This is a seriously focused car, but with practical, every day usability. (Subaru Impreza 2.0Turbo)

Member Name: Jonny_L

Product:	Subaru Impreza 2.0Turbo
Date:	27/06/08 (192 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Handling, handling, and err, handling! It's quick as anything too, and Subaru's are reliable!

Disadvantages: A bit boycy, bit of an image problem, and the interior's dated. You'll soon forget all that though.

There are many words that you can use to describe the Impreza WRX. Boycy, ugly, insane, pointless, tacky, you name it. The sceptics will say that the interior is made of plastic so thin that it'll melt in the sun, and that you'll never pick up girls with it.

There are few words, however, that describe the drive. In fact that makes for quite a difficult review, because that's the best thing going for it! All I can say is, yes, the interior is a bit tacky (it's not that bad, just a bit old fashioned), but seriously, it's so good to drive that you really won't care.

I drove the 2.0 WRX, 2003 model for the record. Put your foot down and this thing flys, it'll do 0-60 in under 6 seconds and on to a top speed of around 160-ish mph. OK so it's quick, it has ample top end power, loads of torque (which makes up for the slight turbo lag below 2000rpm), but that's not the Impreza's party piece. The real fun is in the handling. This car is insane, you can take any corner at any speed whatsoever, and it'll just stay planted. It actually takes a bit of brain re-programming to get to grips with the thing, as your mind is telling you that you really shouldn't be going so quick into that bend, but the car's just saying "is that all you're gonna do? Wimp." So to those sceptics, I say take a drive, or even get a lift in one, it'll soon keep you quiet!

Now, the performance is pure sports car, the steering is easy yet nicely weighted, you can really feel everything that's going on. The brakes are obviously nothing short of incredible, but it's as if you can feel each pad as it touches each disc to slow you down. You really know what's going on.

Of course, being 4 wheel drive and closely linked to rally legends, the impreza will give you insane grip, but when things let go you do get a big load of understeer. Before that happens though, you will feel a nice 4 wheel drift coming on to warn you that you maybe should back off. Unless you're a bit nuts though, you probably won't ever get that far on the road. Oh and if it does understeer, it'll eventually sort it's self out with a bit of oversteer anyway, or you can always give it a bit of a scandinavian flick to get it sliding.

I really can't put into words how well this thing drives, so go and have a test drive!

Other than that though, as I said the interior is basic. Subaru have really tried to shed as much weight as possible, and this shows in the tacky dials and switches. Bear in mind though, this is a Subaru, and these things don't go wrong, so even though everything's a bit tacky, nothing feels like it'll snap off in your hands.

Open the boot and the first thing you notice is that it feels as if the bootlid is full of helium, even with a spoiler on the back the weight is impressivly low. Now don't be fooled, this is a seriously practical car! It's got plenty of boot space (though no folding seats or ski hatch may be a pain for some). It's got 5 decent seats, and thanks to the lightweight bucket seats being so thin in front, you've got a decent amount of legroom in the back too. The seats are sporty, but comfortable all day easily.

OK, so this all comes at a price. The car I tested had 30,000 miles on, and was dealership approved used for £10,000. That's a lot of car for the money. Fuel consumption isn't brilliant obviously, though you'll find it'll keep well above 25 mpg for most of the time.

The standard WRX gives 220bhp, but there's also the STI which gives closer to 300. Both models come with the option of a PPP or Pro-drive Performance Package. This gives you an extra 50-60bhp, and costs around £1700 including fitting from a main dealer. Of course, it's brilliant flat 4 engine, which can be easily boosted up to 400bhp without issue.

Try one, if you've even come close to considering it, give it a go, you'll forget everything about the image, this is one addictive car. Just make sure you hold on to your licence long enough to drive the thing!

Summary: A bit rough around the edges, but forget that, you've gotta try it to believe it.

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