Dragos
Well-Known Member
I think the test reflects the reality of many cities. I find the current gen base Impreza slower than a 1.8 Civic going by the feel of the seat, not their official numbers, so it is a trade off more grip on hills and deep snow or faster on regular roads with less than 6 inches of snow. In the summer Civic will be more fun, in the winter not as good as the Impreza but mostly on hills or heavy snow or ice when again the diff won''t be huge since you're not flying on the roads anyways.the tests are bogus as once you add hills, the FWD will fail miserably in comparison. In the real world, go with thte 4WD
The previous base Impreza yes was a better car if the price was the same as a 1.8 Civic but it also had 170 HP and torque and a bigger engine. If they still had that for the base I would have agreed, current gen is disappointing though. Better fuel economy but the fun is just gone they ditched the enthusiasts for the drivers afraid of sliding on snow and ice that want good fuel economy despite a slow emotionless car. If you didn't test one I encourage all to go test one, as sweet as the WRX / STI is just as disappointing the base is.
Add in that in other countries a base Impreza costs 1k less than an Si and situation changes even more. In Canada an Si with some negotiation goes to the same price as a base Impreza (they do not negotiate and have huge rates for financing compared to other brands, almost double)