Shednesday: Subaru Impreza
Ben takes a stroll down memory lane and suggests his first car: a Subaru Impreza. We're not sure why he didn't get a WRX or STI either.
Merry Shednesday. This week I’m feeling nostalgic and reminiscing about the first car I owned: a 2007 ‘hawkeye’ Subaru Impreza 2.0-litre R Sport. Yep, you'll notice it’s missing the normally crucial WRX or WRX STI bits at the end. That’s because it was one of the non-turbo models.
This had nothing to do with the cost of insurance. I went through a weird phase when I considered turbos to be cheating, so I actively wanted something naturally aspirated. Amusingly, all of my cars since the Impreza have had turbos. This way my car:
Not quite flat out
No, it’s not blue, it doesn’t have gold wheels, and it's devoid of a hood scoop/air intake. Remember it was a non-turbo. Also I've never really been to a motor sport event (apart from brief followings of Formula D and the more recent Extreme E), so didn’t feel the need to drive a homage to a late rally driver.
Pinched by Gordon the Gopher's mate
I bought my car back in May 2013 for £3500, then sold it almost exactly four years later for £1400. I should have held out for more, but at that point I had already bought the P&O Ferry that replaced it – a 2011 Skoda Superb 1.8 TSI – so off to Philip Schofield it went. It had a small patch of rust on the door and the bodywork wasn’t great. Auto Trader valued it at £2200, if in good condition.
Get to the point, Ben
Okay, leaving memory lane, I was going to highlight a car with the same spec as mine for sale at £1500. That one has sold, and the cheapest after that is £2000 and in Alford. The seller is firm on the price, but it has an MOT until February 2022 and had the cam belt changed at 60,000 miles.
Beyond the cam belt, you could query if the water pump was changed at the same time, as it's now done 105,000 miles. Other than that you could check the bodywork for rust. Otherwise they are mechanically simple cars – my own Impreza was very reliable. Should you want to follow my lead, bar two reg letters, you would need to spend £3995 on this car.
Also available for less
Some alternative cheaper options are the Impreza’s bigger siblings: the Legacy and Forester.
I would probably go for the Legacy as it boasts the 3.0-litre non-turbo H6 engine. Now let’s see what Gavin thinks…
What does PetrolBlog think?
Apologies for posting this update after lunch – I'm just back from a meeting with the accountants. Anyway, I'd opt for the Legacy. Big fan, love the show, etc, etc.
That said, I owned a ‘Philippa’ Forester, and it was brilliant. Utterly reliable, great to drive and properly practical. Just a little expensive to run. Nice R Sport, Ben!
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