With blowing snow, strong winds and slow-moving cars, I donned my winter gear, grabbed my snowbrush and prepared to clean off my weapon of choice.
Mother Nature was not going to win this one. Not against the 2012 Subaru Impreza Sport Hatchback. Powered by an all-new 2.0-litre 4 cylinder 148 horsepower engine – which replaced the old 2.5-litre 4 pot 175 Horsepower unit - and teamed up with a brand new 6-speed CVT (Continuously Variable Transmission), replacing the old 4-speed automatic. This car was built to cut through whatever the weather sends your way.
Starting at $19,995, the Impreza comes in two different body types – Sedan and Hatchback – four separate trim levels, and two different transmissions: a 5 –speed manual or the 6-speed CVT.
The tester I had was the Sport Hatchback with the 6-speed CVT, which costs $26,490 before taxes. It came with a sunroof, fog lights and windshield wiper de-icer, to name a few standard features.
There's more than enough safety features found in the Impreza, from traction control to four-wheel ABS to Vehicle Dynamics Control system, which helps keep you inline whenever you decide to be a bit adventurous.
Even with the traction control turned off, the Vehicle Stability Control system is still active, monitoring everything to make sure that nothing bad happens while still allowing you to have fun.
The all-wheel drive system, something which Subaru is known for, is extremely confident in the slush, and snow – what little there is - in southern Ontario.
With an advertised fuel economy of 7.5L/100km in the city, and 5.5L/100km on the highway, I was able to manage 10L/100km on my daily commute back and forth on the 401 from Toronto to Durham Region.
The tester vehicle was equipped with winter tires, and I did have the defroster going constantly at a comfortable 20 degrees Celsius along with the seat heaters switched on, all of which added to Impreza's fuel consumption.
Where it really impressed me was when I decided to go from Durham Region to the County of Frontenac, which is cottage country north of Kingston – a 534 kilometre round trip.
With the same creature comforts switched on from my commute to work, I was able to get 8.8L/100km on the long-distance trip, which included some local driving in the rural area. When I got back, the car's computer still said I could do an extra 120 kilometres on what remained in the tank.
You have to admit, for an all-wheel drive car on snow tires in the middle of winter, that's pretty good.
And the surprises don't end there.
Sharing much of its looks from the Legacy, its bigger sibling, the Impreza is a very comfortable car. The ride is very smooth for an all-wheel drive car and it has good handling on dry roads, much like its front-wheel drive competitors. It's in the crappy weather where the Impreza shines.
Slush, snow, rain the Impreza handles it all. It's very fun to drive and is extremely confident on bad roads. It's even better through the city over streetcar tracks, which I couldn't even feel. You can drive this car, with confidence, with bulky winter boots on, without having to worry about accidently hitting the wrong pedal, or hitting both pedals at the same time.
Despite my own personal opinions toward all CVT's in general, you're able to keep the Impreza in the proper gear depending on the road conditions while driving in manual mode. In full automatic mode, you're almost able to bring the car down to a complete stop without having to touch the brakes, simply by using the paddle shifters on the steering wheel.
Visibility inside the car is very good. With the redesign, they've moved the mirrors closer to the driver, and added an extra window behind the mirror, reducing potential blind spots. With the hatchback mdel, I had more windows than an office building.
Inside the car is fairly comfortable. All of the controls were within easy reach of the driver or the passenger. A very good radio comes with this car, but I suggest you avoid adjusting it using the dials on the centre console. Use the wheel-mounted volume controls instead, or at least keep it to a minimum when you're on a bumpy road. The volume control on the centre stack is very sensitive that if you're just adjusting it by the dial and you happen to hit a bump, you're more likely to accidentally turn the radio off than you are to hear your favourite tune.
The temperature controls are very easy to use. The dials are very large and perfect for adjusting while wearing mittens. There's two extremely deep cupholders in the centre console that can easily swallow up a 1-litre drink from your local corner store. Or you could use them to store your toque and mitts without throwing them on the floor.
Packing this car was very easy – even with the new design to the back end. With space to spare, the hatch can handle two full-size suitcases, plus a carry-on bag for the airport with the cargo cover pulled over the back.
With the cover removed, you double the space. Along with the previously-mentioned luggage load, you could add in many more boxes and other knickknacks before you even come close to covering up the windows.
The car comes with rear-folding seats which fold flat to the floor of the trunk, allowing you to go to that big-box Swedish store and buy those items you need, in the middle of winter, without having to pay for delivery. The longest item I found that I could fit into the car, before I had to adjust the front passenger seat, was a 6-foot piece of lumber, which was able to just rest between the driver and passenger on the armrest.
Overall, the Impreza Sport is an easy car to live with, no matter what the road conditions.
Fast Facts:
- 2012 Subaru Impreza Sport 5-door
- Type: Compact hatchback
- Price Range: $26,490
- Engine: 2.0-litre, 4-cylinder Boxer Engine
- Horsepower: 148 hp
- Transmission: 5 Speed Manual/6 Speed CVT
- Drive: All-Wheel Drive
- Competitors: Audi A3 Quattro, Honda Civic, Chevrolet Cruze, Mazda Mazda3 Sport, Toyota Corolla, Mitsubishi Lancer, Volkswagen Golf, Ford Focus
