The first Subaru Impreza was a memorable car for many reasons. The model definitely put Subaru on the sporty map thanks to the GT Turbo version, but there is also plenty to say about the regular versions. Take the facelift of 1997 and 1998.
‘Dull!’. That was once the judgment when a Japanese car came into the picture, especially if the car in question was a compact sedan. The verdict may have been right at times, but certainly not in the case of the first Subaru Impreza. With a standard boxer engine and often available four-wheel drive, the car was technically interesting to begin with, but the bodywork is also impressive. The car, launched in 1992, had a remarkably smooth, rounded body, there was a ‘Plus’ with an unusual five-door body and every Impreza had stylish door windows. Call that boring!
Panel
Initially, Imprezas had one more striking feature: the grille. Early models with the modest non-turbo engines had a largely enclosed body-colored panel between the headlights. Only in the center, around the logo, was a small piece of grille. Later, all models were fitted with the wider grille that was previously found on the 555 / GT Turbo.
List
However, that’s not the facelift we’re talking about today. The biggest round of renewal of this generation started in 1997. Then almost the entire nose was overhauled, although you have to look twice to see that. Bonnet, headlights, grille and front bumper were replaced by tighter ones. The previously completely rounded headlights got a clear bend at the inner top corner and thus looked more confidently into the world. A new bonnet fitted in tightly with this, while the grille was enclosed in a body-colored ‘frame’ from 1997 onwards. The bumper lost its apparent (but purely drawn) decorative strip and was also given a different layout with regard to the air intakes. At the same time, the rear bumper was tightened.
Forester dashboard
What has not changed significantly in 1997 is the interior. The Impreza thus retained the round dashboard of the original this year, a typical product of the early 1990s. In 1998, however, they came back to this. In that year, the recently facelifted Impreza was equipped with the dashboard of the Forester, a much tighter and considerably more modern looking whole. An Impreza from 1997 is therefore rare against will and thanks and combines the ‘new’ nose with the original dashboard. In 1999, a small change followed: the headlights were fitted with clear glass.