2012 Subaru Impreza

dfong87 · April 2012

we never really considered the Legacy. we were looking for a "roomy compact" with decent mileage (ie, comparable to my 2000 Honda Civic this replaced). on paper, the 27/36 rating seemed like a worthy compromise in handling and being more of a driver's car than the other cars i considered. (the Mazda 3 was a good driver car, but was too small)

it remains too early to see how good my mileage is, especially without having tanked it up myself and not knowing even if the first tank is a fair representation since i won't know how full the dealer filled up my tank.

but if the onboard computer is any indication, i'm happy enough with my mileage. with some fun exploratory driving today (some highway and some twisty backroads), my mileage over the first 190+ miles is 31.2 mpg.

dfong87 · April 2012

that would make sense. it's really interesting that there is this whole plastic shroud with cutouts and doors...not something i'm used to but maybe more common in newer cars?

btw, i confirmed just a moment ago that i have the drain port right since i shined a headlamp under there and saw the same NA and Ft you have in your photo.

thanks again for your help.

zman3 · April 2012

I live in suburban Minneapolis and commute to another suburb. I spend part of the time on open freeway and part of the time on side roads, depending on which way I go. About 15 of my 20 miles commute is freeway.

I think when I look at the display my average speed over a tankful is typically 36-38 MPH. As a comparison I was getting about 20 MPG on my 06 Outback 3.0 so I am feeling pretty good about the mileage so far.

At first I thought it might be rather lame but I have grown to like the fuel economy needle, whatever the correct term is. It may be changing my driving style but I guess that is good.

jth97381 · April 2012

yes, I am talking about the 4 cylinder. I was comparing the Legacy 2.5i Limited with the Impreza 2.0 Limited. That makes alot of sense with performance being similar. I think I read somewhere how the 0-60 times are 8.8 seconds or so for the Legacy and about 10.8 seconds for the mpreza. Something like that. Dont quote me exactly. I think we will test drive both of them to see if one fits our lives better then the other. The Impreza just looks so much smaller then the Legacy when sitting next to each other on the lot. If I can get away the less expensive Impreza get better Fuel economy and not lose any performance or comfort, It sounds like a good fit. We just have never had a compact sedan before and I am a little worried I will feel like I am stuck in a sardine can. So thats alot of the reason why I am asking all of you who own the Impreza how you like the car. We just have small kids now, but they will be teenagers before we know it. Thanks for any imput.

jth97381 · April 2012

I can only dream of spending half as much money on gas then I am paying now. I just want to have all the details ironed out before I get to the dealership so I can make a good decision. Any other good things to know about this car? All the more info the better. Thanks

dfong87 · April 2012

Any other good things to know about this car? All the more info the better. Thanks

hmmm. i can try (and hopefully be brief) but remember, i've only had the car for less than a week. yet, i think i can break this into two things.

Purchasing:
- make sure you know your pricing before negotiating a deal. don't be afraid to not have this figured out before going to the dealer, but don't get roped into talking pricing with them until you know what you should pay. it will depend on your local market, but for eg, in our SF Bay Area (CA), i paid $600 below invoice for my Limited HB, while someone else paid $1000 below invoice (he had a few accessories, so that may have made a difference somewhat since i'm still not exactly clear on what the dealer cost is since holdback, i thought was 3%).
- the Hatchback impreza's are in high demand and if you have particular wants (color,options), be prepared for anything from a 4-12 week wait. the good news with that is that at least around here, they are willing to give you a better pricing because the car will never take up any room on their lot.

The Car (hopefully others can chime in):
- some have complained about poor mileage. it remains to be seen if there is an issue through all cars, some cars, winter gas mixes, colder temperatures coming into play. you'll see on this forum that mileage is all over the place. for me, it's been good in my short time of ownership but time will tell.
- depending on what you are coming from, the "power" will be more than enough or feel sluggish. i think this car has been tested in the 9 sec range for the CVT and mid 8's for the manual with someone stating they got under 9 sec on the CVT by "manually" shifting using the paddle shifters. for me, the car's acceleration is more than adequate, but it's only me and my wife in the car. if you have a fully loaded car with 4 people and luggage and hills, you may feel differently. you can probably figure out some of this on your test drive. i came from a honda civic that could do 0-60 in the low 8's and it did seem a bit sluggish in the mountains with 4 full adults, but still functional. i personally am willing to sacrifice some power to get good mileage. it's all a matter of priorities. (i might feel differently if i lived in Colorado or something...it really depends on what you mean by "hilly terrain.")
- fit and finish is very good, IMHO. as good or better than the competition in its size class (Honda Civic, Hyundai Elentra, Mazda 3, for eg)
- the CVT took some getting used to for me since i came from a 5spd, but i'm slowly getting used to it. if you are in hilly environments, you'll probably want to use the paddle shifters some. from what i can gather and i experienced today on a steep hill, the CVT is a bit aggressive in downshifting for you and doing some engine breaking. not a bad thing, imho, but you can override it and go to a higher gear if you want to in manual mode (which has 6 preset ratios to emulate a more standard automatic transmission).
- my wife and aren't big people, so even with kids on the way (wife pregnant right now), i know the car will be more than big enough for us and the family.

i'm not sure what else to say. i'm sure if you have some specific questions, people more experienced (have had the car longer) can comment more than i can. overall, i'm pleased with my purchase and don't really anticipate that changing after having had the chance to go for a drive, for the sake of driving today. it handle a twisty road quite well and i was content knowing i can use the paddle shifters when driving on hilly mountainous roads for better control (i miss my stick, but my wife wanted to be able to drive this car)

best bet: just go and test drive it and plan on having that experience without needing to buy the car that day. you and your wife can test drive the Impreza and the Legacy and plan on going home to discuss the cars' merits in the comfort of your home without any salesperson breathing down your neck. at least that's what i'd do. ;

[Deleted User] · April 2012

Edmunds puts the Legacy 4 cyl CVT at 9.4 seconds 0-60, and Subaru estimates the 4 cyl CVT Impreza at 9.8, so they're definitely close. Manual transmissions in each cut around a second off those times.

If you look at the sedan for each, then the trunk is going to feel tighter with the Impreza, but if you consider the hatch option, you'll actually gain quite a bit of usable cargo volume over the Legacy. You can't go wrong with either choice, though. They're just different.

One more thing to consider: Subaru will be updating the Legacy motor next year using the one from the Forester (a good upgrade with a timing chain and more useful power curve). If I were buying a Legacy or Outback I'd personally wait for the update.

jd_24 · April 2012

If you look back at some of my old posts I compare the size of an 2001 Outback (midsize car) to the 2012 Impreza. The Impreza is bigger for passenger room.

I use the Impreza for my daily commute, but we will also use it for short family trips and going to school. With 2 teenagers and a 9 year old it fills up fast. Kids prefer the 2012 backseat of the Premium because it doesn't have to fold down arm rest in the backseat. The center seat in the back is actually comforable.

We have a 50 mile trip to the grandparents today with the three kids. Here is to hoping there are few arguments and "she touched me!".

wimchatta · April 2012

Just checked Consumer Reports' performance results for Impreza vs Legacy, 4 cylinder engines w/ CVT. These numbers are different from Subaru self-reported ones, so must be based on their own testing.

Per CR the Impreza is marginally better:
It goes 0-60 mph in 9.2 s, the Legacy does that in 9.7 s;
The Impreza has 148 hp w/ 2.0L, has ~3000lb of weight, the Legacy has 170hp w/ 2.5L and has ~3400lb of weight.
The Impreza stops in 129ft for 60-0mph on dry pavement, vs 139ft for Legacy, and is slightly better on wet pavement as well.
The Legacy, though, is less noisy than an Impreza, and there is more seating room in the Legacy cabin, though Impreza is comfy enough. With the hatchback option, Impreza can get to more cargo space.

So all else being equal, would rate an Impreza Hatchback slightly more capable and possibly more fun to drive compared to the Legacy, while the latter will likely be the more refined option compared to an Impreza sedan.

jth97381 · April 2012

Thanks for the help. Our hilly enviornment is not the total comute, just like 15 miles of it. It goes from 200' elevation to 1500' elevation in like 10 miles. So its alot of curves and hills, up and down and around. I am sure the car will handle perfectly around our sharp corners that all the locals still take at highway speeds. We get tourists in our area to a large state park up here in the hills and sometimes I get behind little compact cars that seem like they cant do more then 45 MPH to pull the hill. I probably am just impartial after getting behind so many slow drivers when I just want to get home. I would equate our drive similar to if you were headed to a ski resort. This has also been one of the worst years for snow in our area. We typically get snow here, but this year we have had 4 or 5 large snow events (wakeing up in the morning and there being more then 6" of snow on the ground). Thank god for AWD or we my wife would of had to stay home half the time. Also because of our elevation compared to the rest of the surounding area, we are last on the list to have the snow plow come by, even though we are on a State Hwy.

How much snow is too much snow for this car? The Pacifica with AWD is awesome in the snow. It is just well balanced. I am sure the Impreza or the Legacy will be even better with better technology and experience with the AWD.

If anyone lives in an area that gets alot of snow regularly I would love to get your opinion of the performance in snow. At a point, you just start to plow the snow because of the clearance.

It sounds like the back seat is a big improvement over previous years. We have a 5 and an 8 year old. Maybe another in a year or so. Will there be enough room for a carseat and 2 kids in the back?

Im sure the mileage will be superior to our current mileage. It would be an awesome feeling to know that the savings in gas, will be making the car payment for us.

Anyone have Mileage estimates for hilly terrain being 1/3 of their daily driving?

I have already nailed down a good price for a legacy we really liked (before we started to seriously consider the Impreza sedan). For the 2012 Subaru Legacy 2.5i Limited with sunroof and Navigation I got a price of $26,600. Seemed alot better than many of the other quotes I had gotten. What is a good price for a similarly equiped Impreza?

I plan to have the financing already taken care of before I ever talk to a salesman. I will have the price nailed down too. And I am not in a giant hurry. If they give me the run around I am prepaired to just leave.

So one more question. Does the Impreza have enough power to pass other cars say in a passing lane on a mountain Highway? We often take a trip over to the other side of the Mountains and often get behind motor homes. When the passing lane comes up it is almost always on a slope. What is your experience passing other cars while at highway speeds while going up hill? These questions are really towards anyone. So feel free to chime in.

Thanks

jth97381 · April 2012

We are just looking at the Sedan models. My wife isnt much for the HB. We plan to keep the Pacifica for trips to Costco and so forth where we will need more cargo room. I would say 90% of the miles will be my wife going back and forth to work.

dfong87 · April 2012

I have already nailed down a good price for a legacy we really liked (before we started to seriously consider the Impreza sedan). For the 2012 Subaru Legacy 2.5i Limited with sunroof and Navigation I got a price of $26,600. Seemed alot better than many of the other quotes I had gotten. What is a good price for a similarly equiped Impreza?

again, markets vary. i think one can get one of the better deals where i am based what i have surveyed here. as i said, i paid $622 below invoice for the base car. also, from what i remember, the navi/sunroof package cost $1776.

from what i see on truecar.com, invoice is different depending on location, so it's wise to look it up for your locale. if i were buying in my area, i'd be seeking about 700 or so below invoice if i were including that option package since i know they are paying less than $1776 for those additions.

it is a bit unclear to me what the "true cost of the car" is as it seems the table someone posted elsewhere in the thread suggests there is a total of 4% holdback + some additional things the dealer can save...so even though i got nearly 3% off of invoice, i still think my dealer made about $300-400 on my car which to me was fair, especially since it involved a quick and painless negotiation process.

odie6l · April 2012

Here is the link to the E15 fact sheet. Alot of the stations in our area have already started the switch over to E15 from E10. Check your local stations and see it they are switching yet.

E15 Fact Sheet

Odie

skid0 · April 2012

I've been posting on nasioc for awhile, but am seeing lots of good conversation here, so thought I'd contribute.

I've owned: 1988 Honda CRX, 1996 Eagle Talon AWD turbo, 2000 Outback, 2006 Audi A4 2.0T, and now my '12 Impreza Sport Limited with CVT. The Imp outhandles all the other cars, with a fairly stiff, well-damped suspension, with little roll. It's much better than the A4, which is acclaimed as a great-handling car. Brakes are excellent, but fade after 3 80-0 back-to-back stops. Not surprising!

Engine performance is *fine* for the class and weight of this car. There's more than enough for winning stoplight drags (1, so far!), and passing quickly on a 2-lane. I recorded 8.41 seconds 0-60, that's from the instant the tach needle jumped off of idle, till the speedo needle was exactly on 60 (which in my car is about 58.5). Add in a couple hundredths for that extra 1.5 mph, and subtract the same for the time the tach started to move, until the car started to move.

Note that that time is in flappy-paddle mode, which provides for much more power at the top of '1st gear'. Auto mode keeps the revs down until you are at 70+ mph. -That- time is 9.36 seconds... In manual mode, the engine proves to be very torquey at 2000 rpm, and 'gears' higher than 3 are way way too tall for spirited driving. On the hwy at 60-70, top 'gear' is just barely able to accelerate at all. Not at all surprising considering that 6250 rpm in top gear would generate 193 MPH. That's one hundred NINETY three.

Driving more gently than most people are capable of will have the CVT upshift to top ratio at 30-35 mph, and it does this very aggressively, which kills accel, and is annoying. Giving a bit more throttle will keep that upshift away thru 40, where the engine is a bit more capable of pulling. This is the ONLY negative I have with the CVT.

The CVT is *perfect* for hilly terrain, downshifting imperceptively to provide all the power any hill could require. I have not noticed the speed-holding downshifts that some report on downhills, probably becuase my commute keeps the tranny in eco-mode, not sport. (Those aren't selectable settings, just references to an article I found online discussing CVT shift stratagies for current CVT's).

Steering feel is fine, not as perfect as a 1000 lb car with rack&pinion... The fly-by-wire throttle pedal is too sensitive. Ride is a bit stiffer than I'd prefer, rebound damping a bit lighter. MUCH better than the rock-hard A4, much stiffer then the Outback.

I'm getting 32.5 mpg on my 40 mile commute, 40% city/60% hwy. I expect this to go up another 2 mpg once the weather is 70+ degrees in the AM. I thing the 10? quarts of oil in the CVT really drag down the MPG, as winter mileage changes drastically as the engine fully warms up.

The CVT whines a bit when cold, and at a specific rpm when warm (around 40 mph for my car). It's always in the background, but not noticable after a few days of driving. The body transmits alot of road and wind noise. The doors and trunk lid are *very* light... No sound absorption?

The interior is BIG, long & wide. The trunk/hatch area is small as a result. I find the interior controls to be fine, especially compared to the Audi's infuriating climate control. I *don't* like that the wiper controls rotate backwards to what I expect, but am adapting to them...

Road tracking is mostly fine, but I will attempt to move all four wheels to a more toed-in setting. The car moves a bit more in responce to wind than I would like, with the rear tires noticably toed-out...

skid0 · April 2012

Estimated HP during 0-60 runs in manual mode vs. CVT auto mode:

Estimated HP by timing acceleration:

Observed MPG at 30-60 MPH every 5 MPH: (25 MPH = 37 MPG)

bobdole888 · April 2012

Thanks for all the great info in your posts!

I'm really surprised that mpg is that sensitive to speed.
I was hoping that 40+ mpg would be possible at freeway speeds.
You data says to get 40+ mpg, you have to keep your speed low.

For the Torque plot, why isn't the peak at 4200? At least that's what where Subaru specified as where peak torque would be.

Are you using a OBDII scanner to do 0-60 test, and the HP/torque output data?

dfong87 · April 2012

I agree. Great info.

I too wonder about mpgs at highway speed. My brief driving this weekend of 60-65 mph ( still breaking my car in) suggests over 40 is possible at those speeds. I have no way of logging things to get a glimpse at a real trip but Im sure I'll have the opportunity to test that theory in the months ahead.
M
I'm 240 miles into my car and averaging 31.5 mpg on the computer with probably a 60/40 highway/city mix.

wimchatta · April 2012

Hi jth,
Given what you said about usage, I think you cannot go wrong with the new 2013 Subaru Legacy (as advised by tyguy) - this especially since you do not need the hatchback's space.

Here is the link to a recent review...
http://www.thecarconnection.com/overview/subaru_legacy_2013

dfong87 · April 2012

Ugh on the E15. The owners manual actually suggests tat 10% should be Max for the car to operate properly.

jth97381 · April 2012

The 2013 Legacy looks amazing. But we decided to drive by a car lot today and just look at the two side by side. We like both and we decided to run some preliminary numbers on payments and gas useage. For as much miles as we put on we figure we spend $565/mo now on gas. The Legacy would get us to $355 and the Impreza would be $300. That is all based on $4.00 gallon gas. My wife drives 90% of the time by herself and the extra space may not be as important as we first thought so we think the Impreza may be a better car for us. I still want to make sure the car is powerful enough to pull hills at highway speeds. Any thoughts on this? After hearing everyone on this forum so enthusiastic about their Impreza it makes me feel better about moving forward.

All the more info the better.

Thanks for the input.

pao · April 2012

Limited HB, PZEV in MD outside DC here......had the car since 17 Dec and will roll over 10K probably on Thrus of this week....just short of 4 months ownership.....no complaints on the car...its has been a true road warrior on a 103 mile roundtrip commute each day.....MPG averaging close to 31 a tank now.....getting about 110 to 115 miles per quarter tank now....

commute is approx 25 miles at hwy spd of 70-75 and 20 miles of two lane road at 50-60 MPH with a 5 miles of city driving averaging a few stoplights and 35-45 MPH. Hwy driving is some rolling hills and curves......

very pleased with the car in the drive, feel comfort etc....since Im in the car approx 2 plus hours each day for the commute...running either Shell or Sunoco gas...

kanjii · April 2012

Pao, very positive to hear. Looking to more updates. Any plans on upgrades to the car like stereo, suspension, etc?

dfong87 · April 2012

i too would love to hear from others about stereo and/or speaker replacements. i was an audiophile (still sort of am) in a past life, and have grown to accept car audio as being mediocre. however, this car stereo drops my standard to a new low.

while a lot of fiddling seems to have gotten the sound to be somewhat acceptable for both ipod sourced material (256 kbps AAC), i just find the midrange very muddled in general compared to what i had in my old Honda (nothing great: Sony receiver with Pioneer premiere + Eclipse speakers).

i don't have a long commute and mostly listen to AM radio (go Giants!) for sports radio during my short drives, but would be willing to toss a few hundred in to improve the sound. people have claimed the issue is the head unit? is that true. if so, that might take a while for aftermarket solutions to become available to keep both the steering wheel controls, USB/ipod interface in the armrest, bluetooth working properly?

speakers might be easier although it looks like to get to the door speakers and in dash ones (i have a limited model) requires quite a bit of disassembly which sort of worries me as i would hate to introduce rattles/creaks to these trims in a new car.

kanjii · April 2012

I haven't changed stereo and speakers since my '93 integra, pioneer premier receiver with cobalt amp and mb quarts speakers. Didn't change systems in my Honda element, had stock 200+ watt system which was decent, and my '06 Xterra had the Rockford fosgate system which was good too.

I listen to a lot of sports talk radio, but switched to 95.7 fm, more bay area sports than just giants and niners.
:P

pao · April 2012

Im past my true upgrades on cars..getting older now...(55).....did quite a few on our 06 Solstice......Im happy with the Impreza as I have it.....ordered it with the Nav........speakers could be better, but tuned to my tastes with the equalizer......and honestly do most of my listening off my 16 GB memory stick in the usb port.....some news/talk shows on the local radio WTOP......and Im fine with it....also have had a long standing XM subscription I just keep moving from car to car.....

I save my audiophile tastes for the home theater system!

dfong87 · April 2012

does the navi have more than the standard 3 frequency equalizer. on the limited, you get bass/midrange/treble.

i can't quite get the bass quite right...i think its too broad banded...its either too boomy or thin. i've also struggled to clean up the midrange too as i just find voices muddled in comparison to even my mediocre old car stereo.

but yeah, unless there is something simple, i'll just live with it as in time i'm sure i'll decide "it's good enough."

even as i have fantastic stereo at home, i know some of my most enjoyable musical moments come in a car that is loud, the stereo is poor, but the music is great and timely.

i'm a music fan first, and audiophile second.

an aside: i do have to say that the HD radio, when available is definitely a step up from the sound quality of standard FM.

skid0 · April 2012

I timed accel with a helmet cam taped to the steering wheel. I used the frame count timer to get times to each 500 rpm, and an online 'road HP' calculator to generate the HP curve. I don't know why the plot looks like it does, maybe due to Subaru keeping power levels down at low speeds to prevent undue wear on teh CVT? I am anxious to see real dyno runs on this engine, I really like how it performs.

skid0 · April 2012

The stereo AND the speakers are bad. I replaced the four door speakers with Polk Audio db 651s 6-1/2" Slim 2-way Speakers. Much better response, but the head end has a wacky freq curve on it. I tweaked my mp3 player EQ to make it listenable. The CD section sounds good, though...

Replacement is easy. View online guides for advice on popping the inner door panel. The rest is just drilling and screws!

Oh! I also took out the dash tweeters! Too harsh.

dfong87 · April 2012

hi everyone, i spoke too soon. then again, i'm ultra picky and sensitive in this area...anyone have any rattles in their car? in particular near the steering column. i think i noticed it yesterday when it was cool (that's only 45-50 oF in CA) and again this morning and tonight...i have slight rattle coming from the area around the steering column. of course, these things do travel, so i can't be 100% certain, but that's the area i can safely ascertain while driving.

upon inspecting the steering column tonight, i can see some of the things people have raised previously:

- cheap cloth covering the opening to the firewall. my honda civic was better with some sort of stiff sleeve that didn't looks so "tacked on" like this cloth is
- the key ring isn't exactly centered
- and finally, it does seem there is some play in the shroud that goes around the steering. not a lot, but enough that i think i could see how it might create the "ticking" rattle when going over a bump.

not sure if others have noticed this or inspected theirs, nor if it's just my hypersensitivity. i know i'm really sensitive to such things as i have had not just dealers, but friends and family say "what rattle?" (or noise) when pointing rattles in previous cars. it's not loud, just annoying once i noticed it. $:\$

[funny thing: last week, i was sure i had a rattle in the door panel behind me on the driver's side back seat unti i realized it was my messenger bags carabiner rattling when i went over bumps. i now keep it on the front seat with me on the way to work or put it in the hatchback area...no more such rattle!]

al_wbl · April 2012

I have the HD radio with the upgraded speakers. I had to turn up the bass (+6) I think and turned down both the midrange and treble to -3 or -4. Otherwise the sound was annoyingly "tinny". Sounded better in my driveway. i'll know better on my commute tomorrow.

pao · April 2012

on the equalizer question for the nav....yes...it has a seven band equalizer and 6 presets on it...thus you can fine tune the sound more than the std or even the upgraded non-nav unit....

and yes I too have noticed a pleasant difference with the HD radio.....

rjmas95 · April 2012

My premium hatch cvt should be arriving within days and I am quite excited, but all of a sudden a couple reviews have popped up stating that the car doesn't behave well on windy highways. This concerns me... anyone have any experience with this?

jd_24 · April 2012

I haven't noticed anything different than my previous 2001 Outback with cross winds about 25mph last week. My Sport Premium seemed to handle it well.
I saw one review on Edmunds, that they complained after driving 800 miles in heavy winds. My thought was 800 miles and 10?? hours of driving might have the same effect in any car.

xwesx · April 2012

I have never driven a car (large or small) that is not adversely affected by strong cross winds. It simply makes for a more active driving experience.

dfong87 · April 2012

i have been meaning to post about this but it keeps slipping my mind...some things, i learned in taking delivery on my Impreza as well as past vehicles:

1. be sure to check your tire pressures. from what i understand, they always ship them overinflated and if the tech forgets or doesn't have an accurate pressure gauge, you may have improperly inflated tires. after two days, i remembered to check mine and in a cold garage, mine read 36 psi all around. it's supposed to be 32/30 (front/back)....i reset mine to 33/31 as i often do in my car (sort of helps if any slow leaks develop and may give a miniscule boost in mileage without giving an overly harsh ride.

2. check the dipstick. mine came in right at the "high mark." i wouldn't have thought of doing this except for the few posts about running low on oil after 1-2k. i now have a benchmark to go against in the months ahead to see if i'm burning any appreciable oil.

3. watch out for any missed tape/packing material. if there is some sticky left on the windows, it may bake on and be harder to remove later on. my dealer did an ok job detailing my car but definitely a poor job on the windows with tons of swirl and smudge marks and sticky residues from adhesives, etc. side view mirrors were bad, too.

4. if you're inclined: try everything out. i think i've tried most everything out now and everything seems functional. (still haven't tried to warm the driver's seat. my wife said the passenger seat heater worked fine). not sure how i'll test the warmers for the mirrors and wipers since i live in CA

i'm sure others can add other important things including the PDI list, but these are ones i thought might be helpful for you guys, especially 1 and 2 if you haven't thought about it before.

xwesx · April 2012

That's a great list, dfong.

For your mirror heaters, put some water in a spray bottle and spritz it on them. When you turn the heaters on, the water should dry up fairly quick (typically from the center outward).

bobdole888 · April 2012

For those of you with limited impreza without NAV, who are not happy with the quality of sound there is good news!

There is a secret menu that allow for further tweaking of audio settings.
Apparently Subaru has force 2 settings to be on:
Loudness
EQ (Don't know what Subaru set this to)

I don't really like the sound coming out with these setting on.
With them turned off, the sounds seem less muffled and more natural.
I also don't like the SRS processing and turned that off.
With just some normal +bass and +treb, the sounds are quite acceptable now.

Anyway, to get into the secret menu.
Put your key in Accessory position.
Turn off stereo.
hold down '6', and rotate the tune dial at least 5 turns until you see the 'loudness' menu appear.
Let go of the '6' button, turn the tune dial to change 'loudness' to 'off'.

Hold down '6' and rotate the tune dial at least 5 turns until you see the 'eq' mneu appear.
Let go of the '6' button, turn the tune dial to change 'eq' to 'off'.

Press the power button to get out of these menus.

Feel free to try different combination of loudness, eq to see if it suits your taste better. I found both of them off worked better for me.

dfong87 · April 2012

thanks for the tip! i'll give that a try.

dfong87 · April 2012

this is awesome info, bob.

have you found this cleans up the sound?

the best way i can describe the sound of the unit as stock (even after improving things with the bass/mid/treble settings is that it sounds muddled).

again, i am sort of at two ends of the spectrum: i'm an audiophile who is used to incredible midrange purity on my home system (magnepan speakers) but usually is forgiving for car audio sound. nevertheless, i'm just not pleased with the sound of music on the impreza. it sounds congested.

i hope your suggested secret menu may help. i'm guessing the loudness will solve some issues for me. i find some songs can sound so boomy and the bass control really can't seem to help with it. and with this removed, maybe that will result in a less "contaminated" midrange.

bobdole888 · April 2012

dfong,

Yes, I found that turning off the loudness and eq clean up the midrange drastically. The default settings caused the midrange to be very muffled.
If you listen to music that's mostly vocal, it was just dreadful.
Now, with the loudness and eq turned off, it sounds lively.
I'm sure it's not close to a home stereo, but at least it's acceptable to me.
If you haven't tried turning off the SRS in the regular menu, I would also suggest doing that. I find that for some music(like pop) SRS makes it better, but for vocal music, SRS cause more muffling. I've opted to turn SRS off also.

Just a reminder, the secret menu is known to work on the limited trim none-nav, I don't know if it works for other models, since there's actually 3 different units for the impreza.
I would think that there are secret menus for the other units, but I don't know how to get to them.

dfong87 · April 2012

thx again, bob. i'm very excited to try this tonight. (yes, i too have the Limited, non-nav impreza stereo) you may have saved me a few hundred bucks and/or waiting a few years to find an aftermarket head unit to replace it (i would want to retain all the functionality of the factory unit)

coincidentally, i played with the stereo settings at length, last night, after my wife went to bed and was pretty frustrated by doing exactly what you suggested: playing anything with vocals sounded dreadful, as you say.

i'm not looking for anything in the neighborhood of my home stereo...i just hope it can get a bit closer to a reasonable sound that one would find in a mediocre aftermarket head unit and speakers.

this was a great find, and it's much appreciated!

kanjii · April 2012

Man, I got the Sports Premium...don't know if I have any secret codes to improve my stereo. I can live with CD adn MP3 sounds, but the very low volume of radio and flatness is killing me. I need to crank the volume by 10+ when listening to the radio to match the level of the CD or mp3 play. Is this normal or something wrong with my system?

xwesx · April 2012

It is normal from my perspective of a 2010 Forester. The CD is definitely much louder per given level of volume. When driving, I generally run the radio at a setting of 25 versus the CD at 14-16.

dfong87 · April 2012

just following up: thank you, bob.

this was really a significant improvement and i think i can live with the car stereo now. it's not perfect by any stretch, and maybe not quite as good as what i had in my previous car, but its a big improvement from what i had prior to turning off the EQ and loudness. the midrange is much clearer and the bass isn't so boomy and loose.

you and the others make this forum and awesome place to be!

bobdole888 · April 2012

Glad to hear the secret menu was useful for you.

I realized that my instruction was not quite right.

For the secret menu,

The holding down '6' and turning tune dial get you into the version info screen first.
You'll need to release the '6' button and repeat holding down '6' and turn the tune dial procedure to see the 'loudness' menu. Repeat to get the 'eq' menu.

One new thing I found was that from the 'version info screen', you can press the tune dial in once to get into 'firmware update' screen.
So there is potential to update firmware for things like bluetooth, ipod interface, etc

If you press the tune dial one more time, it actually brings up the CAMERA!!!

Well, there is no camera attached, but if you connect it, presumably, it will show the rear view camera on the stereo screen. Currently when I get to that screen, it shows a blank screen, with backup markers. If I press some other number, it turn on/off the back up marker, or brings up different size markers.

Interestingly, in the regular setup menu for 'screen', there is an item call VTR which allows you to choose NTSC or PAL. So it looks like the stereo must have a video input....

Any one adventurous enough to try hooking up a backup camera to the stereo to see if this works? If you search for camera and impreza on ebay, you'll find some cheap back up camera for $19.

It seems a bit inconvient to access the backup camera through the secret menu, but maybe there is some other way to enable automatic display of backup camera when car goes in reverse. I just haven't discover it yet.

Seems like Subaru has all the hooks in place for a backup camera option, but just didn't enable it.

kanjii · April 2012

I found another little annoying thing about my Subie that I wonder if it is happening to you? My MPG needle sticks after filling up the gas every time. Usually the needle moves when you accelerate or decelerate, but here, it stays in the (-) area for a few miles before acting normal again. Is his normal? :confuse:

iliketoshift · April 2012

Same here. The MPG gauge is not directly connected to something like a vacuum gauge in the intake manifold. It's computed (I'm guessing) based on a number of variables. As such it takes a few miles of initialization and getting data before it can start presenting you with feedback.

I'm finding this gauge worthless. I try to change my driving habits according to this feedback that the car presents. And while I get decent MPG, I'm finding that what the trip computer says is always 2+ MPG higher than actual. I've seen other people find that their trip computer reports an accurate MPG reading compared to actual fuel usage, although I'm not sure if they are using the MPG meter as their primary data for adjusting driving behavior.

zman3 · April 2012

It takes 1 mile before it registers, otherwise it has nothing to compare to.

dfong87 · April 2012

ah, yes, i did figure out that i there was the additional firmware screen to get past, but i didn't inspect it like you did.

i did see in the NASIOC forums that someone identified the mount point and wire guides in the hatchback that would allow for a rear camera. they weren't sure if it was a carryover from the Forester or for a future use. it makes me think it might become an option down the road, but they didn't fully explore it or dropped it from the option list prior to shipping the 2012's. depending on the cost, i would have considered it.

although quite frankly, i still never get used to using it on my wife's prius when i drive it. but i think if i had it, i'd do some "testing" to see what i'm seeing and then get out of the car to look at where my bumper was, so that perhaps i really could use it to do some very tight parallel parking, etc.

i don't know if i'm slow, but i always find it takes me a while to get my bearings with a new car, whether rental or purchased. i still am not quite comfortable of where the front bumper and rear bumpers are when i am parking/etc. but hopefully, in time, i'll figure it out

kanjii · April 2012

Thanks for the heads up.

2012 Subaru Impreza

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