2012 Subaru Impreza....

[awdG35killer]

No start/stop feature in the US version

[SBT]

Nissan-like push button start/stop?

[The B4]

engine turns off when you come to a stop and starts back up when depress the accelerator.

[SBT]

More hybrid-like then. Got it.

[awdG35killer]

Yup. That probably would've helped with fuel economy here. Lots of people complaining about lower than advertised mpg results. Gonna turn into a civic hybrid and Elantra type lawsuit

[Spoonwacker]

It's a rare day when TTAC writes a positive review on a Subaru. The Farago incident seems to have left a bad taste in the mouths of the writers that linger to this day. I think Michael Karesh is/was on this site.

 

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2012/02/avoidable-contact-the-grand-national-problem/

[The B4]

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2012/02/avoidable-contact-the-grand-national-problem/

 

now look up Subaru reviews since 2006

[Spoonwacker]

now look up Subaru reviews since 2006

 

Funny, I've read them all as they came out and didn't get the same impression as you. But if you insist... For the sake of saving my time, I'm just pulling from the last few paragraphs of each.

 

And… that’s about it. In fact, the Sports Wagon is everything an enthusiast could want in a family hatchback– save good looks, touchy-feely materials and neck snapping acceleration. It’s so multi-purpose, it ought to come with a corkscrew attachment. At a hair under $18k, what’s stopping you?

 

The WRX Sport Wagon. For another $7k you get better tunes, improved plastics, sportier dials, a roof spoiler and 51 more horses. While the veggie-burger edition is thoroughly justifiable and a lot less unsatisfying than you’d imagine, the red meat iteration is, dare I say it, irresistible.

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2007/01/subaru-impreza-25i-sport-wagon/

 

That's not glowing, but it's pretty good.

 

With laudable entries like the Mazdaspeed6 undercutting the LGT’s steadily-increasing price ($33k as tested), buyers may wonder if the LGT is worth the price of admission. It is. From the driver’s seat at least, the LGT is a genuine stunner.

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2007/05/subaru-legacy-gt-limited-review/

 

Well, of course it is.

 

For an automaker famous for creating cars that can carve-up a country road and leave it for dead, a company that advertised its car-based models as SUV alternatives, Subie's SUV is an unabashed and unforgivable brand betrayal. The only real question is when the company will "face" the fact that shooting the messenger doesn't alter the truth: you can't make a silk SUV out of sow's ear or, you know, whatever. (he is talking about a vagina, btw)

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2007/07/subaru-tribeca-review/

 

To which all I can say to TTAC is, "You're not wrong, Walter, you're just an asshole."

 

No question: the Legacy SE won't thrill you like its siblings. It does, however, offer excellent utility and phenomenal bad weather stability at a family-friendly price. It does nothing truly exceptional, nor does it completely fail in any specific area. On just about every scale, the Subaru Legacy 2.5i Special Edition is a happy medium. All the little Subie needs is a better autobox and a bit more love.

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2007/08/subaru-legacy-25i-se-review/

 

Can't disagree there.

 

Taken as a whole, Subaru hasn’t dropped the ball with its new WRX. They’ve just punted it onto a whole different playing field. While the old WRX had its own (numerous) shortcomings, it easily made up for them with puppy-dog enthusiasm and ever-present utility. The new model has all the modern charm of a robot dog. It’s not bad, by any means: more comfort, more space, more style (arguably) and more fuel economy. All of which makes it more easily justifiable to your comfort-loving significant-other. It’s just too bad that all these “mores” add up to less fun.

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2007/09/subaru-wrx-review/

 

This is in line with almost every other review of the '08 WRX.

 

If you don’t want or need AWD, there are a lot of other cars that are just as good as the new Impreza, all of which can be had for less money. They may be less powerful, but most drivers in this class are more than willing to sacrifice the extra oomph of a 2.5i engine for higher gas mileage.

 

Yes, there is that. The base Impreza used to overcome such prosaic concerns based on its “quirky” styling and driver satisfaction; offering enough power and handling to create a [faint] mechanical echo of its extreme sib’s head-banging performance. Clealry [sic], the Impreza has jettisoned both assets in pursuit of mainstream success. The Faustian bargain makes the Impreza a better (if over-priced) Corolla– and a worse Subaru.

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2007/12/subaru-impreza-25i-review/

 

"Buy it if you need AWD, otherwise skip it." Isn't this the kind of review that the '08 Impreza got from nigh everybody, and the reason the new one has less power and much better mileage?

 

I didn't really dig the STI until I fed it some busted-up asphalt. Then my love blossomed with an unnatural (and sideways) passion.

 

So, is the STI worth a 14k premium? The [sic] depends entirely on your driving license's current status and your access to crumbling roads.

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2008/02/2008-subaru-impreza-sti-review/

 

I can only imagine how much Subaru must hate it when people say their performance model is most fun when driven in a manner that exploits that performance

 

What's the reverse of a halo car? You know: a car that shows that a brand is still in touch with the austere competence that endeared its products to its original financially-challenged, mechanically savvy customers? The five-speed manual base Outback is it. Well done to Subaru for not pulling-up its roots. Now, if they could just strip and flip the STI…

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2008/02/2008-subaru-outback-review/

 

This is basically an ode to the functional beauty of the barebones Outback. It's not negative.

 

So, do you buy the 2009 WRX? As an owner of both a 2006 and a 2001 would I buy it? The obvious problem: the competition. MazdaSpeed3 anyone? Hell, the Chevy Cobalt SS is just as powerful and can whip the WRX around a track. And the Subaru is really, seriously ugly. But here’s the thing: once that big turbo fully spools and starts puking power into the transmission, you realize how little all the other stuff else matters. My advice? Get the wagon, and start looking for rich guys to humiliate.

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2009/01/review-2009-subaru-wrx/

 

Come on, fast Subarus have been getting "ugly but fantastic to drive" reviews since about the same time Ari Vatanen took the Group A Impreza out on its first special stage. You can't complain that those reviews are still coming, especially when the cars are still by and large...ugly.

 

Between this car and BMW’s similar appropriation, it seems that “GT” now connotes roominess and refinement rather than driving excitement. Neither “grand” nor “touring” suggests agile handling, so perhaps this is a more literal interpretation of the appellation. But then what’s the stick doing in the Legacy GT? The number of self-shifters seeking the new car’s bundle of attributes cannot be large. So the prognosis for the Legacy GT is not good. Subaru might rethink the car, like they did with the 2008 WRX after enthusiasts rejected it. But they’re more likely to send it the way of the Legacy wagon. Don’t want the Legacy GT to go away? Then you’d better put your money where your mouth is and buy one soon.

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2010/07/review-2010-subaru-legacy-gt/#more-361838

 

That's not a great review. But it does reflect the mediocrity of the 2010 car pretty well.

 

The Subaru faithful will descend on dealerships with their clipboards and check-lists and comparison data, but they’ll inevitably like this little car, and they’ll buy it. More importantly, folks who were looking at a Mazda3, Civic or Focus might find the Impreza showing up on their radar, and if they drive it, they’ll be surprised at how agricultural it’s not.

 

As for myself, WRX divorce or not, there’s got to be a way to cram a EJ257 in this thing. Hello, Nordstrom? I’m going to need your largest shoe-horn…

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2011/12/review-2012-subaru-impreza/#more-421852

 

That's a lot more than could be said of the previous car.

 

So the Subaru wins the battle for the head. But the numbers aren’t everything. What about love? Both the Impreza and Kizashi claim to offer it. If you’re turned on by style and refinement, then you’re much more likely to find love in the Suzuki. The way the new Subaru looks, sounds, and feels recalls old style “penalty box” small cars just a bit too much. But if you’re seeking a chassis that talks to you, and that’s a willing dance partner, then the Impreza delivers. A quiet love, perhaps, but they did promise it in small lettering.

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2012/01/review-2012-subaru-impreza-2-0i-limited/#more-428289

 

Feels cheap, great chassis.

 

My analysis? Subaru has made good cars, bad cars, and cars somewhere in between since 2006. TTAC's reviews reflect this.

[The B4]

I guess it's just all of the new stuff the pan.

 

2009 Forester - This is before the Forester won SUV of the year and the XT beat the CX-7 and Tiguan in the comparisons. SOA used XT's for all of reviews isntead of 2.5i's for some reason

 

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2008/08/2009-subaru-forester-xt-review/

 

The Forester XT is living, breathing proof that Subaru has lost its way. The Toyota-fication of the brand has now reached its pinnacle in the redesigned Forester, and it stands tall (really, really tall) as the perfect example of how to alienate the hippies and hoons that bought Subaru after Subaru. To put it succinctly, driving the new Forester XT is like answering the door expecting Ed McMahon with a check for a million dollars and finding your mother-in-law standing there instead. At least the MIL eventually goes home. The Forester XT just hangs around and keeps disappointing.

If you're looking for a sporty, fast CUV with room for the family, go buy an Acura RDX. It may be more expensive, but you'll never regret it. I can't fathom why anyone would spend their hard-earned cash on a new Forester, unless you're in that small group of Subaru lovers that won't have anything but a Subaru, and you live in the snow belt and/or need the extra room over an Outback for camping with the family. However, like Subaru, you can do better than this.

 

2009 Forester LL Bean - The 2.5i Forester reviews that existed were glowing and it beat everything in comparisons. TTAC took the stance that it wasn't any different than everything else just because it got bigger and Subaru was associated with Toyota. The article spent most of its time drawing comparisons that had nothing to do with the actual car.

 

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2008/04/2009-subaru-forester-ll-bean-edition-review/

 

The previous Forester was unlike anything else in the segment. The new one is just like everything else in the segment, for both good and bad. This is good for Forester buyers, and bad for Subaru. Go figure.

 

2010 Outback - Panned in a rant about how the Outback was alienating it's traditional buyers. Funny how this year it won an award for the highest loyalty for any midsize/large car. There's some stiff competition in that area (accord, camry, malibu, fusion, taurus, etc.)

 

Not to go off on too Faragonian of a branding rant, contrary to the latest “It’s what makes a Subaru a Subaru” campaign, “it” is nowhere present in the new Subaru Outback. Yes, the usual hardware bits are there. Boxer engine? Check. Symmetrical All-Wheel-Drive? Check. But past these binary, objective metrics, the essence of a true Subaru is woefully absent, starting with the styling . .

 

At the end of the stereotypical teen movie, the geek-turned-stud usually recognizes the collateral damages of his foolish ways, and returns with renewed self-confidence, truer to himself, ultimately a better person for it. However, punch-drunk on the elixir of newfound sales popularity, it’s unlikely Subaru will look back—save to fly the bird to its wide-eyed, once-loyal nerds.

 

2010 Legacy 3.6R - called it a Camry. the metrics outperformed the previous 5EAT LGT. same song and dance about Subaru not being quirky anymore.

 

Why the 2012 Impreza was reviewed twice, I don't know. The first article was favorable. The second was not. It's not normal for them to do a full review on a brand new car twice in the span of a couple of months.

[ShrinerMonkey]

I guess it's just all of the new stuff the pan.

 

2009 Forester - This is before the Forester won SUV of the year and the XT beat the CX-7 and Tiguan in the comparisons. SOA used XT's for all of reviews isntead of 2.5i's for some reason

 

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2008/08/2009-subaru-forester-xt-review/

 

 

 

2009 Forester LL Bean - The 2.5i Forester reviews that existed were glowing and it beat everything in comparisons. TTAC took the stance that it wasn't any different than everything else just because it got bigger and Subaru was associated with Toyota. The article spent most of its time drawing comparisons that had nothing to do with the actual car.

 

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2008/04/2009-subaru-forester-ll-bean-edition-review/

 

 

 

2010 Outback - Panned in a rant about how the Outback was alienating it's traditional buyers. Funny how this year it won an award for the highest loyalty for any midsize/large car. There's some stiff competition in that area (accord, camry, malibu, fusion, taurus, etc.)

 

 

 

 

 

2010 Legacy 3.6R - called it a Camry. the metrics outperformed the previous 5EAT LGT. same song and dance about Subaru not being quirky anymore.

 

Why the 2012 Impreza was reviewed twice, I don't know. The first article was favorable. The second was not. It's not normal for them to do a full review on a brand new car twice in the span of a couple of months.

Unlike other car mags and blogs, TTAC is always willing to accept a counter opinion. You can write a review yourself and submit it to them if you don't like what you have read. Be sure to let us all know when it is posted.

[The B4]

TTAC goes for the shock value in writing. I'd hardly call the majority of their reviews "reviews."

 

I did disagree with something once and refuted it in comments. I almost got baned from the site over it. The article ended up being amended. I don't remember what it was about, but it was within the past two years. I'll try to find it.