The redesigned 2008 Subaru Impreza is advertised as “The Japanese car the Germans wish they’d made”. In “marketingspeak” what Subaru is trying to capitalize on is the perception that Japan-made Japanese cars are somehow superior to American-made Japanese cars. The linkage to Germany is of course intended to further reinforce this perception just in case you didn’t get it the first time.

It must be tough for a company like Subaru to compete with other Japanese carmakers who, with great foresight, spread their risk years ago by setting up manufacturing in North America. Because at today’s low valuation of the US dollar it must be brutal to remain competitive and profitable selling cars made under the more expensive labor and currency costs of Japan. And it shows. Six months and 10K km in, I can say that the Subaru is the cheapest feeling car I have driven in many years. My wife’s 2008 Toyota Yaris bought at the same time is far better made, better finished, and better performing than the 8 thousand dollar more expensive Subaru.

The Subaru feels chintzy. The interior choice of materials is piss-poor, with a black velour seating material that attracts dust and lint and always looks dirty. The first time I took it to an automatic carwash, water started to leak through the windshield, under the ceiling liner, and out through the dome light! Engine noise intrudes heavily into the passenger compartment because of very poor noise insulation. And when another car touched my bumper in the shopping center parking lot, the front passenger-side fender crumpled and a large paint ship broke off. And this with barely any sign that the front bumper had even been touched! The radio and heating/ventilation controls are minuscule, and the fake aluminum dash material looks like it was made by Mattel.

About the only positive thing I can say is that the All-Wheel-Drive performs beautifully in inclement weather and the car drives like its on rails in any road conditions. There’s a big advantage to only making AWD cars…you certainly get lots of chances to get it right.

Anyway, if the Germans are enviously eying the 2008 Subaru Impreza….they must really be in big trouble. Maybe that’s why Mercedes has almost the lowest medium-term owner satisfaction rating according to J.D. Power. #1 is Lexus (by Toyota), with Toyota and Honda right behind. And “Made in America” to boot.