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
I liked Subarus, but they will need to update the infotainment before I would consider one. I’ve been in loaners and I hated the infotainment and safety suite.
We have an Ascent at work and that massive screen is awful.
As the previous owner of a 2006 STI(RIP) and 2010 STI SE, I would RUN to my local Subaru dealership to order one of these. Hopefully they make a base trim.
Flat brimmed hats look awful on my bald pointy head. That’s why i had a saabaru
There’s an image of the interior, surprisingly missing from this article, showcasing the gear shifter of the manual transmission along with the manual e-brake. Same shift knob the WRX has with the dark grey 6MT knob. There’s a huge vertical infotainment screen just like in the Fozzy and Outback. And the D-shaped steering wheel very clearly has an STi logo on it. SUBARU – this is your chance to make things right! Release it!
Please, Subaru, sent it to production before the Plastic-Cladding Engineers get to it!
Bros keep the brims flat so they can use them as emergency head gaskets.
Not my thing, but I’m always glad when some “because cool” irrationality manifests itself in car companies these days. Seems less common than it once was.
Just today at the gas station, watching someone fill up their CrossTrek sporting the requisite bumper stickers, I mused on how perfectly Subaru had lifestyle-branded its products. So that it would produce something like this makes me happy – a reminder that there’s “car” in “car company”, and they’re not simply producing appliances.
This looks great. It’s not going to appeal to boomers who want their cars to be featureless, smooth, Silver Surfer mobiles, or chrome luxobarges. It looks like a WRX STi.
But if it’s sold at $60K, that’s going to limit who will buy it. The target audience won’t be able to afford that.
Anyway… the article was written with the kind of derision usually reserved for outlandishly bad or hideously ugly cars, which this is clearly not. I mean, there are people on this very forum that have vocally defended the Fiat Multipla.
ETA: I am talking about the one with an engine, not the EV, which looks like a tarted-up Tesla.
The manufacturers know both who WANTS a car and who actually buys it.
Even in the early to mid-2000s, who bought Evos and STIs? Average age was ~45.
EDIT: Why 45? Simple: Parent wants fun that still has to handle a kid or two.
There must have been some 80 year olds in that buyer cross-section to skew the average age.
Most of the Evo and Sti drivers I have met/seen on the road have been mid-30’s and under. But maybe they were very successful dotcommers.
Or they were part of the second-hand market.
I had a Evo VIII MR when they were new, and also talked to a lot of sales managers. I was by far the youngest person they knew with one. “40 to 50” was not merely a refrain, but THE only response I got. It’s why they didn’t want to bother with “kids” as they knew who actually bought the cars from them.
First other NEW Evo I saw on the road? Driven by a woman in her late 50s. For the record, she knew exactly what she bought.
First NEW MkIV Golf R32 owner I saw on the road was entering mid-50s.
Everyone wants everything, but people need time to accumulate wealth to be able to actually afford the nicer stuff. That’s reality. For the record, my purchase at the time was very financially irresponsible and the last time I ever did that.
True, I worked at a Mitsu dealer back in 2011-12ish and a 23y/o kid came in to view and test drive an Evo X. He had no rent or bills to pay as he lived at home, his entire paycheck went to car payment and insurance and his employment proved he could afford the $500-600/mo or whatever it was car payment. Everyone was shocked when he was actually able to buy the car and it was a good don’t judge lesson.
Boomer here. Such a wide brush you paint. I enjoy my Boss 302 and my GT350, nothing featureless
about those. Pound sand. ☹️
Look at you, embodying the stereotype with two Mustangs…!!!
[PLEASE KEEP READING]
I never said there was anything inherently wrong with liking muscle cars or luxobarges. I said this car most likely wouldn’t appeal to them.
I really like classic cars, aside from the inflated value that they have taken on in the market.
I own 3 turbo Subarus (one of them even runs!). I don’t wear flat brim caps or use a vape, and I’m also not an outdoorsy lesbian… but I do know the stereotypes of Subaru owners. I used the “Boomer” term as humorous, but playful, jab.
At the end of the day, I really like cars. And I’ll bet you do too. We can easily coexist peacefully in this forum. And if you’re in Central Texas, we can meet up for a car show. Deal?
I get the flat brimmed bro jokes…..but also find it odd considering literally everyone I’ve known who has owned an STI or WRX is Patagonia wearing mountain bikers who enjoy a post ride pale ale and the hooning is done on mountain roads with literally no telephone poles to wrap said Subie around….
Yeah, the internets. I’ve owned the same Mustang for 23 years, and I’ve never injured anyone or once had the urge to add a chainlink or NO FEAR license plate frame. But if it were a Camaro… 😉
Maybe it’s location? I live in Seattle and a wide cross section of people drive subarus and by extension WRXs here (and I do have some Patagonia and enjoy biking though mostly road though I also ski and enjoy a pale ale lol), but maybe in say SoCal where subarus aren’t nearly as popular they get this reputation bc that is the only person who is buying a WRX?
Down here in the desert, I see WAY fewer Subarus than I did when I lived in the PNW, but a fair number of the ones I do see are WRX/STIs driven by the flat brim bros. Around here, the folks that want to pretend to be outdoorsy usually drive Wranglers.
BMW (bike and car) whose turn signals work, sounding off
I watch them the standard way. What would watching them backwards do for you?
I think he’s making fun of us older people. But joke’s on him, I have them on DVD.
“I have to return some video tapes”
Was not expecting an American Psycho reference in the comments. Nice.
So only 2 years before they show up in copart having met a telephone pole sideways or head on.
It’s called DRIFTING bro! RIP to my waifu 🙁
I didn’t know those dolls could do that much damage or the airbags don’t go off and they get launched though the windshield.
It’ll be okay, I’m sure the average STI owner has several terabytes of VR hentai to fall back on
Vape technology has made large improvements recently. I don’t want to know how but it’s probably involved.
JAZZ HANDS! (I really hope you get the reference)
based on the current Impreza hatchback, with production-ready exterior lighting and a full interior.
Oh good, so does the interior looks like something from the space program? The 70’s soviet space program?
And not for nothing but the Miata shook off it’s “hairdresser’s car” stigma, why does the WRX still get saddled with the “stereotype” that really only applies to 25% or so of owners?
25% seems low in my experience. A solid third of STIs I see have “cash, grass, or ass, no one rides free” stickers
Yikes last seen on a 2nd gen Camaro.. I can’t say I have even seen one of those since the 80’s
I’m wondering the same….growing up and living in the mountains, the STI/WRX are the fun car of choice for the mountain bike crowd…yet that segment kinda gets ignored.
More commonly ski/snowboard gear around my parts, but same deal.
Subaru interiors are always on the bleeding edge of technology and trends from 20 years ago.
I rented a newer at the time Legacy, (2013?) I had to re-pair my phone every time I turned the car off. The pairing method was so unintuitive I had to refer to the manual every time.
From what I’ve seen on FB pages, they’re already complaining about it.
Subaru fans? Complaining?
They’d be offended by this, if they could read.
I’m a Subaru fan, and I think it’s totally plausible that David Tracy is secretly living a second life in Colorado with a totally different family and a complete stable of cars. (The XJs are dead giveaways!)
This is a damn lazy concept.
Subaru concepts from the past looked great. The issue was that the production model never really mimicked them.
But this isn’t even a concept. Its a Crosstrek with cheap crap from Autozone.
I have nothing against the WRX being based on the Imprezza and Crosstrek – Subaru should never have pretended to have them all be separate models, but this Crosstrek isn’t even new. It came out in ’22 in Japan and ’24 in North America, so its a few years old by now.
I feel like Subaru told the engineers and designers that they had whatever money they could dig up out of the cushions of the lobby couch to develop this concept.
Much like Subaru during the press conference, I’m more interested in the E than the B. What’s even the point of a gas “performance” car anymore?
Someone’s gonna pay 60k for a damn Subaru. The world’s gone mad.
I hope ICE STI hatch happens solely so everyone will finally shut up about it
everyone will finally shut up about it
You’ve never been on the internet?
Yeah….between the internet and Subaru bros I suppose that was a big ask on my end
They’ll complain about the price (which will probably be justified).
They must have called it the Performance-B STI to try and get people to call it the Performance Beastie.
Exactly how large is that version in the second image? It looks absolutely massive!
Yeah, I was wondering if it was just the angle of the photo, but it looks like an SUV. The huge wing and gigantic fake vents aren’t helping.
Prediction: It will show up in the States as a sedan only with a CVT and flat grey plastic lower body cladding. It will also only be available in white, black and silver.
They’ll offer orange as a special edition color, but only comes on the special model that is $5k more expensive.
Then the top brass in SoA will cry “why won’t enthusiasts buy our cars any more?!?”
Subaru’s styling department has the restraint of a 5 year old with a box of crayons standing unattended next to a wall. Please Subaru, more is in fact not more, there is such a thing as too much styling.
But, but, the CAD program came with a 10 CD object library!
Kids. They’re convinced that they will like both ketchup and sprinkles on their pie.
Ketchup, sprinkles AND nacho cheese!
The evergreen Clarkson line about the FK8 Civic Type R comes to mind….”it’s the car they wouldn’t stop designing”
I agree so much with this.. why the crazy styling?! The strange fender trim on a lot of SUVs is like this. Strange shapes and points etc. The Buick wagon from a few years back is a great example: great lines then the fender plastics have a freaking wart sticking up that ruins the continuity. Ok – I’m done whining
It looks kinda ridiculous, but still better than the last gen WRX we got.
The back end is a cluttered mess of a design. So busy that there’s no clear message other than a childish “I’m fast!”. Way overcooked. It reminds me of the Civic Type R, but worse.
Hello Jalop staff. Again, please fix the login function so I can comment on my other devices other than phone or I will cancel my membership. This has been an issue for weeks ???? Fix or I cancel.
Weird, if you’re on the discord it’s easy to get in touch with the staff and try to get that addressed. What does it do when you try to log in on a computer?
I get a login code in my email then I key that in and “invalid code” Every time. And of course a different code is given if I try again and no, I can’t even communicate with any staff other than through these posts ON MY PHONE which is a pita! Thanks Brandon. Love your work!
I appreciate the kind words!
Along with the login code, any time I have to log back in, it also has a button I can click that just auto logs me in without the code, does yours do that? Any different result? I’ll post this into the discord to see if they can help you out this afternoon. The staff is usually quite responsive to issues there.
Email matt@TheAutopian.com . He should be able to get you sorted.
Jalop staff? On Autotopian…
I mean, there is a twisted nugget of truthiness in there…
I think I understand now. Thanks.
I don’t care if this is an STI. Actually, I like it less because they’ll use an excuse to price this beyond reasonable means
Just give me a basic WRX as a 6MT hatch.
Or a WRX 6MT Crosstrek.
Or a 6MT Forester XT
I really do wonder why Subaru has never built a Crosstrek WRX, I feel like that would fly off the shelves for years
I would literally buy one tomorrow
And except for damper valving and spring rate, its basically a parts bin special for them to build.
I’ve been saying this for years-in Seattle modified Crosstreks are everywhere as are WRXs! Two great tastes that would go together. This seems like such a no brainer-I’d probably be shopping for one right now if they’d made it.
The WRX 6MT Crosstrek I would buy yesterday. as a from 6MT Crosstrek owner, I have never hit a rev limiter so many times in my life.
My first test drive of the 2.0 Crosstrek 6MT, I dumped the clutch after revving it up hoping to see how it could launch with some authority. I bogged down the engine, instead. I was very sad.
Or even the basic impreza wagon with the WRX goodies, which was really all the original ones were. I don’t need a body kit and faux undertray and all this other stuff-though maybe I’m in the minority.
Next WRX will most likely be a hatch since there’s no sedan Impreza. Not sure if we’ll see much in the way of manuals though since they’re dying out.