The New Hatchback Impreza

The Impreza became the most popular model of Subaru after it was released and its continuous success in the World Rally Championship made it a cult car. Three constructors championships won in a row (1993-1995) made the Impreza one of the most successful WRC cars in the history amongst with Lancia Delta, Fiat 131 and Citroen Xsara. The boxer engine and the big distinctive spoiler made the Impreza a very stabile rally car. However the regular Impreza wasn't as impressive as the WRX and the STI versions. It failed to reach the sale numbers of Toyota Corolla, Honda Civic and Mitsubishi Lancer even though Impreza was safer than them. Subaru wasn't well known in Europe except the STI and WRX versions. As second generation of Impreza was introduced in 2001, reactions of the people were mixed. The Subaru enthusiasts didn't like the new Impreza at all but it helped Subaru to gain more prestige and better sale numbers. The enthusiasts were saying that the Impreza was becoming uglier car but on the other hand, was becoming safer and more rigid. They didn't like the round headlights (bug eyed) and this forced Subaru change the front design of the car in 2003.

In 2006, there was a rumor that the 3rd generation of Impreza was going to be a hatchback. Some did believe in that, some didn't. In 2007, the third generation of Impreza was released and it was a big shock for Subaru fans. They believed in that the Impreza was getting far away from its racer roots as it was becoming a family car. The new generation of Impreza divided Subaru fans into two groups. One group thinks that the sedan shape of Impreza shouldn't have changed and the opposite side thinks that a change was inevitable. Another option could be releasing another model as a hatchback with a different name and Impreza could continue as a sedan. What made the Subaru change the shape of Impreza? In 1990s, Toyota changed the design of the Corolla from sedan to hatchback, to have better sale numbers in the Europe. This could be the same kind of sales tactic from Subaru so they can compete against hatchbacks like Ford Focus, Volkswagen Golf, Seat Ibiza and Citroen C4. Also the hatchback cars usually have better handling than sedans. The obvious thing is that the new Impreza is a very modern, safe and powerful car as it got a 5 star rating from crash tests. And we will wait and see how the new Impreza will sell.