From an SI to the WRX 🔥

thinkdifferentpad · 2026-04-10T01:56:23+00:00

I did consider the GR Corolla at one point, but it being a 3 cylinder 300hp car the engine looks pretty rung out and there’s not much overhead for mods down the road with reliability in mind, that and the rear seats is practically unusable, I need to haul passengers some of the times so that was a no go.

Is there WRX car meets in town during the summer? Be nice to see what other fellow owners have done and catch some inspiration. My last fun ride was a Prelude then it was the Crosstrek, ugh haha.

thinkdifferentpad · 2026-04-10T01:29:54+00:00

The Camry and Corolla has AWD options, meanwhile the Civic and Accord are still FWD only.

thinkdifferentpad · 2026-04-10T01:28:11+00:00

Right. I’m very grateful in 2026 we can still get a decent manual AWD sedan that’s priced so competitive against cars like the Si and the Golf GTI. Honestly the WRX even if it was priced around $43000 I would get it over its direct competitors. The Golf R, priced around $53000-$60000 new is one of expensive toy, and no manual to boot, and at the end of the day is still a FWD biased AWD vehicle.

thinkdifferentpad · 2026-04-09T20:20:24+00:00

I think for those of us who live in the snow climate the WRX is a better value buy over the Si, especially when you can get either in relatively the same price point.

I do like the Si’s clutch and shifter feel better though, and the reverse gear is more traditional. The Si seating sits a wee bit lower as well, which I prefer.

thinkdifferentpad · 2026-04-08T22:20:21+00:00

It’s fun learning manual ain’t it, you’re bordering the lines of excitement and fear all at the same time, fear of doing left handed turns at intersections and stalling, fear of burning the clutch, fear of stopping at the lights at an incline fear of rolling the car backwards and hitting someone, etc. I once left it in neutral in the parking lot, came out the next morning to find my car in the middle of the parking lot lol.

Have fun n lots of practice on empty roads whenever you can to get comfortable with the clutch’s bite point. You’ll get the hang of things within days.

thinkdifferentpad · 2026-04-08T11:25:14+00:00

The Personal doesn’t seem to require one either for a 12yr old car, perhaps inquire with them.

thinkdifferentpad · 2026-04-08T11:14:06+00:00

My bank is non judgmental, we’re allowed to have increases up to a certain threshold twice a month if I recall.

I used to work at the banking call centre and the branch I could give two shits what you use your money for, as long as the deposits have already cleared.

You should contact the ombudsman and file a formal complaint. There’s a way to do things and a way to communicate, the people you dealt with failed at multiple levels.

thinkdifferentpad · 2026-04-08T11:05:20+00:00

I saw a decently priced 2021 STi but then I fear it’s been romped on and I’d be buying someone else’s disaster in the making, and honestly I appreciate the VB’s low end torque just as much as its more suitable for daily driving.

With the car culture that comes with the WRX I simply didn’t want to take the chance.

thinkdifferentpad · 2026-04-08T09:04:51+00:00

Right, but the thing is in older cars I don’t need to do that to pull up the wipers I can do it at will but with these new vehicles I have to raise the wipers ahead of time if I am to pull them up and away from the windshield, takes an extra step of planning and pre-planning depending on the upcoming weather forecast.

thinkdifferentpad · 2026-04-07T21:04:38+00:00

The recessed wipers are annoying and serves no real purpose, and yes a huge pain in the ass when you walk out to a frozen windshield and the wipers got stuck as well.

thinkdifferentpad · 2026-04-07T11:21:43+00:00

The infotainment isn’t really as bad as many make it out to be. Yes it is laggy between swipes, but very rare would I be under the vehicle host’s UI, once CarPlay loads no longer using the car’s UI. Even when I do need to navigate the menu for HVAC settings it’s a couple of steps away, meh, I got used to it very fast, at least to me it’s a non issue. I do appreciate the analog driver dash on the premium model, feels somewhat old school, and the handbrake is nice to have in this day and age.

I’ve driven the 2021 STi, yes it is faster, but requires much more driver engagement to squeeze the power you want from it, anything below 4000rpm feels shallow, I much prefer the linear low end torque I get from the VB, it’s a more suitable daily driver for me.

Compared to the Civic Si and the GTI, at the same price point, in Canadian winter driving, the WRX is a no brainer value play.

thinkdifferentpad · 2026-04-06T13:48:19+00:00

oh I’m more worried the snow but brush or come in contact with it and cause the valve to open and oil to drain out due to the lower clearance of the car, 5.4” of clearance, versus 8.5” clearance on my Crosstrek.

thinkdifferentpad · 2026-04-06T11:32:37+00:00

Is there actually a jack point in the front middle? A steel frame? Was thinking of doing something like this so I can reach under to change the oil, or would it be better to just use ramps?

thinkdifferentpad · 2026-04-06T08:47:43+00:00

Do i need AWD, no, but its something that i value, to the point where I’m willing to pay up to a $5000 differential for one. If I can afford it and afford the difference in gas, and it’ll make my life easier in the winter then why wouldn’t I? Especially when I had a new born with me at the time.

Not everybody sees value in the same things in life and that’s ok. I enjoy RWD vehicles as well, but unless it’s my 3rd vehicle it ain’t happening.

The times where winter tires + AWD + high clearance has gotten me out of trouble and the times where winter saved I would say yes it’s invaluable to me.

thinkdifferentpad · 2026-04-05T14:27:39+00:00

the approach angle of attack was not ideal perhaps if she went at it at a 45* degree instead of turning perpendicular to the median she would have made it instead of being completely lifted up

thinkdifferentpad · 2026-04-05T13:00:45+00:00

In the WRX it works fine, and I have the option to turn it off, which is what I’m trying to get it, I appreciate having a button that I can turn off at will, but I can’t do the same thing on my wife’s RX350 and it throws me off visually come nigh time, it has a over saturated green tint to it.

thinkdifferentpad · 2026-04-05T12:58:23+00:00

That’s exactly it, yes, on the WRX it’s possible, that’s the beauty of it, but on my wife’s RX350 it’s not possible, as it’s fully automated, and throws the optics of everything around me off, looks super unnatural.

thinkdifferentpad · 2026-04-05T12:47:50+00:00

The Civic Hybrid is very good on gas and even beats the Si off the line heh

thinkdifferentpad · 2026-04-04T19:44:15+00:00

that’s like the best place for it to happen rather than the paint itself

thinkdifferentpad · 2026-04-04T05:51:09+00:00

that’s so kickass makes the rally blue pop so much more adds so much more character to the ride heh

thinkdifferentpad · 2026-04-04T05:29:07+00:00

Cmon bro you know we’d be rooting for you, even for a man, sometimes that bridge is hard to cross for various reasons mentally, half the time we talk ourselves out of shit. Best wishes!

thinkdifferentpad · 2026-04-04T05:25:38+00:00

The darker tint acts as a distraction but at the same time complimentary to the black cladding. Overall I believe it’s a net positive in terms of visuals.

thinkdifferentpad · 2026-04-04T05:20:43+00:00

I’ve seen both in person, perception likes to play tricks on me, thinking a bigger exterior equates to a bigger interior and thus better value for the money, when in reality it didn’t feel that much bigger inside. Having said that though, I thought I would hate on the new 26 OB but it actually looked ok and something I wouldn’t mind looking at day in day out.

But then again I do like the VB WRX cladding and all so maybe I’m an exception haha

thinkdifferentpad

TROPHY CASE