Was your primary reason for purchasing a Subaru either body styling or performance / handling / all-weather capabilities?

In other words, did you buy a Subaru based on its looks or performance?

 

When I bought my Bugeye back in May '02 I actually didn't even like the way it looked. But it grew on me over time, and now I LOVE the bugeyes.

Now I just need to pick up a Brat!

 

Both, can you make that an option?

 

looks is the main reason, didn't like any other body style than the 02, performance second in line

 

Bugeye

 

Needed something with 4 doors, fast, and wasn't FWD for under $25K. I didn't have much choice.

 

Sorry, you'll have to prioritize your reasons for buying.

For instance, if the car had a Honda Civic or Accord styling but also had Subaru AWD drivetrain, would you still have bought it? Or, if the car had Subaru styling but was front-wheel drive, only? I would have bought the car if it was sold by Honda under their banner but had Subaru AWD chassis underneath if Subaru did not market their own compact sedan in the same price range.

The purpose of this poll is not to determine which body style of various Subaru models looks the best in the opinions of club members, but what matters most to you when buying a Subaru - looks or performance.

 

In honest response to the question;

After I bought the video game GT3 for the PS2 I played around with pretty much every car from the most classic to the most modern and exotic. I honestly went through every car in the game and did not know much about Subaru. I then started using the 02 WRX STI in the game and became my favorite car to drive so then I decided to call a dealer, but was told that the specific model 02 WRX was not in stock yet. After months of waiting I finally went to test drive them and the following weekend of Sept 2001 I bought myself an 02. I`ve loved Subaru ever since.

 

ever since the 02 came out it was my dream car. A few years later i was lucky to find one that was in great condition and now i get to own the car that was my dream car. I love the bugeye!

 

At first, I wanted the 04-05 model, even today it looks so perfect, the tail lights and headlights. For the past 2 years I drove a 89 240sx hatchback, and as time went by things were not going so well. And as I watched many Hot Version and Best Motoring videos, the Impreza performed amazingly, dominating the track and mountains. So that is what brought my attention to the Impreza. 5 months ago, I bought me a 07 Impreza WRX Tr, and it is probably one of the best cars I have driven, whether stock or tuned, it could not be so perfect. Sooobaaarooo!

 

Performance, hands down. I bought the car because I fell in love with the way it peformed, I fell in love with the looks some time later.

 

When I was last looking for a car, I looked at what I wanted out of a car performance-wise.

That's not to say looks are important, but performance/all-weather capabilities certainly won out.

 

That's a tough call, can you be a little more specific... i mean does this "primary reason" apply to Subaru Veterans or Future prospective Subaru Owner (or would be Subaru Newbies)?

Back in 1998, before the purchase of my first car/first Subaru... there were plenty of selection in the market.... I could have picked up a Honda Civic Si, a Mazda Miatas, Mitsu****bi Eclipse, or anything along that "Sport Compact car" line....

But the car that i fell in love with didn't appear until "Sport Compact Car Magazine" had a picture of a Rally Blue 98' Impreza 2.5 RS on it's covers in one of their 1998 issue (or was it 1999, i forgot..have to dig out my old issues of SCC later)...

Wow, here's a car that i have never seen before, a mean, agressive, hood scooped + vents+...omfg...A RALLY CAR... o man...was i hyped up.... I later did a more of a indept research on this car and eventually purchased one (RIP my MY99 Impreza) on Feb. of 1999.....and did not picked it up until six months later....I remember it was raining the day that it first arrive in the dealer lot.... the car was all wet, and CLEAN (like it was just carwashed by angels from above...sunlight gleaming on it like the spotlights at a car show)... o man i couldn't wait to drive it...as a Subaru Newbie, i would say that the styling of the car was what drew me in at first....

After i total my 99 2.5RS Impreza in 2002, I was sadden for a long year, and i was even more sadden when i first saw the first picture of the 2nd gen Impreza....gone were the vents and the 2 dr coupe body, the grill on the bugeye resemble an upside down GC grill, and those bugeyes, erCk..... but on the bright side, the 2002 WRX will always be ultimatly faster and better performing than my Impreza 2.5 RS.....and there will always be parts in the aftermarket to make the car better looking....but i didn't pick up the bugeye, rather i waited and hoped that Subaru would improve on their design....

My day of joy came when they released the first pictures of the 04 STi, o man, here's a car that resemble more as an evolution of the GC chassis rather than a whole new design, and IMO the headlights just looks way better than the 02-03 model... so i waited a year and eventually picked up an 05 Impreza WRX STi....been in love since

To make this long story even longer, I believe that performance is important in a car (wat's the point of having a "all show, and no go" car???)...that performance is KNOWN and respected by Subaru veteran, but to draw in Subaru Newbies.... IMHO LOOKS plays an important factor (that is, if Subaru's performance were not already well known)...

If i were to pick up another Impreza, I would base it upon LOOKS simply because Subaru will always inherit great performance in their product (if not improve their performance in up coming years - i don't need to worry about Subaru's performance) but the styling (in the eye of the beholder) is what eRcks/uneRcks me.....

 

I've been going to tahoe for years, and I noticed all the locals drove subi's. So I figured they were good reliable cars. I was looking for something smaller and more fun to drive than my tahoe. So That was my influence, and I love that car more everyday.

 

Primary reason for members who already own a Subaru, any model. The reason I'm asking current or former Subaru owners and not prospective buyers is because there's no speculation - they know why they bought their Subaru just as I know why I bought mine.

Previously I'd owned rear-drive cars and a turbocharged front-driver, but when I read about the then-new GMC Syclone compact pickup with turbocharged V-6 and AWD in 1991, I knew that someday I would be in the market for a sedan or coupe with AWD. I also followed the road racing victories of the Audi AWD entries in IMSA and SCCA in the late '80s and early '90s and watched as they came to dominate each series until rule changes rendered them uncompetitive.

When I read the first road test review of the MY02 WRX, I went down to test drive one at a dealership. They didn't have a model on the lot with the options I wanted (or didn't want) so they allowed me to custom order one off the assembly line in Japan and had it sent over with their regular shipments of cars.

I still don't think the styling of the MY02 Impreza is anything to get excited over. I think the GC body style looks better, more aggressive. I didn't buy my WRX for the way it looks. I would have bought it if it looked liked a Hyundai of the same model year as long as it had the WRX drivetrain and chassis underneath. Cosmetic stuff doesn't matter to me. That's not why I buy cars but I understand that styling is an important factor to many new (and used) car buyers.