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By
EWAN KENNEDY
10 September 2007
Subaru aims to move up a notch in the automotive game by
introducing its new Impreza range. It is pushing hard in the vital
fields of styling, safety and overall competence and wants to build on
its reputation as a premium product from Japan.
Styling works particularly well. In profile there are cues to
the BMW range, in particularly the 1 Series, with a long nose and
short tail that give the car a positive look that looks excellent
on the road. The controversial three-piece frontal styling has
been replaced by a more integrated appearance and it seems likely
that traditional Subaru buyers will like what they see.
The flagship of the range is, of course, the WRX and it has an
integrated look that has been missing in the past. Previous
generations could have had their body shape modified by a boy
racer, the latest one has all the hallmarks of designers who know
exactly what they want in a high-performance grand touring
machine. The bonnet scoop, always the most noticeable feature of
WRX, is bigger than ever before and the complete bonnet has been
integrated around it. We like what we see.
However, this is one of these cars that looks better in the
metal than in photographs. May we recommend a trip to your Subaru
dealer to really get your senses around the new shape?
But there's bad news as well as good in the shape of the new
body. Only a hatchback is offered at this stage, a sedan isn’t
likely until this time next year. Given that about 50 per cent of
buyers have opted for the sedan in previous models this could
hamper sales. Then again, the shape of the new hatch is less
controversial than before so sedan lovers may be happy to settle
for it.
Subaru's importers are delighted that the Impreza has gained
maximum ratings in independent Australasian crash testing. Quite
simply there is no safer car in this class. Yet this
crash-survival capacity has been achieved without making the
Impreza heavier. Indeed, clever engineering has been able to trim
a few kilos out of the body, thus improving performance and/or
reducing fuel consumption.
But there's a lot more to this Impreza than simply being able
to crash and walk away. A huge amount of design work has gone into
crash prevention. All models have Subaru's famed all-wheel drive
system to give improved traction under all road and weather
conditions. Until now Subaru has told us that ESP (Electronic
Stability Program) wasn’t necessary as AWD did the job, but has
now introduced a system to further enhance the car's ability to
get out of trouble in extreme circumstances.
All our testing of the new Impreza to date has been on public
roads, and that’s no place to push cars to their limits. Having
said that the new Impreza has levels of grip and competence that
are far beyond what will be attempted by any driver with
intelligence.
Yet the grip has not been gained at the expense of comfort. The
WRX is far more refined than ever before and can certainly be used
as a commuting car for daily use. This is partly due to a new rear
suspension system that’s similar to that of Impreza's big
brother, the Liberty.
Other than the WRX, which has a turbocharged 2.5-litre
flat-four, the Impreza range is powered by 2.0-litre twin-cam
engine producing 92 kW, and 184 Nm at 3600 rpm. This gives it good
performance without being outstanding in any way. Its refinement
and willingness to work will impress those drivers who are looking
for a sensible powerplant.
Impreza has a nice solid feeling that’s very European in the
way it feels and reacts to the vagaries of Australian roads. It is
refined to ride in and provides the sort of serenity and comfort
that would have required a larger more expensive car only a few
years ago.
Despite the fact that the new Subaru is better equipped than
every before prices have been kept pretty much at previous levels,
or even slightly reduced on some models. That’s a factor of
better efficiency in the factory, the strength of the Australian
dollar and the respect in which our local Subaru operation is held
in the Japanese head office.
Amazingly, the Subaru WRX starts at just $39,990 which is the
same price as when it was launched here in 1994. The rest of the
Impreza range begins at $24,990. Though apparently more expensive
than other Japanese cars in this class, keep in mind you are
getting the benefit of a sophisticated all-wheel drive system, not
to forget those most impressive crash-test results.
The complete Subaru Impreza range, with prices (excluding
on-road costs) is:
R hatch: $24,490 (manual), $26,490 (automatic)
RX hatch $26,490 (manual), $28,490 (automatic)
RS hatch: $29,490 (manual), $31,490 (automatic)
WRX hatch: $39,990 (manual)
© Copyright
Marque Publishing Company
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