2011 Subaru Impreza 2.5i 4dr Sedan AWD (2.5L 4cyl 5M)
I had never owned a Subaru before and neither had anyone in my family. In the 90's I was drawn away from the brand just because of the somewhat biased social stigmatism attached to the company. When my old truck blew it's motor two years ago I knew that I wanted an AWD car and began looking into Subarus. I was first looking at the Impreza Sport because of the size and versatility of the vehicle but immediately fell in love with the wide body design of the 2011 Impreza WRX. Took a test drive and the rest, as they say, is history. A little over a year and 16,000 miles later I still leave my sales consultant job at a Subaru dealership and look forward to my drive home everyday.
There is no doubt in my mind that the Subaru Symmetrical AWD is far superior to any other American or Japanese company. It handles flawlessly in any sketchy weather condition even with the stock summer performance tires. After driving a couple of Subaru's 6-speed manual transmissions (including the STI) I'd say that I prefer the 5-speed transmission for its practicality with everyday driving and acceleration. The clutch feels solid even after a year of hard driving. It corners and handles sharp curves at high speeds like you would expect a performance car to. The torque that the BOXER engine puts out is unreal and throws you in your seat if you punch it. I love this car.
Subaru, you need a better sound system. Even the Harmon Kardon sound system is pretty basic compared to GM's Bose or even Dodge's Alpine sound system. The speakers are of cheap quality and the radio display is very early 2000's. Also from getting in and out of my car the plastic center console/arm rest has a nice crack in it. I only have qualms with the aesthetic properties. Nothing about the performance, reliability, or excitement this car brings to the table.