Will the new Outback Impreza the Subaru nation?

Click to Enlarge Browse Aspen Times Photos The new 2008 Impreza ... Andy Stonehouse wonders whether Subaru enthusiasts will grasp its innovative new look. Special to the Daily

By ANDY STONEHOUSE
special to the daily
November 16, 2007

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You’ve got to hand it to Subaru enthusiasts. Steadfast in their non-conformity, devoted the principles of symmetrical all-wheel-drive, the brand’s generations of mountain-based enthusiasts have long cast aside aesthetics for vehicles that are as winter-worthy as mountain goats. And sometimes as good to look at.

The first edition of the company’s B9 Tribeca SUV crossover, sporting a snout only a mother could love (plus about 18,000 buyers last year, total, in Suby hotspots such as Colorado, Montana and New Hampshire), apparently inspired the company to slap a more sedately generic face on the second-generation model.

Subsequently, this year’s unveiling of a brand new body style for the small Impreza line has been received in a fashion I might have predicted: Subaru purists think they’re ugly as hell, but newcomers might be willing to give the vehicle a shot, because they’re rather attractive, in a blended Euro-Japanese way.

I got to sample the Outback Sport version of the 2008 Impreza, and found it to be a decent five-door vehicle for under $22,000, complete with that ubiquitous symmetrical, full-time all-wheel-drive, plus raised suspension, four-wheel disc brakes and 17-inch alloy wheels.

That redesign includes contemporary, angular headlamps, a small, smiley grille and a pointy nose with aerodynamic ground effects. You also get a prominent, BMW-styled tapered body line, running from the edges of the hood through the beltline and all the way to the trunk.

By the time you get to the tail, the controversy really kicks in, with bubbled, wraparound LED-style brake and turn lamps that look positively aftermarket, tall bumper corners and even an aerodynamic wing off the roof.

Not so gaudy for a 2008 vehicle in this category — everyone from Honda to Ford is rocking this look as the decade nears its end — but it’s certainly very different than Imprezas of old, so I can feel your pain, hardcore Subaru fans.

My tester featured the four-speed automatic transmission, complete with the self-adjustable Sportshift mode: both the automatic and the five-speed standard version have different versions of the AWD system, with the auto using an electronically managed continuously variable transfer clutch. You may remember from the past that “CVT” is one of my least-favorite three-letter acronyms out there.
While I might have been expecting WRX-styled levels of crazy power, the base Impreza’s 170-horsepower 2.5 liter four-banger Boxer engine did not light my socks on fire, especially mated to the automatic tranny. I wanted to squeal all four wheels at stoplights, and may have been able to do so with the five-speed, but each deep stomp on the accelerator produced a tangible pause before anything actually happened.

This may boost the fuel efficiency (the Impreza gets up to 27 mpg on the highway) but pure reactivity was negligible, even when fiddling around with that Sportshifter.
The upside is that once the Impreza is rolling, the AWD system and a 103-inch wheelbase do make for some fun, sporty handling dynamics —you can see the rally DNA somewhere in there, and you can effectively corner like nobody’s business. Vehicle Dynamics Control, Subaru’s electronic stability system, is now standard on the Impreza line, and will intervene when you take things too far and will help to keep you amply safe when and if snow ever does appear in Colorado this year.
The Impreza Outback’s interior is clean, simple and crafted in the mode of its stablemates, including a silvery, cockpit-styled arch of a dash (first seen in the Tribeca) that partially wraps around driver and passenger.

Instrumentation is straightforward and the few frills include dual-stage heated seats (even with cloth seating) and a satellite radio-ready 100-watt 10-speaker stereo with a surround sound mode.

Seating is comfortable and the only concession to the vehicle’s size is a relatively small space under the wheel and panel for human knees — I’m no Wilt Chamberlain but I kept knocking my kneecaps into plastic. The space was more than adequate for the afternoons I spent driving around in rural Centennial with my laptop trying to “borrow” an internet signal so I too could be jacked for World Series tickets by the Rockies organization.

True to rugged, recreation-oriented Outbacks of all sizes, the back hatch lifts to reveal a removable rubber cargo area cover, 60/40 split fold-down seats (resulting in 44 cubic feet of storage space) and a 12-volt electric outlet for all of your tailgating needs at A-Basin. There’s also a pair of roof bars for affixing bike, ski and kayak racks aplenty.

But ... too weird looking, even for Subaru fans? Hard to say. For the money and the size, the new Impreza’s a solid machine, maybe just a bit pokey with the auto-stick; personally, I’d opt for the 224-horsepower WRX model, or even hold out until next year’s debut of the fully blown 300-or-so-horsepower WRX STI rally-ready car, but that’s the kind of leadfooted guy I am.

2008 Subaru Impreza Outback Sport
Price as tested: $21,640

Mechanics: 170 horsepower 2.5 liter four-cylinder Boxer engine, Sportshift four-speed automatic transmission with symmetrical all-wheel drive

Stated mileage: 20 city, 27 highway

Includes: Vehicle dynamics control system,
17-inch alloy wheels, 100-watt 10-speaker six CD sound system (satellite radio ready), leather-wrapped steering wheel, remote keyless entry, heated mirrors and windshield wiper de-icers, removable cargo area tray