Comfort/Livability
If you’re selecting this vehicle as a true do-everything machine, please note that the GTI is considerably more quiet at idle. Those quad exhausts on the WRX emit a bassy thrum, especially with the windows down, where the GTI is more polished. The difference is borne out on the highway, where the GTI is relatively quiet, and the WRX produces a considerable amount of tire roar.
Both have comfortable seating fore and aft, with the rear seat bottoms of the GTI particularly good. Ride quality earns the GTI kudos as well: despite 18-inch alloys sized larger than the 17-inch wheels on the WRX, the German car is far more forgiving over rough pavement than the Subaru. Curiously, speeding up a little in the Subie smooths out some of the vibrations, but the GTI is certainly the more polished product.
   2015 Volkswagen GTI DSG seating, cargo area. Click image to enlarge |
The WRX rides on summer-only Dunlop rubber, which means that a set of snow tires are going to be in your future come winter time. They should be anyway: a WRX with a set of dedicated snowies strapped on is one of the most fun machines you can own, and the 17-inch sizing should make pricing reasonable. The GTI’s Pirellis say “all-season” on the side of them, but to eke out a proper winter without dedicated rubber is foolish in the extreme, regardless of how good VW’s traction aids might be.
From a purely subjective styling perspective, the GTI is a far more grown-up car than the WRX. If you need your car to pass the theoretical mother-in-law test, the GTI is reserved enough to avoid the gimlet gaze, whereas the WRX has a great big hood scoop for a nose. Happily, both cars look like they should age well, and resale values are strong on both – traditionally though, the WRX hatchback always did better than the sedan.
   2015 Subaru WRX CVT seating, trunk. Click image to enlarge |
Technology
It’s not even close. Just as the interior of the WRX (while hugely improved) still looks like all the development money went into tuning the chassis and powertrain, Subaru’s onboard infotainment is a bit of a hodge-podge. The Starlink system now found on the new Outback shows promise, but the WRX’s version of navigation isn’t really worth the price of entry (it’s paired with the leather seating), and the standard back-up camera is very small.
The GTI, on the other hand, comes with a 5.8-inch touchscreen that’s not huge (and indeed, not of the highest resolution), but looks good and functions with speed – it even has proximity sensing that opens up sub-menus, to make up for the smallish screen. The Fender audio system is very good indeed, you get adaptive front lighting and rain-sensing wipers, and there’s an available front-collision warning.
If you choose to tweak your GTI’s engine settings and steering settings through the three-mode program (normal, sport, and individual), it’ll stay in that mode the next time you start it up. What, no constantly pressing the Sport button every single time? One million points to you, VW.
  2015 Subaru WRX CVT, 2015 Volkswagen GTI DSG centre stack. Click image to enlarge |
However, it is handy that Subaru puts their sport/eco (called “Intelligent”) toggle right on the steering wheel so you can flick into boost mode to pass someone through a short two-lane section and then right back into normal mode. Moreover, connectivity functions through a standard USB jack worked just fine, whereas the GTI requires one of their proprietary adapters. Perhaps it’s closer than it first appears, although the VW clearly still comes out on top.
