Road Test: Subaru Impreza 2.5 WRX STi Spec D 4dr

Something that's been bothering us a lot at Top Gear lately is just how much cars like the Subaru Impreza are making us feel old.

There was a time - and bearing in mind that the road test team has an average age of about 30, it wasn't so long ago - when we all would have fought tooth and nail to take an STI home for the weekend, and loved every semi-legal minute of it when we did.

So, what's changed? Is it the cynicism that sets in when you do anything for too long, or are we just collectively over the hill?

Whatever the reason, there's a distinct sense of embarrassment that comes with edging into the rush-hour gridlock in the latest electric blue, be-spoilered Scoob. So this understated version - 'spec D' stands for discreet - seemed like the answer to a few unspoken prayers.

It's a very simple solution to an obvious problem. The STI is a stunningly quick and arguably quite practical car that does itself few favours by looking, through a process of negative cultural osmosis and boot spoilers, like the poster boy for the criminal underclass.

So Subaru has opted for a silver paint job over the shouty standard blue, traded in gold alloys for silver and got rid of that massive rear wing and roof vane.

They haven't stopped there either. Inside, those hateful blue carpets have turned black, the unconvincing Alcantara upholstery is now an unconvincing but more acceptable leather, and touch-screen satnav has been chucked in as standard.

The spec D also has more sound deadening - a kind of belated nod towards the grotty realworld reality of actually living with a Japanese super saloon.

It's still the latest STI underneath, though, with the new 277bhp 2.5-litre boxer engine driving all four wheels and enabling the spec D to hit 60mph in five seconds and top out at 158mph.

All that makes for some other familiar STI attributes. It still rides so hard that the danger of biting your tongue off is only countered by the greater likelihood of swallowing it, and every time you select another gear, the powertrain still hooks up aggressively enough slip a couple of discs.

And being an STI in sheep's clothing means that the interior is as depressingly tacky as it always was, remaining too uncomfortable and unrefined to live with on anything approaching a daily basis. Yep, we're definitely getting old.