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| 2006 Subaru Impreza Review | |||
| Whether you're about to spend $40K on a brand new car, or half that on a used car, it is always important to learn as much as you can about the used car. Read these car reviews to learn about all aspects of the vehicle. Each of the usedcar reviews cover interior and exterior features, options, road tests, and more. | |||
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Introduction
| Road Test
| Inside & Out
| Other Thoughts
| Last Word
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| Inside & Out | |||
The Impreza heads into its fifth year already on its third pair of headlights, taillights, and wheels. From the original car's ugly moon eyes to 2004's chunky iceblocks to this Tribeca-like snout, it marks a slow but steady styling evolution. Maybe by 2008, it could be beautiful.Aside from the now-standard 17-inch wheels and the STI's adoption of the WRX's smaller hood scoop (for visibility reasons), the only other mentionable regarding the body is the light and fluffy feel of those frameless doors and trunk. Cost-cutting? Probably, but at least they, plus the aluminum hood, help the WRX maintain its 3,239-pound figure. The WRX's interior mostly follows Impreza status quo. The new three-spoke Subaru steering wheel (a Momo wheel's still optional) looks and feels as good to your hands as the drilled aluminum pedals do to your feet. An ideal driving position comes easily (unlike on some sporty cars like the stubbornly reclined Acura RSX) in a height-adjustable driver's seat with effective side support. The crisp displays would be perfect if not for the steering wheel blocking the upper edge of the perching tachometer. Dual-stage front air bags and body-and-head side airbags for the front seat are substantial safety enhancements for the year. If Subaru would just show half as much concern for rear passengers (for starters, how about some head restraints?), we could call this car safe. Cockpit controls are your typical 90s-style Japan layout - intuitive, high quality, shallow cupholders. Cruddy gray dashboard plastic abounds, though the WRX Limited shifts your attention to one of the nicer leather interiors at this price. Another such item is the stereo. Too many systems try to show off with wattage, speaker count, or overemphasized bass; the 140-watt WRX comes out ahead by balancing crisp lows, mids, and highs into a very fulfilling soundstage. However, that overly reflective display screen has to go; we need a tuning knob that actually works like one (instead of a toggle switch in drag); and Subaru's still slacking by not giving MP3 playback or an Aux jack for portable players. With Subaru's young, educated customer base, you'd think that would be obvious. The Impreza's EPA-certified "subcompact" status explains the back seat's lame legroom and why three passengers congeal into one miserable mold. It even looks small from the outside, but if you judge before you sit, you'll never discover the high, firm seat cushion lending superb support, all that stomping room under the front seats, a comfortable armrest right in the middle, and a floor hump no bigger than a front-wheel-drive car's. As long as no one's stuck being the middleman and everyone's under six feet, the Impreza is actually quite the fine four-seater. There goes the Impreza again, surpassing expectations set up by appearances and empirical data. The hinged, 11 cubic foot trunk is pretty average for the class, containing a center pass-through to the cabin but no folding rear seat ability. That's another rare omission in this class, though it might have been intentional to keep this sporty car stiff. |
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