Subaru Impreza RS 2.5: Man is this Thing Fun!

by Ryan Scott, MBA2

So there you are stuck in traffic, every driver with the same chagrined expression, staring mindlessly across a sea of "shiny metal boxes," to quote some old Police tune.

Theres an exception though.

As your eyes come to a boxy squared-off coupe with a big fat wing on the trunk and gaudy oversized gold wheels, you see me, with a smile bigger than cement mixer that you have been stuck behind for the last twenty minutes.

Why am I smiling? I cannot help it, the Subaru Impreza RS 2.5 is just plain the most fun I have had in a car on the street in since someone took away the keys to my old Triumph.

OK, so it's not the fastest thing on four wheels, but it is quick, and it feels like a street-legal rally car, complete with fantastic all-wheel drive handling and a body a solid as a hunk of uranium. Subaru has brought the RS to the United States as an image car, not a volume seller.

It packs the 2.5 liter four cylinder usually only found in the larger Outback and Forester with a 5 speed manual and a bunch of options. Let's take a closer look.

Is This Thing Street-Legal?

You just have to ask that question. Huge wing, big garish wheels, ground effects hanging every which way. Walking around the RS is a lesson in bumps and bulges and air scoops. The hood has a beefy scoop that looks wide enough to be a pizza oven. The fenders flare menacingly as they strain to cover tires that are a couple of sizes too big at 225/50 17. All in all our black on black test car was one cool looking machine.

Fun Central

The interior of the RS is pretty much straight from the base Impreza. Subaru's interior design here is competent and has lots of quality, but it is a bit behind competitor's designs.

Everything fits together well, but some materials feel cheap for a $20,000 car. The interior features heavily bolstered cloth seats that are very supportive and comfortable, even when you are not dodging trees on dirt roads at 100 mph. A nice tilt and slide sunroof lets in lots of the blurry trees and sunlight.

There is good room in the back of the car for two and a good sound system with single CD keeps the tunes coming.

The exterior of the RS is a bit of a caricature. It is just fun to look at. Of course the gold wheels are ugly, they are supposed to be. In Japan, the road is littered with all manner of overdone and cars that tend to the ridiculous. It is just part of the fun. The US market is rarely exposed to these extremes, but it is great when we are.

The big wing on the back is almost certainly not useful, except as a handle, it stand a good fours inches off the back of the decklid. The overdone exterior is part of the fun of this car and alludes to the enjoyment that awaits the driver.

Open It Up

To be honest, I am not complaining about the interior because Subaru's money is much better spent in a fantastic drivetrain and chassis. The 165 hp 2.5 liter opposed 4 cylinder chugs like a freight train at its 500 rpm idle, but it winds to a 7000 rpm redline like a crazed demon. The big four pumps out heaps of torque that can launch the car with authority.

Wheelspin is rarely a problem. Subaru's all wheel drive effortlessly routes torque to all four wheels as necessary. This is not like the clunky "automatic" all-wheel drive systems found in so many sport-utes. There is no delay or awkward lurches, just tons of grip.

The RS is hooked to the pavement with aggressive Bridgestone RE-92 tires featured on many high performance sports cars. Unless the streets are wet, the RS is glued to the road. The car has very neutral handling loves to be drifted through high-speed curves. In the wet, the Subaru has impressive grip, even with the high performance tires.

The car is a blast around town. The raspy exhaust note provides a great soundtrack to the fun. Four wheel disk brakes provide good stopping power, but the brake pedal feels soft in hard stops.

On the highway, the 2.5 liter four pulls hard but starts to feel strained at the Michigan-norm 80 mph cruising speed. The car is just not that aerodynamic, and you start to feel that just a touch at speed. Remember all those scoops and bulges, well you have to pay the piper.

What Price Fun?

Well that is the hard about fun, it usually is not free. At 21,500, the RS is a car for the lunatic fringe that just cannot afford an M3 yet, but still wants to have fun. Is it a fair comparison. Yes. In a way, the RS is one better, it has AWD, try driving an M3 in the snow and you may not like the inevitable body shop bill.

Generally speaking Subarus make a lot of sense for the Michigan driving environment. Reliable, incredibly solid cars with all-wheel drive provide a great alternative to fuel-swilling SUVs at a considerably lower price point.

More sedate Imprezas, Legacys and the whole Outback line have the goodness shown in this car without some of the glitzy boy-racer add-ons. But those add-ons are fun and this car in itself is a worthy contender.

If you want an off-the-beaten-path sports coupe, this is a great ride, the Impreza RS 2.5 is a blast, try it and you will be smiling just like me.

The numbers do not show it, but this is as close to driving one of those nut-ball World Rally Championship cars as most of us will ever get. My head is still spinning.

Check out those holsters! The RS has a dressed up interior from lesser Imprezas. CD-player standard, but leave it off to enjoy the shriek of the menacingly big four cylinder. Too much fun for this country.

Executive Summary

1999 Subaru Impreza RS 2.5

http://www.subaru.com

Sticker (as tested): $21,500

Under the Hood:

Configuration Flat 4

AWD

Horsepower 165 hp

Torque 162 lb ft

The Numbers:

0-60 8.0 sec

60-0 131 ft

Skidpad .80 g

Mileage 22/28

Competition:

Come On!

Buy Recommendation:

OVERALL (out of 5) JJJJ

Features Good

Quality Excellent

Value Good

Performance Excellent

Comfort Good

FUN Excellent, High Distinction