Whenever someone mentions the name Subaru the first car that pops into most peoples head is the iconic Subaru Impreza. More specifically for petrol heads like us the rally legend sensation the Subaru Impreza STI. Now with Mitsubishi having discontinued the iconic Lancer and having moved on to a different approach with the Mitsubishi Grand Lancer, the Impreza is really the only car you can now buy that has it roots cemented in rallying history. And with the brand new fifth generation Subaru Impreza, Subaru really gave it their best with this model.
Also Read: Mitsubishi Grand Lancer Revealed
Design
As it has been for many years with the Impreza you can get the vehicle in both a 5-door hatchback or a 4-door sedan variant. While many criticized the fourth generations Impreza’s styling to be slightly rough around the edges, Subaru has taken a safer route with the sixth generation Subaru Impreza with a more elegant and slightly restrained design language. The front end houses a pair of sharply tapered headlights integrated with daytime running lights on the higher spec models, a small hexagonal front grille with a chrome accent and a wide front bumper with aggressive styling cues. Around the rear, you get a pair of large trapezium styled taillights and a large rear bumper on both the hatchback and the sedan. With the hatchback, you do get a roof spoiler and with the sedan, you get a very subtle lip spoiler on the trunk. Overall while the design may not be anything to blow you away, it is still a fairly good looking mid size sedan at the end of the day.
Power & Safety
With the 2018 Impreza, you only get one engine option and that is Subaru’s ever iconic 2.0 liter 4-cylinder boxer engine that produces 152bhp@6000 RPM and 145 lb-ft of torque @4000 RPM, this comes mated to as standard with a 5-speed manual transmission. you can also opt for a Lineartronic CVT automatic transmission and of course power is sent to all four wheels through Subaru’s Symmetrical All-wheel drive system. Safety wise the Impreza is one of the safest sedans that you can buy on the market today with the Impreza scoring top scores in all crash safety tests with an overall score of 5 out of 5 stars in its safety evaluations. The Impreza comes with a plethora of airbags including side head airbags, rear head airbags, side airbags and rear body airbags. It also comes with the features such as brake assist, electronic stability control, automatic headlights, rear view camera, a rollover protection system, traction control, blind spot monitoring, lane departure warning and auto leaving headlights.
Interior and Comfort
Much like the interior of the Mitsubishi Grand Lancer that we discussed in an earlier article the interiors of Subaru’s are never one of their strong points. While it is an improvement in comparison to its predecessor it still isn’t able to compete with most cars in its class. Most of the interior is still fitted with dark cheap looking plastic panels and they don’t exactly ooze a feeling of quality. The infotainment system has been upgraded this time around with a new 6.5-inch touchscreen on the lower end variants and a larger 8-inch touchscreen system on the higher end trims. Both come with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Standard features on the base model include the 6.5-inch touch screen infotainment system, cruise control, rear-view camera, power windows, power mirrors and a multi function steering wheel. Higher end variants include features such as front power seats, heated front seats, automatic headlights, push start ignition, automatic climate control, leather upholstery, satellite navigation, Harman Kardon speaker system and a moonroof.
