test drove some new cars today
My Dad has a 2011 Impreza. He really likes it with one exception.... He does not like the lack of seat adjustment (but a complaint like this depends on the driver).
I think it's a great car.
For a daughter with a new job a Hyundai or Kia would be hard to beat. 10 year warranty and usually a lower entry cost.
The trade off is lower resale.
My wife had an 05 Kia that we sold in June. It went 60k without missing a beat. I was skeptical when I started driving it (I didn't want to drive a Kia) but it really was a great car.
The Toyota Highlander is a great rig too. Drives like a car, room of an SUV, if optioned correctly they get good MPGs, Toyota reliability. Buying one that is a year or two old could be a good deal.