Plus with the AWD you have the ability to use the chassis to the maximum in less than perfect conditions.

Just go to any nearby “track” day and watch the WRX’s run at silly speeds, especially in the corners. I’ve got a 2006 WRX wagon, used to have a 2002 WRX wagon and my wife has a 2001 BMW 325i – and the WRX wagons are better handling and of course faster than the BMW. For $12K less..

I have been concerned, however, that road tests of the Impreza WRX in both R&T and C&D have reported mediocre handling even though the WRX has wider tires than the base model. Curiously, this review cites handling as a plus as do most of the comments that follow!?? To me, handling is THE most important realm of vehicle performance and since my present ride is a Miata, my reference plane is high. Is the Impreza as encumbered by vague understeer and uncommunicative steering as C&D indicates or is it really lithe and nimble as this site suggests?? (note: the numerical test data appear to support the magazine’s claims of mediocrity)

I suspect the Suzuki Aerio AWD or the Suzuki SX4would cost you less overall with better gas mileage. Or maybe a Jeep Compass or Kia Sportage. But I doubt any match in reliability and safety with the Subarus. Or the fun of driving – which doesn’t seem to be much of a consideration for you.

Can anyone think of a good reason why I should spend the extra $3k on the Forester? OR, is the Impreza truly the best value. All I want to do is get to work in the most reliable, economic, and safe manner possible (which necessitates AWD where I live).

If I am totally off base, and there is a more reliable, lower-cost, more fuel efficient AWD vehicle out there, please let me know.

Thanks,
Jay in PA

PS I will post this under the Forester review, too, since it involves both.

While all three are incredible buys for the money, the best way I can describe the differences would be that the Civic is like Star Trek, the Mazda is like Dukes of Hazard, and the Impreza is like Mad Max.

LOL, I like the comparisons. Unless I get either version of Daisy in the backseat, I guess I’d go Impreza as well. Max is just way more cool than the Dukes.

This is partly a result of weighing 150lbs soaking wet.

There was originally (pre-edit) a bit more of a light-hearted tone to the piece, and I’ve chowed down on more than a few lentil-burgers and found them to be okay.

Same deal this car: I’d rather have a steak, but man, is it tasty.

When my Acura EL finally says goodbye (Just crossing 220,000 km), I’ll consider the Mazda 3, the Impreza and the Civic Si. It’ll be down to the test drives for the final decision.

That’s gonna be a fun weekend.

When my 89 Toyota Celica aka Grampa Milton died, I also did the Pepsi challenge test driving every even remotely fun looking car under $25K. The final three came down to the Mazdaspeed 3, the Impreza WRX and the Civic SI.

While all three are incredible buys for the money, the best way I can describe the differences would be that the Civic is like Star Trek, the Mazda is like Dukes of Hazard, and the Impreza is like Mad Max.

I ended up taking home the 2007 WRX because that one left me with the biggest grin when it came to gas, clutch, and wheel.

And also, in Los Angeles, you can’t find the Civic SI for under a ridiculous $26K, completely negating the point of being an affordable burner.

But yeah, I love the WRX so much that even if I had $100K to spend, I’d probably only upgrade to the STi.

I’ve been seriously thinking about buying an Impreza wagon and I have to concur with all your substantive points — it’s a fun car to toss around and has all the low-end push it needs even if it gets a little puttery at highway speeds. Seems like a good successor to my old ‘89 Civic’s chuckable spirit, though not to its well-made luxury-on-a-budget interior. (This is a weird dichotomy facing us in the reliable-budget-compact segment right now: you can still get comfort and a nice interior from Honda, but the fun-to-drive, toss-me-into-corners spirit of the old Civics seems to live only in Subaruland.)

The two brands have an awful lot in common. Durable powertrains and interiors, mass standardization of parts across multiple platforms, owners who tend to be dealer junkies, and a general bent towards customizing the offerings rather than opting for the ‘new model’ and those defects that come with it.

I have seriously considered specializing in those two brands alone. Especially since the Subaru dealer in this area closed up shop a little while back.

Oh, and before I forget, I managed to buy a drop dead gorgeous liquid silver 1992 Subaru SVX last night. Now THAT car is truly a testament to the virtues of sport luxury cars… which in my mind is what Subaru has become for the most part.

I have a 99 Forester that just passed 200,000 km. My only complaints are poor fuel mileage and the right rear wheel bearing that I’ve replace 3 times (apparently proving my insanity as I keep hoping it will last).

It does handle well and is totally unstoppable when the snow falls and winter rubber is adorned. In the summer time, I use it to tow my 19′ boat, and manage to enjoy the out of doors (since I consider it a trucklette and only 70% of a real SUV, I suppose I’m only enjoying the out of doors to 70% of potential, but I still seem to have fun).

When my Acura EL finally says goodbye (Just crossing 220,000 km), I’ll consider the Mazda 3, the Impreza and the Civic Si. It’ll be down to the test drives for the final decision.

I mean, how they gonna know it’s a Superbird?

You forgot Alaska…

And as already mentioned, let us not forget New England. FWIW: I seem to recall reading that two of the major markets for Subaru are Colorado and New England. ”

There’s a reason that the Subaru dealer that sold the most cars last year was in Oregon – we have mountains, rain and snow. And according to the recent totals, 8 of the top 10 dealers were all in the Pacific Northwest. Sometimes I wonder what it must be like to be somewhere that Subarus don’t seem to outnumber the Hondas.

Just a word on interior space.

In my WRX I once hauled five 15.5 gallon kegs of beer, a 10# CO2 tank, a jockey box (which is a 56-liter igloo cooler) and my friend’s wife.

These cars are plenty spacious.

# Jonny Lieberman:
January 31st, 2007 at 12:19 pm

BM

This particular wife is currently five months pregnant and was bragging last night about almost being up to 130 pounds.

She’s 5′10″

I’ll be fine.”

Hey, Johnny… was all that beer and wife hauling about 5 months ago?

Anyway, I have a good friend with a 2.0 twin turbo Legacy and 160,000 km. Lots of squeeks and rattles (mostly due to the clapped out suspension, I assume) and likely the most wretched shifter this side of Hell. Seriously, twenty year old Ford half-tons and Cavaliers have better shifters.

Roads here are usually very well mantained (because construction companies own the politicians) and in the corners this thing is unbelievable. If you overdrive darn near any corner, just lift the trottle and point the front wheels where you want to go.

The old-style equal-length intake manifold really gives the thing a cammed V8 sound and with a cat-back system it may be the meanest sounding car on the island. Parkied in a snow-covered parking lot, all you hear (feel?) is a deep bass thrumming.

While the interior may be a little utilitarian for some, the seats are fantastic and from 2500 rpm the motor pulls like a freight train. When driving it, all the niggles faults are virtually unnoticable, and you want no other car in the world.

That, friends, is soul.

You forgot Alaska…

And as already mentioned, let us not forget New England. FWIW: I seem to recall reading that two of the major markets for Subaru are Colorado and New England. Anyway…

My wife is like another mentioned here, in that to her, a car is simply a device that brings her from point A to point B. Other than that, she loves the sure-footedness of her Subaru wagon in the wintertime. End of story for her.

My wife’s solitary nod to pistonheadom is that she does prefer a manual transmission, bless her soul.

When Subaru introduced the then newly-redesigned Legacy L wagon in 2000, we bought a 5-speed manual version sight unseen. All that the dealer had were slush boxes, so we ordered a 5-speed having never driven one. Not to worry, how bad could it be? And it turned out fine. It’s no snick-snick shifter, but it does what it’s supposed to.

As my “spousal unit’s” parents lived in Vermont at the time, we drove the then-new Subaru wagon up there from our home in Connecticut. As exciting as it may be for a husband to go visit the in-laws, at least one part of that trip was interesting…

In certain portions of rural, northern New England, Subarus can invoke reactions of near religious zeal: On our way through Vermont that fall, the wife wanted to stop at a small country store–not a general store–more the type of store where some guys would prefer to wait out in the car–kind of store.

So we pulled into a patch of dirt serving as a parking lot, parked the car, and were walking towards the entry: Just before we got up to the doorway, a woman popped out of the place and exclaimed: “Oooohh, it’s the new Subaru!”

My silent reaction? ‘Whoa…You talking to us?’

You’d think a rock star had just pulled up in a hot red Ferrari! I actually had to glance back over my shoulder just to be sure she was referring to our red, yes, but surely less than sexy, station wagon!

Turns out that she was the proprietor of the modest little place. She went on about how she had an old Subaru (apparently parked out back), and even though it was rusting away, how she loved that car. She looked over our new wagon approvingly, and gleefully ushered us in to her roadside establishment.

As a person who appreciates the finer points of cars (unlike my wife), I will say this: Despite the lack of door sills (what’s up with that Subaru?); that it drives like a tank, and has a steering wheel the size of which you’d expect to find in a bus (Subaru spelled backwards is U-R-A-BUS, after all), our Suabru wagon is awe inspiring when not-so-fluffy, dirty-white snow litters the roadways.

When there’s a fair amount of new-fallen slippery stuff on the ground, we leave my Civic coupe snug in our garage, and double-up in her Subaru. While lesser cars, SUVs–and coming soon to a slick road near you, CUVs–are slip sliding away on “sorta-kinda” plowed roads, the low-slung, heavy-feeling, yet always steady and sure Subaru, gets us there.

It can be difficult to communicate a feeling, but the reassuring act of driving one in wicked weather is what makes an AWD Subaru a truly special kind of car: For those of us who have experienced piloting one on snowy, slushy, slippery roads, Subarus have few peers.

Thinking about interior appointments may be fine on a warm summers day, but when driving on a sultry winter day, the interior is not the point: Hard plastics or not, and with apologies to James Carville: It’s the traction, stupid.

The car’s interior is woefully pathetic. I’ve considered dumping it a few times because of the cheap interior plastics. However, the review is dead on when it comes to the ride. There is nothing under $18K that can match the Subaru NA imprezas.

My driving habit precludes me from the 29 MPG. I get 22 mpg mixed.

Just one nit: the $7K premium for the WRX doesn’t actually get you better dash/cabin plastics. Save for the sport seats and automatic climate control, the WRX’s interior is identical to the 2.5i’s.

I love it when reviews of what amounts to an entry-level car get turned into discussions of what ultra-expensive wagon the people commenting would rather have. Hilarious.

Subaru came out with an STI limited for 2007 without the wings and only has a small lip spoiler on the back. They also upgrade the interior with better leather and heated seats, and a few other things. I purchased one and it’s pretty sweet.

My brother owns a 2006 Impreza 2.5i sedan and I’m really impressed with it. It’s basic compared to a WRX or an STI, but for what you pay for it, it’s really great. Average MPG is around 27-29, doesn’t require premium fuel, and it does have some spunk. I just got back from our state’s auto show and compared to many other cars, the interior plastic on the Subarus look much better, both in shine and in feel (not like Chrysler or Dodge).