As a high-performance street rod, the WRX (or the even more capable WRX STI) is a top choice. However, compared with rivals such as the Mazda 3, Honda Civic, Hyundai Elantra, Mitsubishi Lancer and Volkswagen Jetta, those assets are offset by subpar fuel economy, an outdated automatic transmission and the lack of a few high-tech features such as fully integrated Bluetooth (you must buy the microphone separately), keyless entry and ignition and a hard-drive-based navigation system. Strong engines, standard all-wheel drive and solid crash test scores are certainly points in its favor. However, last year's version of the softer, gentler, less-powerful WRX with an automatic transmission actually continues on, rechristened as the Impreza 2.5 GT.Īs for the regular 2009 Subaru Impreza, it's a midpacker in the highly competitive compact segment. As if to emphasize its rediscovered high-performance identity, the WRX is now only available with a manual transmission. The car's ride quality was no doubt improved, but it gave this former street thug all the attitude of a Corolla, albeit one with a turbocharged engine.įortunately, the 2009 Subaru Impreza WRX got its mojo back, thanks to a firmer suspension and 41 more hp. Like the tepid styling, the latter "improvement" was ostensibly intended to imbue the Impreza with broader appeal to the masses. On top of the bland exterior styling endemic to all new Imprezas, Subaru thought it would be a good idea to soften the suspension of this edgy turbocharged model. Last year's WRX was indeed a head-scratcher. The 2009 Subaru Impreza should assuage their concerns, as the WRX model is back to its rip-snorting self, and the base Impreza continues to be an intriguing alternative to the compact-car status quo. However, last year's complete redesign of the Impreza lineup left those die-hard fans angry at the Japanese performance car gods for softening the WRX virtually beyond recognition. Earlier this decade, the WRX finally made it stateside, giving both Speed Channel and PlayStation junkies something a little more satisfying to manipulate with their hands besides a TV remote or video game controller. An X indicates that the vehicle was not manufactured for a specific year.Since the 1990s, the Subaru Impreza - particularly the hopped-up WRX version - has enjoyed a cultlike following, initially fueled by its success in both real (World Rally Championship) and make-believe ("Gran Turismo") racing. N/A indicates that we did not receive a large enough sample size to provide data for a specific year. Our subscribers provide great insights into their satisfaction by answering one simple question: If they had it to do all over again, would they definitely buy or lease the same model? In addition, respondents also rate their cars in six categories: driving experience, comfort, value, styling, audio, and climate systems. To learn about satisfaction, CR has collected survey data from our annual survey on more than half a million vehicles. An X indicates that the vehicle was not manufactured for a specific year. Based on this data and further analysis, we predict reliability for the latest year. Extra weight is given to the more serious areas such as major engine or transmission problems. The results are presented relative to the average model that year. Consumer Reports subscribers reported on any serious problems they had with their vehicles during the past 12 months that they considered serious because of cost, failure, safety, or downtime, in any of the trouble spots included in the table below. The reliability charts are based on responses on hundreds of thousands of vehicles from our latest Annual Auto Survey.
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