and neck in terms of acceleration with the STI just ahead by a little bit. The only minor negative issue with the WRX I feel is the shifter. I'm at roughly 1,500 miles right now and I'm finally feeling comfortable shifting quick. There is a minor notchy feeling going from first to second. But you'll figure it out in a couple days by maybe holding the shift knob in a certain way and shifting in a certain way that can alleviate that notchy feeling. Otherwise I read Perrin has a shifter stop that can help. I'd definitely recommend using the Costco auto buy program. I paid $200 dollars below invoice for my WRX. It was no hassle. The Subaru dealer in my local area showed me the Costco price and it matches my researched internet invoice price. Also they subtracted the $200 dollars. Super Easy. Here's my down payment and I was out the door having fun. If you're looking for something cheap, practical, fast, and fun I totally recommend the WRX. Also the WRX is a Lego. It has so much potential for upgrades and customization because there's an abundant amount of tuner parts available.
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2016 Subaru WRX for sale near you
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Can't Find Much to Like
Christopher, 03/10/2016
updated 12/20/2016
2016 Subaru WRX 4dr Sedan AWD (2.0L 4cyl Turbo 6M)
15 of 32 people found this review helpful
I hate this car. Maybe I'm just too old (55), but I struggle to find anything I like about it. OK, the handling is definitely great, and the climate control, too, but that's about it really. The acceleration, while good, is uneven and falls off suddenly at higher RPMs. But even that is OK, it's just everything else. Most of my complaints are small issues, but when added up just make for a crappy experience, especially considering this is a 30k-ish car in premium trim like mine. My biggest gripe is comfort. I heard nothing but good things about the seats when reading reviews, but they just don't work for me. I've had chronic neck and shoulder pain since the day I bought it. The arm rest with the extension and heated seat switch positions are a ridiculous afterthought. Add to that, that the engine races when started cold, even on warm days, and takes a long time to settle into a solid normal idle, the clutch feel is poor (I've driven sticks all my life, I know), the transmission is reluctant (maybe it's the STI short throw in mine) and sometimes will not go into first when the light turns green leaving you screwing around letting the clutch out and retrying. The interior materials are pretty substandard, it's ride overly harsh (they should save that for the STI), lots of road noise, and perhaps worst of all is the stereo, so you can't even drown out all the annoyances with some good music. I'll close with the comment that my 16 year old Jetta GLX was a better car in every respect except acceleration (not that bad with the vr6) and handling (too soft). I really miss that car... Be warned, this is not an enjoyable daily driver. [12/19/16] Update. After trying to live with this for a year, I finally sold it. I never warmed up to this car, and never looked forward to driving it. The transmission shifting that I complained about was the only thing that improved with time. That said, after about 1000 miles the throwout bearing started making noise on cold mornings. Reading up on that issue revealed comments that said "they all do that" and others that said they went to the trouble of trying to get it fixed, only to have it do it again in short order. I totally lost confidence over that issue. In spite of me saying I liked the climate control, that changed to not liking it when the weather turned warm. On hot days It just continues to blast you with cold air, never seeming to get a clue when enough is enough. I'd have to turn it up to 85 to get it to stop, otherwise it would just blast cold my whole 10 mile ride home from work. Never had that issue with my VW, it would almost immediately start dialing it back automatically. One of the final "last straw" issues for me was when one cool damp day I left it out and the side windows were all misted - I thought, "oh, I'll just roll the windows down to wipe them clean". Good luck with that, the windows in this piece of crap don't even touch the wiper trim. I literally had to push out on the windows while rolling them down and up to try to get them to wipe clean. Give me a freakin' break! If you have ever had a nice car and you buy this, you will forever be disappointed. I did have a happy ending, though. I managed to get out of the WRX and into a GTI for almost a wash due to the deep discounting at VW, and in the process picked up everything I was missing including leather interior, an awesome Fender stereo, push button entry/start, adaptive xenon lights, rain sensing wipers, etc, etc. If you must buy a WRX, I would advise buying a base model, spending more for any higher trim level is a waste, and will not somehow transform it into a better experience. It's like putting lipstick on a pig. It is what it is, a track weapon, not an enjoyable daily driver.
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fast fun car electronics suck
Wayne Boucher, 05/19/2016
2016 Subaru WRX 4dr Sedan AWD (2.0L 4cyl Turbo 6M)
5 of 14 people found this review helpful
I bought this car the day after Christmas and I love the handle and acceleration, I have a 2006 Miata 213,000 miles which I love and kept, the new Miata looks nice but driving it was very disappointing the new Miata is a dog because of the electronics. I wanted a manual transmission, yes corporate America not every is lazy and wants an automatic, some people like driving and hate cars that drive themselves. I love the acceleration of the car and the handling is awesome, once you shut off all the electronics crap that is. I hate the electronics, the hill assist I would not have bought the car if I could not turn hill assist off because it screws up driving the car, I shut the traction control off unless I forget, I wish I could shut off the antilock brakes, those suck. The airbags are dangerous, my daughter sits in the front and the airbags do not work by weight but by electric capacity and you can't shut them off so I am looking at how to disable them so my daughter doesn't get killed. The radio is the biggest piece of crap, it has 9 options which most of them try to connect to your phones internet, I want to delete those apps but can't. Touch screen radios in my option should be outlawed and I will be removing that crap radio from the car. They put a lot of annoying electronics in the car but if you search the net you can shut a lot of it off, wish I could shut off their annoying driving suggestions that come up when the car starts or it's icy out, I know how to drive, don't need a car telling how to drive. On the plus the car has tons of room inside even in the back seat, more room than you would think for the cars size, they kept the interior simple which I like, I hate a lot of fancy crap, the truck is huge which is a plus because the new Miatas trunk was no bigger than a back pack. Acceleration is incredible, when you hit the throttle the car launches, it is more fun than the Lamborghini Galardo I drove because of the manual transmission. The handling is awesome too, not as nimble as the old Miata because it weighs 1000lbs more, it is still great for windy roads, lots of fun. I like the styling and you can get it real colors instead of just silver and black, I got bright blue, looks awesome. I wish I could have got a sun roof but they only came with leather and I will never own a car with leather so I will have to add the sun roof later. If you want a fun car try a wrx, they for people who like to drive, I like to drive and will never own a self driving car.
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Great engineering
DB, 03/24/2016
2016 Subaru WRX Limited 4dr Sedan AWD (2.0L 4cyl Turbo CVT)
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
The car is well thought out. Tuned for enthusiasts even with the CVT, which is amazingly responsive. Handling is like on rails. Value (fun) for the money is unbeatable
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