2008 Subaru Impreza WRX Preview

 

Subaru’s new Impreza and Impreza WRX bow today at the New York auto show — and leaked images last week had Subaru faithful up in arms over the car’s new looks.

The new twins will be offered in four- and five-door body styles. The new shapes are a sharp step away from the existing four-door and wagon’s upright shapes. The five-door in particular is more egg-shaped, more radically different from the outgoing WRX. Both have ditched the bulbous, winged nose that was to be the hallmark of Subaru cars under former design chief Andreas Zapatinas, who has since left the company. And both cars get framed doors – long a holdout by Subaru – for better noise reduction and a higher-quality feel.

 

The four-door is a distinct body style for North America, Subaru says. It’s 4.5 inches longer than the last Impreza sedan and 6.5 inches longer than the new five-door version.

 

Both cars ride on a new chassis with a wheelbase 3.7 inches longer than before, but more rigid and lighter in weight than the last edition. The longer wheelbase, Subaru says, translates into better ride and more interior room, as well as lower interior noise. Subaru also has positioned the flat-four engine lower in the chassis for better handling, which it indicates is a better compromise of sport and comfort than the prior car.

 

Both cars sport a much richer, much more elegant interior along the lines of the large Tribeca SUV, which also gets restyled for 2008. The Impreza/WRX interior has more shoulder and hip room, an input for MP3 players, video jacks for video-game players to operate through the optional navigation system,

 

Both body styles will be offered as either an Impreza 2.5i or as a WRX. The 2.5i model has a 170-horsepower, 2.5-liter flat four with 170 pound-feet of torque. The WRX, meanwhile, has a turbocharged version of the 2.5-liter flat four that sports 224 horsepower and 226 pound-feet of torque.

 

New safety gear includes curtain airbags and anti-lock brakes. Stability control is available.

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