Had a fun day yesterday going to a local Subaru dealer and test driving a 2012 Subaru Imprezza.

The reason for this is actually my mom in law (no worries its not going to be one of those rants, she is a very sweet lady) She currently owns three cars a 1998 Honda Accord which she bought new back then, a 1998 Toyota 4-Runner and a 2008 Honda Accord which he inherited from here deceased husband. This is rather costly and inconvient in that she is responsible for maintenance, taxes, insurance, servicing etc... on three cars.

The 98 Accord was a really nice car in its day,but is getting long in the tooth, I parked for her a couple of weeks ago and its engine sounded almost agriculture. It got her reliably through her last 7 years of work, but like her its time for it to retire.

The 98 4 runner was purchased from her son a few years ago as utility vehicle to haul gardening supplies. This is a rather crude truck that rides rough and guzzles gas (19 MPG).

The 2008 Accord is nice car, that her late husband bought new back in 2008. The problem is that it is really too big for her. She complains about the difficulty with visabilty, parking it. It also has a V6, which has more power than she really will ever use. The other issue is the complicated controls.

Our objective was to find a fuel efficient, reliable car, that had extra cargo space and was comfortable/easy to drive. This way she could sell the others and have a single car that could address all of her needs and in the process lower her living expenses.

My wife having looked at a Subaru Imprezza at a car show was very impressed with the simple control layout, an honest sturdy build and a hatchback body for extra cargo room. We took her yesterday then to actually drive one around. I got to be the main test driver, so I thought for anyone here looking for a compact car, I would impart my impressions.

Styling: The 2012 Imprezza shares the general shape of its bigger brother the Legacy. The lines are nicely taut and well proportioned. I would call it "Generically Handsome" The Hatchback is much better looking than the previous model. To sum up nothing that will exite, nothing that will offend.

Inside: The Imprezza is fairly roomy for both the front and rear seat occupants. The back seats are plenty big for even taller folks and it has good headroom as well. The hatchback has 22 cubic feet of cargo space with all seats up and 52 cubic feet with the seats folded down, more than enough for her needs.

The interior materials of are good quality. The dash is soft touch and padded with a piano back finish around the switch gear. The presentation is much nicer than the Honda Civic or Toyota Corrolla. There are a couple of pieces of cheap switch gear but for the most part it is near the top of the class. The control layout is very straight forward and easy to learn. The standard feature content is not quite as dazzling as the Elantra or the Focus, but at its price point it is not bad.

Powertrain: The Imprezza uses a new 2.0 liter flat four that puts out 148HP and 145 lbs of torque. The model we drove had the CVT automatic gear box. I am not a fan of CVTs in general but this one works pretty well. There is some whine especially in hard acceleration but it does not lack for capability. For fussy people like me, Subaru has included as standard a "flappy paddle" gearshift on the steering wheel and found it worked suprisingly well considering a CVT has no actual gears. You will not win any drag races at the stoplight, but at highway mpg of 36 you will not complain about the hit on your wallet at the pump

As a bonus, the box configuration is one of only 3 engine designs that is inherrently smooth (the others being an inline 6 and V12) as a result the car ran vibration free, eliminating what normally is an annoyance with all four cylinder cars.

Ride and Handling: The subie aquits itself very well here. The car is very smooth for this class, rough roads were taken in stride and bumps were absorbed nicely. In this area the Imprezza punches above its weight class with a ride quality that is as good as some of the better full size cars out there.

The handling is also excellent. Body roll was kept well in check, the steering had just the right level of effort and thanks in part to the lower mounted box engine, and standard all wheel drive, it grips very well. It is not quite as sporty as the new Focus or Mazda3, but I suspect it is not far off and would keep up with either on a twisty road. Overall the Impezza was a very balanced package.

Safety: The Imprezza comes with the usual assortment of airbags, front and side curtain. It also has standard stability control. Front and side impacts are 5 star rated.

The secret weapon the Subaru has here is standard all wheel drive and when the going gets rough (snow, heavy rain etc) The Imprezza is in a class by itself at its price point. There is a great video on youtube of someone driving one of these over the snow and the level of control was astonishing.

Pricing: THe 2012 starts off at just under 18 grand. The premium model we looked at which includes alloy wheels and upgraded stereo clocked in at just under 21K which is about what she paid 14 years ago for her 1998 Honda.

Overall if you guys are shopping for a small car, this one should go on your list. I was very impressed overall with the package. Consumer reports now has the Imprezza as their top pick for compact car.

My mom in law really liked the car but change will be very difficult for her. She struggles with even small changes in her life and this one will seem monumental This issue really isn't the money. The 2008 Accord she has has only 11K miles and would easily get top dollar at carmax, giving her most of what she would need to buy the Imprezza outright with little money out of her own pocket. She could also get good money for the 4 runner as well. The 1998 Honda she could hang on to a while longer and donate to charity at some point.