Greta -

I noticed the same thing when I sold my 96 328i BMW and purchased a new
2006 L.L.Bean Edition OBW for me wife.  I figured, what the heck, the
BMW window sticker was $10,000 more, in 1996, than the Subaru was in
2006, so I figured it was a bit like comparing apples and oranges.

However, I note that the Saab equivalent of the Subaru OBW is roughly
the same price so I am surprised to see that you find the Subaru to
seem cheesy (my word, not yours) when compared to the Subaru.

While my wife LOVES her OBW, I do agree with you that the overall build
quality is markedly inferior to European cars.

Even little things are insantly noticeable.  E.g., the carpeting in the
OBW is really crappy when compared to the BMW and the layout and
lighting of the dash dials and meters are very difficult to read.  What
Japanese genius came up with gray on black for a color scheme?  Stupid
and dangerous.  I find I have to look over or under my sunglasses just
to check my speed.  Ditto for the LEDs on he radio:  very tough to read
with sunglasses, but easy to read with sunglasses in the old BMW.

This sucker better at least give me a lot of trouble-free years of use.

Gunni