2021 Subaru Impreza Sedan

While most modern compact cars are equipped with some form of polished and balanced turbocharged motor, Subaru chose to curse the Impreza Sedan with a crude, naturally aspirated 2.0-liter four-cylinder gas engine. With just 152 hp and 145 lb-ft of torque, acceleration is never quite as vigorous as desired. The limiting five-speed manual gearbox and the sluggish CVT only make that lack of power worse and hinder the overall driving experience.

Unfortunately, the 2021 Impreza Sedan's powertrain is its biggest, and perhaps, only flaw. It's a significant one, though, as competitors such as theHonda Civic, with their small-capacity turbocharged engines, offer far more enjoyable, refined, and balanced drive dynamics. The Impreza is, nevertheless, still a somewhat fun car to drive by virtue of its nimble handling characteristics, which come through in city driving, and its advantageous AWD setup - a rarity in the class. It's first and foremost a family sedan, however, which is supported by its sedate performance, many features, and the NHTSA and IIHS's consummate crashworthiness and safety reviews of the 2021 Subaru Impreza Sedan. At an MSRP of just $18,795, there are also very few cars one can find in the USA as good and at the 2021 Subaru Impreza Sedan's price.

All in all, our only hope is that Subaru debuts the sixth-generation of the Impreza with a newer, turbocharged engine and with a higher-ratio manual gearbox and/or more refined automatic transmission.

If you're just looking for a well-rounded, affordable small family car, then the base model would be a feasible choice. It does miss out on quite a few desirable features and, most importantly, a handful of good driver-assist technologies. It's for this reason that we recommend the mid-spec Premium, which comes outfitted with auto-on/off headlights, heated front seats, and some additional USB ports. It also comes with the Eyesight Driver Assist Technology safety suite as standard, which comprises pre-collision braking, pre-collision throttle management, lane departure warning, and sway warning with lane-keep assist.