2012 Subaru Impreza

[ALS]

We predict that highway fuel economy will come in between 30 and 35 mpg while city fuel economy should near 25 mpg

Eric Tingwall - AUTOMOBILEMAG - January 26, 2010

Subaru set an American sales record in 2010, selling 263,820 vehicles, up almost 22 percent from the prior year. But you can't attribute any of the company's recent success to the Impreza; sales of Subaru's compact were actually down for 2010.

Among the current competition, the Impreza rightfully belongs at the back of the segment. It's a car defined by stodgy design and mediocre driving manners. The Impreza's single standout attribute -- all-wheel drive in a small car -- can even be construed as a handicap among frugal compact-car buyers. Newcomers like the Ford Focus and the Hyundai Elantra are setting the standard with highway fuel economy ratings of 40 mpg, while the most efficient Impreza achieves just 27 mpg. City fuel economy is equally dismal, and standard all-wheel drive means that the Impreza is priced higher than its front-wheel-drive competitors.... [Read More]

[FSUspectra]

I'm not real sure I like it.

[WriConsult]

That will be a nice increase in mpg. Not as good as many sedans in the class, but at 25/33 or so the hatch would be comparable to the Matrix or base Kia Soul, very close to the Honda Fit and better than the Mazda3 5-door.

My big concern, echoing what's already happened on the Legacy/Outback, is that the gain in highway mileage might be mostly on the CVT model, with the manual falling behind. The MT versions of those cars are now well short of the automatic mpg, even though the MT is a 6-speed. Given that this article is projecting 5 speeds, not 6, for the new Impreza's MT, I'm not too hopeful on this count.

It will be interesting to see what Subaru does with the interior space. The 1st gen Impreza 5-door had generous cargo space but an EXTREMELY tight cockpit (even for me, and I'm pretty small). In 2002 they expanded the passenger space, but at the expense of shrinking the cargo space from a near-wagonlike 25cf to solidly hatch-class 18cf (same as the Golf, Versa or Mazda3 5-doors). The article is calling for stretching the passenger space EVEN MORE (which I wouldn't support) ... so will they shrink the trunk even more, or make the car bigger? Subaru's got a tough challenge to meet these goals AND make their mileage target.

[ItsNotAboutTheMoney]

I have a colleague who loved his STi but didn't love the payment on it.

[SD3_Driver]

power is down for the new model, and nothing about the WRX and STI versions... will Subaru dare to power down WRX and STI for fuel economy????