Auto Review : 2002 Subaru Impreza WRX

Reviewed vehicle : 2002 Subaru Impreza WRX sedan 5 speed manual
Approximate mileage : 16,000 miles
Relationship to vehicle : Owned in 2003 but have since sold it

Even 2 years after selling my WRX, I yearn to drive a WRX. I still remember when Mitch and I went to pickup this vehicle in Vancouver, Washington (about 200 miles away) and I had no idea how to drive it. The only other experience I had with a manual transmission was on an old Mercury Tracer that had a fading clutch, so I had a much larger margin for error.

My first time driving the WRX (in Vancouver), I remember stopping at a stoplight, and then letting go of the clutch while it was in first gear, and then looking back at Mitch as he was laughing his ass off. I even remember leaving a gas station in 4th gear and having trouble getting up to speed. But as soon as the turbo kicked in, all of a sudden I was going 70 on the freeway.

One thing that is really cool about the WRX is that I've always thought about taking a Civic and doing all the "Fast and Furious" stuff to it. But I could never justify voiding the warranty or spending extra cash to do it. But on the WRX, a spoiler, hood scoop, nice wheels, and turbo all come included.

I quickly got the hang of my new sports sedan and I loved every second I drove that car. Unfortunately, it had a rebuilt title (which basically means "no warranty"), and at 16,000 miles, a head gasket blew after the radiator hose popped off while my dad was driving it. I really don't know what all that means, but it cost me $1,500 to fix at One Stop Lynnwood (which was a good deal since the dealers wanted $3,700 to fix it).

As soon as it was back up and running, I drove it around. It was great still, but I was too scared to continue driving it, fearing that another problem would soon arise. So I sold it for a relative bargain at the time (an even $15,000) since the Kelley Blue Book was at least $3,000 higher.

I've thought about buying another one ever since, but the interior is rather bland and I feel like I outgrew the looks (Can you imagine a real estate agent driving clients around in a WRX?). I will never forget the feeling though, of zooming past cars worth 3 times more.