Inside tire damage due to a long heavy load (moved from Boston to California).
Lid to storage compartment on the dash loosened, rattles, and does not close right.
Clutch is temperamental until break-in. 10,000 miles.
Passenger side door lock does not open all the time when the power door-lock switch is used.
Reliability is where this car excels. I have beaten this car more than you should beat a brand new vehicle and it just keeps on going. I have driven this thing up hills, brush and all, through farm fields, and slid it through the streets of Boston (pot hole capital of the world) and there is not one rattle. I still have not put an alignment on it and it is at 24,000 miles. The only thing you have to worry about is mud and dirt getting stuck in your wheels. It starts shaking when you do that.
It does have some get up and go (it is not a vette), but the all wheel drive more than makes up for it. If you don't beat them on the straight away it will definitely get em in the corners.
Handling is way above average on the street, and phenomenal in the dirt. Sliding around corners in the dirt is almost effortless. The suspension takes high speed bumps very well, the faster you go the less rebound you get. You can go very fast without bottoming this car out. Believe me I have tried.
Watch out for car thieves and vandalism. I owned this car in Boston (I know not the safest place to have a new car) and it was vandalized, stolen, and broken into numerous times. The car is an attention getter that can be good and bad. Watch out for the street racers too, they see that wing on the back and get all excited.
Hello.
I read your review with interest, see below.
I have a 1992 Subaru Legacy and am thinking of trading it on for a more up to date Impreza. I bought mine for a song ($2,700 CDN) with 185k on the clock. It's an automatic which isn't too bad. I would have preferred a standard.
It's had the shaking disease, caused by snow up here in the North.
The passenger side door lock has to be held when you open the door or else it locks the door automatically, surprise!
Overall, the reliability is good and the maintenance costs are what you would expect for a car of its age. Thus, the desire to upgrade to a newer, hatchback/hockey-bag friendly Impreza.
One point, the break-in period for new cars is 10,000 kilometres. I know this because we bought a Ford Focus ZX3 and the dealer advised to take it easy until we reached that distance. Why the same number, but different measurement?
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