Subaru UK CEO Ed Swatman has publicly attacked Warranty Direct's recent news release suggesting that its Impreza is the most expensive car to repair in the UK.

Warranty Direct recently claimed the Impreza cost an average of £1,623 to repair, with 25% of all owners making a claim on their policy, but Subaru says its own used car warranty records show the average Impreza claim is only £396 for a sample size of 7,397 vehicles with an average age of four years. Mr Swatman said: "We understand that most of Warranty Direct's Impreza claims were for damaged engines – hence the high cost – and have been told that the average age of the cars was 3.1 years. Since Subaru UK's own official new car warranty provides 3-year protection, many of the cars covered by Warranty Direct would appear to be vehicles of questionable origin including Japanese-specification 'grey' imports.

"Subaru 'grey' imports – which do not satisfy the requirements of European Type Approval and were not intended for European use – require high-octane, low-sulphur fuel to avoid engine damage. This fuel is not available in the UK."