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Subaru has an all-new Impreza lineup for 2002. Value-oriented models are gone, replaced by high-performance models. Headlining this exciting lineup is the WRX, one of the most exciting new models from anyone this year, especially for rally fans. Though based on an economy car, the WRX is a factory hot rod that combines turbocharging, four-wheel drive, rally breeding, and attitude.
The all-new Impreza lineup for 2002 includes an updated 2.5 RS four-door sedan and a 2.5 TS Sport Wagon. Also based on the Impreza is a new Outback Sport wagon. The WRX is available as a sedan and a sport wagon.
Like all Subarus, they feature all-wheel drive.
Except for the WRX, all Imprezas are powered by a 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine rated at 165 horsepower. The engines feature Subaru's horizontally opposed cylinder layout, which lowers the hood line and the center of gravity.
WRX models are powered by a turbocharged and intercooled 2.0-liter engine that generates 227 horsepower.
The overall effect of the body styling is very dramatic, particularly in dark blue, similar to Subaru's rally team colors, with the fender flares dramatically catching the light. We also saw the car in silver, and the car will be offered in standard plus two special colors, but the blue is our favorite.
The WRX presents the striking appearance of too much machine for the wrapper, bulging out at each fender, its engine reaching for more cooling air through a prominent hood scoop. These features are expressions of the rally heritage of the WRX. The WRX sedan is distinguished by its blister fender flares that permit a 20 mm wider front track. (The 2.5 RS is distinguished by the same fenders as the WRX.) The WRX Sport Wagon has wheel openings with raised lips, as do the 2.5 TS and the Outback Sport. Bridgestone Potenza RE92 all-season performance tires size 205/55R16 are fitted on 16x6.5-inch alloy wheels.
Upon starting it up we were able to sense the familiar and friendly Subaru vibrations, a distinctive feature of a horizontally opposed four-cylinder engine. The controls are light and the pedals well spaced; there's little to suggest in its mannerisms that the WRX is anything but an ordinary Impreza.
The WRX is quite firmly packed with technology, so it's a little heavier than other subcompacts. According to Subaru, the turbo, the all-wheel drive, the fully independent suspension, and the chassis were all put on a gram-by-gram diet. The chassis was made as light as possible, with competition in mind, using tailor-welded blanks (essentially, thicker metal only where it's needed). Still, the WRX weighs in at over 3000 pounds, though Subaru notes that it has a better power to weight ratio than even the sporty Audi S4.
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