Short Take Road Test
Although the Impreza WRX is ever the lovable bad boy who attracts the cheerleaders’ adoration, it is the practical Impreza 2.5i sedan and hatchback that do the heavy lifting in Subaru’s showrooms. For 2008, the Impreza has undergone a makeover—for starters, it’s 4.5 inches longer—although its driveline is little changed.
The familiar 170-hp flat-four propels this latest Subie to 60 mph in 7.6 seconds—0.3 second quicker than its forebear, 0.2 quicker than a Mitsubishi Lancer GTS, 0.1 quicker than a Honda Civic LX. The engine is satisfyingly quieter at idle—4 dBA, in fact—but is slightly louder at WOT and at 70-mph cruise. The boxer’s raspy growl remains endearing, but if the company intends to finagle its way into the wallets of luxury-car buyers in the next decade—as Ikuo Mori, CEO of parent company Fuji Heavy Industries, claims—then it must slash the Impreza’s NVH levels to those of, say, the Nissan Altima 2.5S.
With its generic new skin, the Impreza is no longer instantly identifiable as a Subaru. Onlookers asked if it might be a Suzuki or a Kia. Also new is the control-arm rear suspension that was expected to improve handling. It has not. Grip has fallen from the 2007 model’s 0.80 g to 0.78 g. You don’t notice it on the road, however, where the Impreza, with its 3.7-inch-longer wheelbase, still takes an eager, confident set in turns. Body roll is noticeable but never seems to impinge on path control, and there’s less squat at launch. Overall, the ride-and-handling trade-off is just about perfect.
What the new control arms have delivered, however, is a slightly larger trunk with a lower floor. Combine that with rear seats that now fold in a 60/40 split, and the Impreza is more useful at Whole Foods.
The steering is linear and informative, with zero kickback and strong self-centering. The car tracks like a vehicle twice its size. Nicely weighted at speed, the steering is nonetheless a titch heavy in parking lots. The shifter is light and positive, as gratifying as any competitor’s, and the pedals are heel-and-toeable.
With two more inches of front shoulder room, the cockpit is far more welcoming and airy, and visibility is fantastic, aided by the "portholes" in the C-pillars. Although all the interior surfaces are base plastic or vinyl, they’re nicely grained and pleasing to the touch. The switchgear is silky, the three rotary HVAC controls are the quintessence of thoughtful ergonomics, and the radio is perched at the top of the center stack. The mouse-fur front seats are grippy, and the back seat is spacious for two adults, although the seat cushion is so low that your knees are above your beltline.
Our base 2.5i sedan carried a sticker of $17,640 (add $500 for the five-door), which, of course, includes Subaru’s all-wheel drive with a viscous limited-slip center diff—a lot of car for the money. In the hardscrabble world of econoboxes, the Impreza remains mighty imprezzive.
