The flat-brim hat-wearing Subaru enthusiasts of the world have had it pretty rough these past few years. The company discontinued its top-level WRX STI performance sedan back in 2022, meaning these people haven’t had a car to sip monster energy drinks in, paste DC Shoes stickers on, or blow vape clouds out of the window.
Subaru officials previously said it wouldn’t build an STI based on the current WRX, but then introduced such a car back in January, albeit with a continuously variable automatic transmission (CVT), and only for Japan. Then in April, a Subaru exec suggested any future STI-badged production car would be fully electric, which doesn’t exactly jive with the clientele described above.
With the adoption of electric vehicles now slowing, Subaru’s plans look to have shifted—at least going by this pair of STI badged concepts revealed at the Tokyo Mobility Show today. This first one is an all-electric hatchback called the Performance-E STI concept, and while it looks very cool with its fang-like front end and yellow-trimmed wheels, it’s still very much a concept, so it’s not the one I’m interested in.
The car you should be focusing on is another hatchback called the Performance-B STI concept. While the EV looks like it just came out of the design studio, this car seems to be based on the current Impreza hatchback, with production-ready exterior lighting and a full interior. It feels like Subaru could greenlight this thing tomorrow if it wanted to.
There are a bunch of touches that make this car worthy of an STI badge, like the widebody fenders, the signature hood scoop, the splitter, the side skirts, the diffuser, and the gigantic wing mounted to the rear of the body. Because what’s an STI without a big spoiler out back? There’s also a center-mounted exhaust, which is a bit of a change compared to past STIs’ quad-exit setup.
Subaru’s pretty coy on what lies under the skin of the Performance-B STI concept, saying only that it incorporates “the assets Subaru has honed over many years, including a horizontally-opposed engine and Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive.” That means it has a flat-four turbocharged engine that the STI is known for, according to Car and Driver.
I was worried this concept might be neutered in the same way as the STI that Subaru currently sells in Japan, which is only available with a CVT. But people on the ground are reporting this car has a true six-speed manual, thank goodness. Those same people are also saying the car has a proper Driver’s Control Center Differential (DCCD) controls in the center console—a system used to control the amount of lock applied to the center diff, and a mainstay feature of any STI.
Basically, this is the modern STI hatchback of everyone’s fantasies, come to life. Whether Subaru will actually build it is still up in the air, of course. The company has made no mention of production intent for either the gas-powered car or the electric hatch. But considering just how production-ready that Performance-B model looks, it’s slightly more likely this isn’t just another STI-branded concept that’ll never see the light of day.
Automakers often gauge the public’s feedback when showing off concepts like this, so if you’re the type to watch Ken Block’s early Gymkhana videos on rewind, voice your interest to Subaru. If enough people listen, the company might actually take demand seriously.
Top graphic images: Sam Abuelsamid; Webig Moto Company
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