The Subaru Impreza is offered in five trim levels and with two engine options.The trims start from the “2.5i” priced at $17,495 and go all the way up to $28,995 for the fully loaded WRX Limited trim. All the trims have AWD as the standard drivetrain layout. While a manual transmission is available with the 2.5i trims, the WRX uses an automatic transmission setup, found optional on base trims. The WRX trim is powered with the turbocharged version of the same motor found in the lower two trims. The top-end WRX limited is priced at $28,995 but adds only leather upholstery and xenon headlamps.

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The WRX Premium is the top end that offers most top end features to us,both the WRX variants have the same engine and other aspects but the only difference is that there is leather upholstery and Xenon headlamps and these two demand a premium of almost $1000 which we feel is not too necessary.Thus, we might go for the ‘WRX Premium” trim and settle with that.

The Impreza is powered by Subaru’s signature 2.5liter flat-four motor which puts out 170 horsepower and 170lb-ft of torque.The top end WRX trims come with the same engine but have a turbocharger bolted on to them that help in bumping up the power.The naturally aspirated engine on the lower trims feel good within the city limits while struggling out on the highway.The turbocharged unit pushes out an impressive 265 horsepower and 244lb.-ft.

Among the rivals on the list, the Chevrolet Cruze is the least powerful sedan and the Impreza stands at its perfect contrast. The Kia is the only car that is able to come close to the Impreza in this regard outputting 156hp and 144lb.-ft of torque and is the only sedan that makes use of an automatic transmission. All except the Subaru are channeled as FWD variants. While 60mph timings for the Impreza are not known, it is the quickest to the quarter-mile mark and has a lead of almost a second and a half over the Chevrolet and Kia. The Honda Civic is quicker than most of its rivals and only falls short of the Impreza. 

Fuel economy is not one of the biggest let downs of the Subaru Impreza sedan thanks to its engine design. The 2.5liter naturally aspirated engine returns a maximum mileage of 20mpg in the city and 27mpg on the highways. The combined mileage stands at 23mpg. It gets a 16.5-gallon fuel tank, which is the largest in the segment and also averages a range of 338 and 456 city and highway miles, respectively.

The Kia and the Chevrolet offer excellent mileage figures and are similar fuel efficiency averaging 30 MPG. The Honda Versa manages to come just behind them, however, with its least voluminous tank of 13.2-gallons, it lurks at the bottom of the table when the range is concerned. The Cruze remains the undisputed winner averaging 562 highway miles.

The interior of the Impreza is not the best ones you can find in the world,afterall it is a budget oriented sedan.Talk of the base trims and the bad interiors can be acceptable but not so much in the WRX trims and feels too cheap in the car.The cabin too is not very spacious and airy even if the seats are comfortable.

The competitors have made it appear that the Impreza is the roomier car of these here. All the cars are almost similar in terms of dimensions. However, the Chevrolet Cruze feels a bit cramped inside while the 2011 Kia Forte is also quite spacious. Both the Forte and Cruze have 15 cu.-ft of cargo space, which is almost 3 cu.-ft more than what the Subaru Impreza and Honda Civic have to offer.

Important features of the interior are:

• Cruise Control
• Front And Rear Cupholders
• Front Seatback Storage
• Power Steering
• Tilt-Adjustable Steering Wheel
• 12V Rear Power Outlet(S)
• Cargo Area Light
• Interior Air Filtration
• Leather Steering Wheel
• Single Zone Front Air Conditioning

How intuitive is the 2012 Subaru Impreza’s infotainment unit?

The Impreza gets an updated infotainment system for the 2011 model and is now loaded with more features than before. The standard features now include Bluetooth connectivity, a USB port, XM and Sirius compatibility, a CD Player, and iPod control capability. The optional TOMTOM navigation system has a 4.2inch display and can be disabled by the driver.

Some highlighted features of the infotainment system include:

• AM/FM Stereo 
• CD Player
• MP3 Player
• Satellite Radio (Optional)
• TOMTOM navigation(optional)
• Bluetooth

The Impreza sedan comes in two distinct styles i.e the standard sedan and the sporty WRX sedan. The WRX sedan is the sporty looking trims with a wide body design and WRX inspired exterior styling cues. The standard sedan is more for the road design than looking anything sporty. The design is very much understated but is neat starting from the front-end to the rear. 

The Impreza(not WRX) is very understated and not a fresh design. It may look elegant but it is not the best looking when compared to the much more modern and restyled and better looking Cruze and Forte. In terms of dimensions, the Chevrolet and Subaru are the longest sedans, but the Kia and Honda have better wheelbases of 106.3 inches. Additionally, the Forte also gets a ground clearance of 5.3 inches. The Cruze is the widest and tallest sedan measuring 70.7 and 58.1 inches, respectively, while the 2011 Honda Civic is the lightest weighing 2630 lbs. 

Some exterior features include:

• Body side molding 
• Splash Guard kit 
• Hood Protector
• Optional Chrome Sport Grille
• Popular Equipment Group Package

The Subaru Impreza sedan makes sure to keep the reputation of the brand’s safety quotient unbroken with ample safety features and some standard safety aids include anti-lock disc brakes, stability control, front-seat side airbags, side curtain airbags, and active front head restraints,etc.The car has been given quite some significant safety gizmos to make it safer on the road

important safety features of the sedan are:

• Brake Assist
• Electronic Stability Control
• Daytime Running Lights
• Child Safety Locks
• Traction Control
• Emergency Trunk Release

If you are hunting for a good sporty sedan with superb performance and on a budget and you do not mind the poor mileage and the bad interior quality then the Subaru Impreza might be an amazing one for you. Thanks to its pricing and performance, this car will manage to put a smile on your face every time you drive it and that is a peppy performance. But if Fuel economy and quality are one of your priorities then you might have to look somewhere else.