Compare the2022 Subaru ImprezaVS 2021 Nissan Versa

The Impreza has standard Whiplash-Reducing Front Seats, which use a specially designed seat to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Whiplash-Reducing Front Seats system allows the backrest to travel backwards to cushion the occupants and the headrests move forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Versa doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

The Impreza has all-wheel drive to maximize traction under poor conditions, especially in ice and snow. The Versa doesn’t offer all-wheel drive.

The Impreza Premium/Sport/Limited has standard STARLINK Connected Services, which uses a global positioning satellite (GPS) receiver and a cellular system to remotely unlock your doors if you lock your keys in, help track down your vehicle if it’s stolen or send emergency personnel to the scene if any airbags deploy. The Versa doesn’t offer a GPS response system, so if you’re involved in an accident and you’re incapacitated help may not come as quickly.

Both the Impreza and the Versa have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, rearview cameras, available crash mitigating brakes, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rear cross-path warning and driver alert monitors.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Subaru Impreza is safer than the Nissan Versa:

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Instrumented handling tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and analysis of its dimensions indicate that the Impreza, with its five-star roll-over rating, is 2.3% less likely to roll over than the Versa, which received a four-star rating.

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, with its optional vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, with its optional vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its available headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Impreza the rating of “Top Pick” for 2021, a rating granted to only 128 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Versa has not been fully tested, yet.

To reliably power the ignition and other systems and to recharge the battery, the Impreza has a standard 130-amp alternator. The Versa’s 120-amp alternator isn’t as powerful.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2021 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Subaru vehicles are more reliable than Nissan vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Subaru 17th in reliability. With 3 more problems per 100 vehicles, Nissan is ranked 21st.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Subaru vehicles are more reliable than Nissan vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Subaru 5 places higher in reliability than Nissan.

The Impreza’s 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder produces 30 more horsepower (152 vs. 122) and 31 lbs.-ft. more torque (145 vs. 114) than the Versa’s 1.6 DOHC 4-cylinder.

As tested in Motor Trend the Subaru Impreza is faster than the Nissan Versa (automatics tested):

The flat cylinder configuration of the boxer engine in the Impreza lowers its center of gravity, enhancing handling stability (That’s why Porsche uses boxer engines.). The Versa doesn’t offer a boxer engine configuration.

The Impreza has 2.4 gallons more fuel capacity than the Versa (13.2 vs. 10.8 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

For better stopping power the Impreza’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Versa:

The Subaru Impreza has standard four-wheel disc brakes for better stopping power and improved directional control in poor weather. Only rear drums come on the Versa. Drums can heat up and make stops longer, especially with antilock brakes that work much harder than conventional brakes.

The Impreza stops shorter than the Versa:

For better traction, the Impreza has larger standard tires than the Versa (205/55R16 vs. 195/65R15). The Impreza Sport’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Versa (225/40R18 vs. 205/55R16).

The Impreza’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 55 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Versa S’ standard 65 series tires. The Impreza Sport’s tires have a lower 40 series profile than the Versa SR’s 50 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Impreza has standard 16-inch wheels. Smaller 15-inch wheels are standard on the Versa S. The Impreza Sport’s 18-inch wheels are larger than the 17-inch wheels on the Versa SR.

The Subaru Impreza’s wheels have 5 lugs for longer wheel bearing life, less chance of rotor warping and greater strength. The Nissan Versa only has 4 wheel lugs per wheel.

For superior ride and handling, the Subaru Impreza has fully independent front and rear suspensions. An independent suspension allows the wheels to follow the road at the best angle for gripping the pavement, without compromising ride comfort. The Nissan Versa has a rear torsion beam axle, with a semi-independent rear suspension.

The Impreza Premium/Sport/Limited has front and rear stabilizer bars, which help keep the Impreza Premium/Sport/Limited flat and controlled during cornering. The Versa’s suspension doesn’t offer a rear stabilizer bar.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Impreza’s wheelbase is 2 inches longer than on the Versa (105.1 inches vs. 103.1 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the Impreza is 1.1 inches wider in the front and .9 inches wider in the rear than the average track on the Versa.

The Impreza 2.0i Premium Sedan executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Versa SR (27.7 seconds @ .6 average G’s vs. 28.3 seconds @ .58 average G’s).

The design of the Subaru Impreza amounts to more than styling. The Impreza has an aerodynamic coefficient of drag of .29 Cd. That is lower than the Versa (.288 to .319) and many sports cars. A more efficient exterior helps keep the interior quieter and helps the Impreza get better fuel mileage.

The front grille of the Impreza Sport/Limited uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The Versa doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

Because it has more passenger and cargo room, the EPA rates the Impreza Sedan a Mid-size car, while the Versa is rated a Compact.

The Impreza Sedan has 10.9 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Versa (99.8 vs. 88.9).

The Impreza Sedan has .3 inches more front headroom, 4.2 inches more front hip room, 3.6 inches more front shoulder room, .9 inches more rear headroom, 5.5 inches more rear legroom, 5.1 inches more rear hip room and 2 inches more rear shoulder room than the Versa.

The front step up height for the Impreza Sedan is 1.2 inches lower than the Versa (12.7” vs. 13.9”). The Impreza Sedan’s rear step up height is .4 inches lower than the Versa’s (14” vs. 14.4”).

The Impreza has a much larger trunk with its rear seat up than the Versa (20.8 vs. 14.7 cubic feet).

To allow full utilization of available cargo room, the Impreza’s trunk lid uses concealed beam hinges that don’t intrude into the trunk. The Versa’s useful trunk space is reduced by its intrusive beam hinge.

The Impreza’s standard rear seats fold to accommodate long and bulky cargo. The Versa S Manual doesn’t offer folding rear seats.

A standard locking glovebox (which can’t be accessed with the valet key) keeps your small valuables safer in the Impreza. The Versa doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

The engine in the Impreza is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the Versa. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because the accessory belts are in front.

The Impreza’s front power windows open or close fully with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside the car. The Versa’s power window switches have to be held the entire time to close them fully. Only its driver’s window opens automatically.

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Impreza’s available exterior PIN entry system (not available on Impreza Base). The Versa doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system.

Consumer Reports rated the Impreza’s headlight performance “Fair,” a higher rating than the Versa’s headlights, which were rated “Poor.”

To help drivers avoid possible obstacles, the Impreza Premium offers optional cornering lights to illuminate around corners when the turn signals are activated. The Versa doesn’t offer cornering lights. The Impreza Limited also has standard adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle.

The Impreza’s optional rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Versa offers an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

The Impreza Limited has a standard center folding armrest for the rear passengers. A center armrest helps make rear passengers more comfortable and it can provide a boundary between children. The Versa doesn’t offer a rear seat center armrest.

For greater rear passenger comfort, the Impreza has standard rear heat vents to keep rear occupants more comfortable. The Versa doesn’t offer rear vents.

To direct the driver from any location to a given street address with audible turn-by-turn directions, a GPS navigation system is available on the Impreza Limited. The Impreza’s navigation system also has a real-time traffic update feature that offers alternative routes to automatically bypass traffic problems. (Service not available in all areas.) The Versa doesn’t offer a navigation system.

The Subaru Impreza comes in sedan and station wagon bodystyles; the Nissan Versa isn’t available as a station wagon.

Insurance will cost less for the Impreza owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the Impreza will cost $815 to $2355 less than the Versa over a five-year period.

The Impreza will cost the buyer less in the long run because of its superior resale value. The IntelliChoice estimates that the Impreza will retain 55.12% to 57.4% of its original price after five years, while the Versa only retains 44.54% to 46.17%.

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Impreza is less expensive to operate than the Versa because typical repairs cost much less on the Impreza than the Versa, including $19 less for front brake pads, $57 less for fuel injection, $77 less for a fuel pump and $238 less for a power steering pump.

Consumer Reports® recommends the Subaru Impreza, based on reliability, safety and performance. The Nissan Versa isn't recommended.