Test Drive: Subaru Impreza now bigger, higher gas mileage
— -- If you go by the numbers, the redesigned 2012 Subaru Impreza is a couple of steps back.
It is priced higher than the 2011, but has less power, smaller standard tires and rear brakes. And despite a longer wheelbase and wider track, some seating spots lose room for head, legs, hips.
Even has a smaller gas tank.
The chassis stretch did open up 2 more inches of rear-seat legroom, as well as more cargo space, however.
The marquee matter, though, is that the 2012 Impreza fuel-economy ratings are from 5 to 10 miles per gallon better than the 2011's.
The gains are in all three of the modes the government tracks — city, highway and combined city/highway driving — not just the easier-to-improve highway rating.
That, in a business where car companies do extraordinary things to get improvements of just 1 or 2 mpg.
The redesigned car — still available as a four-door sedan or hatchback — is rated 28 or 30 miles per gallon in combined city/highway driving. Those are high numbers, especially for a car that has the extra weight and additional thirst of all-wheel drive as a standard feature.
Subaru asserts that the 2012 Impreza is "the most fuel-efficient gasoline-engine, all-wheel-drive passenger car in America." So there.
As usual, our driving regimen failed to come close (about 21 mpg in suburban going), but you'd no doubt do better.
Subaru got the mileage via:
•Smaller engine. Now a 2-liter four-cylinder rated 148 horsepower instead of last year's 2.5-liter/170-hp engine.
•Lighter weight. Exact amounts vary by model, but the 2012 is roughly 150 pounds lighter than its predecessor.
•Different transmissions. New gear ratios for the five-speed manual, and a CVT (continuously variable-ratio automatic transmission) has replaced last year's dated four-speed automatic.
While CVTs typically deliver better mileage than fixed-ratio automatics, they are dreadful to drive. Push the throttle pedal and you get lots of engine revs and not much acceleration. The engine continues to spin at disproportionately high revolutions until the car's speed "catches up" to the engine, and the CVT starts slowing the engine.
It's like driving a manual with a slipping clutch.
If you are a light-foot driver, you might not see the CVT as an issue, because you won't get the jarring mix of extreme revs and underwhelming change in velocity.
As an easy-going driver, you also won't miss last year's bigger engine unless you live in hilly terrain, or usually carry a full load.
Front seats are especially comfortable. Back seats get an additional 2 inches of legroom and are unexpectedly accommodating.
Controls are simple, straightforward, making no attempt to dazzle you with gimmicks and complexity. Applause for that. But the little indicator dots on the climate control knobs were hard to see, even when lighted at night.
Visors don't slide, or provide auxiliary pull-out visors, so it's hard to block the sun. And no backup camera is available.
Here's what else stood out:
•Ride. Soft enough to seem luxurious, but firm and controlled enough to avoid any sloppiness.
•Handling. Nose-heavy. The extra weight of the AWD system could contribute, but all Subies are AWD, and some seem more agile than Impreza.
Fuel-saving electric power steering is well-tuned, something not universal in the industry.
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