Compare the2024 Subaru ImprezaVS 2023 Jeep Renegade

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Subaru Impreza have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Jeep Renegade doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Impreza are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Renegade doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

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

Side impacts caused 23% of all road fatalities in 2018, down from 29% in 2003, when the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety introduced its side barrier test. In order to continue improving vehicle safety, the IIHS has started using a more severe side impact test: 37 MPH (up from 31 MPH), with a 4180-pound barrier (up from 3300 pounds). The results of this newly developed test demonstrates that the Subaru Impreza is much safer than the Renegade:

The Subaru Impreza achieved a “Top Safety Pick” rating from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) for the 2024 model year. This recognition was based on its impressive performance in the small overlap frontal crash test, updated side impact crash test, headlight evaluations, and pedestrian crash prevention testing. The Renegade is not a “Top Safety Pick” for 2024.

To reliably start during all conditions and help handle large electrical loads, the Impreza has a standard 530-amp battery. The Renegade’s 500-amp battery isn’t as powerful.

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the Impreza’s reliability 36 points higher than the Renegade.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Subaru vehicles are better in initial quality than Jeep vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Subaru above average in initial quality. With 6 more problems per 100 vehicles, Jeep is rated lower.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2024 Auto Issue reports that Subaru vehicles are more reliable than Jeep vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Subaru 20 places higher in reliability than Jeep.

The Impreza RS’ standard 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder produces 5 more horsepower (182 vs. 177) than the Renegade’s 1.3 turbo 4-cylinder.

As tested in Motor Trend the Impreza RS 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder is faster than the Jeep Renegade:

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 Renegade doesn’t offer a boxer engine configuration.

On the EPA test cycle the Impreza gets better mileage than the Renegade:

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Subaru Impreza uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Renegade requires premium for maximum efficiency, which can cost on average about 82.8 cents more per gallon.

The Impreza has 3.9 gallons more fuel capacity than the Renegade (16.6 vs. 12.7 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

The Impreza has a standard locking fuel door which locks and unlocks with the power locks. The fuel filler door is not lockable on the Renegade. A locking fuel door helps prevent fuel theft and vandalism, such as sugar in the tank.

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Subaru Impreza higher (7 out of 10) than the Jeep Renegade (6). This means the Impreza produces up to 1.1 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Renegade every 15,000 miles.

The Impreza has a standard continuously variable transmission (CVT). With no “steps” between gears, it can keep the engine at the most efficient speed for fuel economy, or keep it at its peak horsepower indefinitely for maximum acceleration. The Renegade doesn’t offer a CVT.

For better stopping power the Impreza Sport/RS’ brake rotors are larger than those on the Renegade:

The Impreza’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Renegade are solid, not vented.

The Impreza stops shorter than the Renegade:

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 Renegade Trailhawk’s standard 65 series tires. The Impreza Sport/RS’ tires have a lower 40 series profile than the Renegade’s optional 45 series tires.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Impreza’s wheelbase is 3.9 inches longer than on the Renegade (105.1 inches vs. 101.2 inches).

The Impreza RS handles at .83 G’s, while the Renegade Latitude pulls only .74 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

For better maneuverability, the Impreza’s turning circle is .5 feet tighter than the Renegade Trailhawk’s (34.8 feet vs. 35.3 feet). The Impreza’s turning circle is 1.5 feet tighter than the Renegade’s (34.8 feet vs. 36.3 feet).

The Impreza is 8.2 inches shorter in height than the Renegade, making the Impreza much easier to wash and garage and drive (lower center of gravity).

For excellent aerodynamics, the Impreza has standard flush composite headlights. The Renegade has recessed headlights that spoil its aerodynamic shape and create extra drag.

The Impreza has 1.7 inches more front legroom, 2 inches more front hip room, .9 inches more front shoulder room, 1.4 inches more rear legroom, 1.3 inches more rear hip room and .2 inches more rear shoulder room than the Renegade.

The Impreza has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat up than the Renegade with its rear seat up (20.4 vs. 18.5 cubic feet). The Impreza has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Renegade with its rear seat folded (56 vs. 50.8 cubic feet).

A low lift-over trunk design makes loading and unloading the Impreza easier. The Impreza’s trunk lift-over height is 26 inches, while the Renegade’s liftover is 30.2 inches.

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

The Impreza’s LED headlights produce a whiter, brighter light (up to 3x) using five times less power than the Renegade’s standard halogen headlights. LED lights also light instantly and last over twenty times longer than halogen.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducts detailed tests on headlights for their range both straight ahead and in curves and to be certain they don’t exceed acceptable amounts of glare to oncoming drivers. The Impreza’s headlights were rated “Good” by the IIHS, while the Renegade’s headlights are rated “Acceptable” to “Poor.”

The Impreza has a standard automatic headlight on/off feature. When the ignition is on, the headlights automatically turn on at dusk and off after dawn. The Renegade only offers an automatic headlight on/off feature as an extra cost option.

The Renegade’s optional cornering lamps activate a lamp on the front corner when the turn signal is activated. The Impreza’s standard adaptive cornering lights turn the actual headlight unit up to several degrees, depending on steering wheel angle and vehicle speed. This lights a significant distance into corners at any speed.

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 Renegade offers an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

The Impreza Sport/RS 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 Renegade doesn’t offer a rear seat center armrest.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Subaru Impreza offers an optional wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. The Renegade doesn’t offer wireless personal charging.

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

The Subaru Impreza outsold the Jeep Renegade by 33% during 2023.