For 2015, recent updates have culminated in what Subaru hopes you’ll think is the best Impreza yet. Inside, there’s more upscale material and trim throughout, slick interfaces, and a higher feeling and appearance of quality. They’ve added thicker glass and more sound deadening for a quieter ride, and the central touch screen command interface is fast-to-respond and slick once you go through the learning curve. It responds to flicking, pinching and spreading of fingertips, just like an iPad.

Further, there’s storage aplenty for your pocket-sized items, the seats are comfortable and made of extra-slippery leather that’s easy to slide on and off of, and the climate controls are no problemo to operate with gloves.

Notables on board? Impreza feels more easily accessed, spacious, open and roomy than, say, a Mazda 3 or Dodge Dart, and with a low-set window line, outward visibility is above-average, too. Both rows of seats are easily accessed and surrounded by more than adequate room, and the deep trunk has a delightfully wide and tall opening for loading clumsy stuff, though there’s no inside-mounted trunk handle, so you’ll be touching salt when it comes time to close it.

Under the hood, all models get a 2.0L flat four for 148 high-efficiency horsepower. It’s smaller in displacement and output than Impreza’s previous engine, though by moving from a yucky four-speed automatic to a Continually Variable Transmission (CVT) that operates without confinement to predefined gears, performance is similar, and fuel economy improves.

Most of the time, this powertrain works perfectly: the low-end torque and the CVT’s ability to use it well work admirably at light to moderate throttle where revs stay steady, noise stays down, refinement is maintained, and fuel use is minimized. Drive with light to moderate throttle application, and things are smooth, the Impreza surges along gracefully, and most drivers won’t notice they’re not just in a really-freaking-smooth-shifting automatic. Press the throttle a little harder, and the transmission even fakes the odd gearshift for a more normal feel.

Thing is, past about 5,000 rpm with your boot down, the engine sound ramps up quickly, becomes loud, and sounds a bit strained. This isn’t one of those engines that’s remarkably quiet and refined when opened up, and with the CVT holding the revs up high, that sound stays on, long and strong. Passing an 18-wheeler can be a noisy experience.

Let’s keep context in mind before dismissing the powertrain because it doesn’t light our pants on fire with its performance. For how most drivers will drive their Impreza, most of the time, this drivetrain works exceptionally, and I’d argue that most shoppers concerned with the full-throttle operation of the Impreza will probably get the manual transmission, or a WRX, anyways. It’s not the full throttle experience that’s selling this car.

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