2019 Subaru 1.6 SE Review

[norfolkRX]

2019 Subaru Impreza 1.6 SE Review

This was going to be the car's one year (with me) review but has turned into a 2 year one instead. It's my likes and dislikes compared to my previous 2010 Impreza 2.0 RX. I bought this car wih 2100 miles on the clock at 3 years old.

Likes, not in any particular order:
1.Although only 1.6, the engine is livelier than the 2.0 L.
2.Better fuel economy - useful when you need a 2nd mortgage to fill up these days.
3.Rear camera is useful.
4.The rear vehicle or person crossing warning is very useful in car parks or backing out of restricted places.
5.I maybe wrong but the boot seems to have more space.
6.Headlights good on full beam, less so on dipped and other motorists don't like the brightness - which I can understand.
7.Seats reasonably comfortable - I am 6'1" and my other half is 5'.
8.The AVH Automatic Vehicle Hold seems to work well and is usefull in traffic though you might want to be more obviously stopped to prevent someone re-ending you.
9.Tyre pressure indication is useful.
10.Digital Speedo - you have both but even though I'm old school I prefer the digital readout.

Dislikes:
1.It's auto so no engine braking when going down hills.
2.The rear suspension is too stiff and doesn't hold the road going round uneven corners. It feels like the front and back are set up differently or two different cars.
3.No SatNav as standard (approx £1200 add-on) - can't connect the mobile reliably.
4.Road following headlights OK but a bit of a gimmick and something else to go wrong.
5.Rain sensing wipers OK but the manual controls are still better for changing conditions.
6.Lack of a spare wheel - out in the country you can wait hours for rescue.
7.The b!@@$y 'fuel saving' engine cutoff. It saves a tiny amount of fuel but wears out the start motor. Also if pulling out onto a main road with traffic, you want to be sure the engine will respond. And why when you park in a car park does the engine switch off but has to re-start to turn the car off - grrr!
8.Eyesight is another gimmick and only warns you of the bl**ding obvious. If conditions get confusing for it, it just switches off !?? Thanks for your help!! The warning is flashed up just at the time when you are dealing with the obstacle and don't need to be distracted.
9.No soft bump stop on full steering lock - not very sophisticated.
10.Parts are difficult to find because so few cars have been imported - I did relise this when I bought it.
11.The auto-dipping rear view mirror not as good as a manual dip.
12.The key fob Battery doesn't last long if you don't put it to sleep. Also why does the transmitter have such a long range? If not in sleep mode, it will communicate with the car from inside the opposite end on the house to where the car is parked!!
13.You can have a triple meter displayed on the small display, useful you might say, Oil and Water temp are OK but why Average Speed instead of something more useful like Battery condition?

If you've got this far, great perseverance - what are your experiences?