Prices revealed for facelifted ’06 Impreza

Subaru’s extensively revised ’06 Impreza – with massive power upgrades and a striking facelift – will start from just £16,200 on-the-road.

This is for the entry-level Impreza 2.0R 5-door which boasts a new 160 PS 2.0 litre four-cam ‘boxer’ engine. This gives a 130 mph top speed and 8.5 second 0-60 mph time yet returns 40.4 mpg on the Extra Urban Cycle.

Meanwhile, the most popular model – the Impreza WRX saloon – now has a flexible new 2.5 litre turbo engine and a raft of other improvements yet will cost £20,900 OTR – a modest £600 increase.

Top of the range is the £26,995 Impreza 2.5 WRX STI – now boasting a 281 PS engine for a 158.4 mph top speed and 0-60 mph time of 5.0 seconds.

All ’06 Imprezas feature new bumpers, ‘spread-wings’ mesh grille and ‘hawk-eye’ headlamps matched by new 3-D cylindrical rear lamps.

The gearboxes are slicker-shifting, while the STI has a thoroughly revised symmetrical all-wheel drive system which gives even more agile handling.

Equipment levels are high throughout, with all models featuring air-conditioning and a single disc CD player. Most Imprezas also have driver, passenger and side airbags and new HID headlamps with pop-up washers.