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| Home » Subaru Impreza WRX News » Ruling Rex - Subaru Impreza WRX S204 | ||
| 07/10/2006 Subarus don't get any hotter than the new limited-edition S204 model of the WRX Impreza STi. You lose 500cc of engine capacity with the S204 version, but you gain a whole lot more mumbo. NZ Autocar's Kyle Cassidy takes the wheel. Subaru Technica International, Subaru's in-house tuning outfit, is already well known. It takes the regular Impreza WRX and moulds it into the road-going rally weapon that is the STi, a Subaru with the genuine ability to humble much more expensive machinery point to point. So what happens when the game is moved on even further? We get something r(e)ally special. While the S204 follows in the wheel-tracks of other STi models destined for the Japanese market, few of these specialised versions have been offered new in New Zealand. However, of the 600 being crafted by STi, five S204s will find local owners - and it's a hot-ticket item as two are already spoken for, even at the asking price of $74,990. But this outlay buys their owners a car that joins the famous lineage of the 'S' models, and the World Rally Car-inspired 22B. Based on the Japanese domestic-model STi, the S204 is powered by the EJ20 2.0 litre flat four. Modifications include a blueprinting job, with new pistons, a new crankshaft, and new intake and exhaust manifolds along with a larger turbo. After reprogramming the ECU to tap the potential of these additions, the EJ20 spits out 235kW at 6400rpm, and an impressive 433Nm at 4400rpm. It's a flexible engine, docile around town yet barking mad when let off the leash, and it has the character missing from the current 2.5 litre of the NZ-spec STi. There's an authentic turbo kick and it has a ravenous appetite for revs. The revised gearbox has six tightly-spaced ratios with 100km/h in sixth equating to a little over 3000rpm. Around town you can short shift, and the engine is happy to dawdle in fifth gear at 50km/h. But when it comes time to open her up, you'll find the ratios perfectly placed to exploit the torque curve of the engine, and it will dispose of the twists and turns of your favourite road with consummate ease. By 3000rpm, the engine is tugging at the reins; by 4000, it's hard on the case, spinning rapidly around the clock. She's a revver, all right, racing to a touch over 8000rpm before ramming into the limiter. The sound that emits from the special titanium exhaust is unlike that of any STi you've ever heard before. It 'bub-bub-bubs' at idle, and has that familiar burble from 2000-3000rpm, but with the spent gases really flowing, the exhaust note goes all raspy like an inline four with a high-lift cam. The noise fills the cabin - and judging by onlookers' reactions on the street, it must be pretty loud outside the car too. It's a menacing, race-bred growl that marks the S204 as being something a bit special. Hammering it hard, the S204 proved to be the equal of any Evo we've run, according to the VBOX. With a mechanically unsympathetic launch procedure, the sexiest Sub exploded off the line with the rears clawing at the tarmac, and then chewed rapidly up the rev range in first and second gears before nudging 100km/h in a scant 4.60 seconds. An 80-120km/h time of 2.63s demonstrates how muscular the engine is in the midrange, where it pulls in third gear from 3000rpm like a bullet train. Rounding out the performance envelope is a 32-metre panic stop from 100km/h. Bang-for-your-buck champion of the year so far? You bet. The add-on carbon fibre splitter on the front is tasty and the S204 sits 20mm lower than the regular STi, with 18-inch lightweight BBS alloy wheels filling the pumped-out guards. Shod with 235/40 ZR18 Pirelli P Zero Corsa tyres, the rolling stock on this STi is picture perfect, and said to save eight kilograms. Underneath, you'll find a stiffer rear roll bar, coloured pink, which matches the alloy lower arms of the suspension. Yamaha and STi worked together to develop special damper-type strut braces for the body that are said to react when the car turns in and soften off when not needed, thus aiding ride quality. But with new, stiffer spring rates, the S204 won't bother the ride engineers at Rolls-Royce; while sweet for cornering, the S204 lets you feel every bump in the road. As with the latest STi models, the S204 features a helical-type LSD in the front to help quash understeer, while a rear mechanical diff works with the famous STi adjustable centre diff. With it locked on auto, the S204 is a whippet out of corners. Pick up the throttle early on the exit, and the power squats the rear, transmitting a feeling of impending oversteer before the torque shuffles forward, the front rubber clawing at the turf, pulling the car back into line. Understeer is well contained, and only rears its head during heavy mid-corner throttle applications. The helm, although wickedly direct and quick, is one area where the Evo still teaches the STi a tactile lesson. The brake package seems to be of a different pad compound as they squeal around town, and prefer to have some temperature in them to really work; however, their performance shouldn't disappoint. Creature comforts are few, but there's still climate control air conditioning, a six-stack CD player, and electric windows and mirrors. The S204-specific carbon-backed Recaro seats are a horny addition to the interior. Like a stunningly beautiful S&M mistress, they are aesthetically pleasing, but will punish you if the label in your trousers reads 'XL'. Once you're in, they hug like a grizzly, and offer as much comfort as a cheap seat at the rugby. We'd probably swap them for the comfier (but heavier) regular STi seats, or go on a diet. Keeping the S204 secure will be high priority, but it comes with remote central locking with an engine immobiliser and alarm system, and Subaru's DataDot marking system. Think of the WRX as a Glock 9mm, the STi as the M16 with a grenade launcher, and the S204 as a laser-guided RPG with enough explosive firepower and the precision to take down its much pricier German competition. The only drawback to having one is you'll get every turbo-head in town with a blow-off valve trying to have you on at the lights. »EMAIL THIS STORY »PRINTABLE VERSION »SUBSCRIBE TO FREE HEADLINES »SUBSCRIBE TO ARCHIVESTUFF Stuff.co.nz |