For five years, there’s been an all-wheel-drive rift in the Japanese performance car market. The 2021 model year marked the final time any of us could get a Subaru WRX STI, the last of the old-school rally-bred all-wheel-drive sedans. Since then, it’s been a stream of capable WRXs, but nothing to hold a candle to the apex predator of the Subaru range. That changes soon, as the marque just teased three new stick-shift high-performance models coming by 2027. Maybe miracles do exist.
As competitors grew quicker, a big part of what made the WRX STI unique was its transmission and all-wheel-drive system. The TY85 six-speed manual was famously strong, capable of handling far more than the old STI’s standard output of 310 horsepower. What’s more, it came attached to a driver controlled center differential, which could vary its lockup automatically or be dialled in a via a center console-mounted switch.
That particular six-speed gearbox is a hugely popular swap in high-horsepower Subaru builds, and while we haven’t seen it in a new car for quite some time, it’s coming back from the dead. According to Subaru’s Japanese website, at least when run through Google Translate, a WRX with this legendary transmission is on its way for 2027.
WRX with TY85 Transmission
It is currently under development as a catalog model equipped with the “TY85” type transmission, which was also used in the previous WRX STI and boasts high durability and reliability. As the name suggests, it aims to revive Subaru’s “WRX”.
Well, that certainly sounds tantalizing. Keep in mind, there’s no word one way or another whether this new WRX variant will feature the driver-controlled center differential, but a gearbox this strong is at the very minimum, a nod for tuners to go wild with wastegate settings. Oh, and if that seems a bit anticlimactic, wait until you hear what Subaru has up its other sleeve.
Yes, the worst-kept Subaru secret is officially happening. Under the cover sits an Impreza hatchback with a hood scoop, and these days, that can only mean one thing. Remember the “Performance-B STI” concept from last year? Well, here’s what Subaru has to say now:
We are currently developing a production version of the “Performance-B STI concept” that was exhibited at Japan Mobility Show 2025. We plan to create a model with a new personality that is different from the WRX and BRZ.
Oh snap. Again, by 2027, Subaru plans to launch a manual hot hatch based on a concept with “STI” in its name. What does that actually mean? Well, it’s tough to say right now, but it should be at least moderately fun. The teaser photo doesn’t show any huge spoilers, but even a WRX-ified hatchback would go a long way towards satiating Subaru loyalists. The factory-modified BRZ sitting in between the hatch and sedan is also promising, as Subaru claims it will be “even lighter and more enjoyable to drive.”
In the meantime, maybe it’s best to temper expectations. The old EJ engine is out of production, and while the 2.4-liter turbocharged flat-four in the current WRX has plenty of headroom, emissions regulations make playing with states of factory tune expensive. At the same time, it’s worth noting that none of these teased models are officially STI vehicles. Still, who’d have thought that Subaru would be coming out with some shock-and-awe? We should get a much better look at these sport compacts soon, and all we can do now is keep our fingers crossed for a Stateside arrival.
Top graphic image: Subaru
I would consider buying a performance Subaru with a hatch in any form. Wagon, regular hatchback, I don’t care just make it happen and don’t put a damn CVT in it. If we read the tea leaves a bit here it sounds like whatever’s coming is going to have more power. IMHO they wouldn’t waste the money and effort of putting a more robust transmission in the car just for shits and giggles.
I’m thinking (hoping for) 350ish horsepower and the trick differential…and if it’s based on the current Impreza hatch which it almost certainly is it’ll have way more rear legroom than its competitors because somehow Subaru figured out that if you’re going to offer a back seat it should be usable.
My dream would be all of this in a Crosstrek or Forester body, but I’ll take what I can get.
Maybe maybe maybe.
Please give me a slightly detuned version without stratospheric pricetag and slightly better reliability.
I had a 2011 Sti hatchback, bought new. It was the perfect car for (younger) me and I loved everything about it. I didn’t mind that it went through power steering racks every 20K or so, until it was out of warranty. Sadly traded it in after paying for a second rack. Still miss it.
I had a ’11 WRX hatch and LOVED it until a pain in the ass hurricane took it from me in 2017. Insurance gave me what it was worth and I would have loved to buy another WRX hatch but they didn’t offer it anymore and I just couldn’t bring myself to buy the sedan. I sat on the insurance check for a year while sending emails to Subaru begging them to bring back the hatch. Eventually I had to buy something so I spent my insurance check on a BRZ. The BRZ was actually a lot of fun in so many ways. Absolutely beautiful to look at in that WRB color. An absolute hoot to drive in the rain with the traction control off. An incredibly satisfying 6-speed gear box even if I only used 1-3-5-6th gears. And every time I took it into Subaru for service I’d ask again about the WRX hatch. The whole 7 years I drove that BRZ I kept saying how much I missed my WRX. I considered getting a GR Corolla but the styling wasn’t exactly my taste and I didn’t wanna deal with Toyota again. I sent another email to Subaru asking them to sell a rebadged GR Corolla but never heard back 😉
So anyways last year I traded the BRZ in on a used Polestar2. It’s AWD, 479HP, and best of all a HATCHBACK! I’ve only had it 8 mos now but I’ve found I don’t continuously mention missing my WRX anymore, it’s sufficiently scratched that itch for me. So now that Subaru is finally teasing maybe possibly bringing back a WRX hatch equivalent…it might be too late. At least too late for them to get my $$$.
We were told here at Subaru that we were getting a hatch “in between the Impreza and Crosstrek” This must be it.
I’ve noticed out emphasis on rally and other motorsports starting to pick up as well. Maybe Subaru finally has enough production space for their more niche offerings
What does that mean?
They’ll put cladding on only half the Impreza, and lift just the rear-end?
Yeah, that’s what we were saying too. Apparently, no body cladding but slightly higher off the ground than the Impreza. I was just thinking that they would bring over the Levorg, but our rep said it definitely isn’t a Levorg.
I hope we can read into this that Subaru will make some kind of effort in the WRC again as well for 2027? One can hope right..
They’re still pretty big in the ARA, maybe Toyota doesn’t want them in the WRC?
They are building a new BRAT?
Fingers crossed.
As someone who used to drive a thirsty turbo Forester, I wish someone could mash together a PHEV with a great manual trans. Cruise downtown in EV mode, then fire up the boxer in the hills.
If Subaru made a Forester with 100+ miles of EV range, a turbo boxer up front, and the 6MT with DCCD, I think I’d be set for life! One can dream though
I’d like to see them do two versions of the STI… a traditional manual one and a performance hybrid one as the ‘automatic’ version.
Didn’t they do a release of some limited run of WRX in Japan claiming the CVT as a “performance” transmission or somesuch?
I’m firmly convinced Subaru has no idea what they are doing and just go in-between a mainstream brand and when that doesn’t work because they made something too ugly or weird try to get back the market they pissed off and abandoned. They aren’t selling well so they need to find something will sell. Even in smaller full of profit numbers. It’s possible having the manuals bring people in who then decide for whatever reason they need to buy the auto. They always seemed to sell the manuals well enough though if the can shove it in their whole lineup they probably should.
I believe Subaru was winding down their sporty+manual flavored cars these past few years because they accounted for so little of their profits and regulations were making them ever more costly. With the regulation part of the equation almost crossed out now, it seems like recovering some of that spicy image became attainable again for them.
I’m not expecting much from this but I do expect them to push these to the US. We are for sure the ones crying the loudest for manuals, and particularly a manual hatch.
I figured ditching the manual had more to do with complexity. Probably sales too. I still think of probably brought people in. How many guys buy a manual then try to teach their wife who wants nothing to do with it. Or attempt that. They kept the manual with the wrx. Most people buying those new understand that manuals are probably not long for this world in new cars and their next new car will probably be a hybrid or bev. The Subaru cvt is so inefficient the manual has to get better fuel economy. Just like the old days. Us is their biggest market so they better bring what ever they can.
‘Complexity’ as you imply is definitely a part of it. There’s a lot of cost associated with bringing a manual version of a car to market alongside the AT beyond the obvious things, so for sure they’ll only do that when they know the manuals won’t end up rotting on the lot. And CVT is 100% about efficiency. Whether real-world numbers agree or not, Subaru has gone that way across the board because of how bad their fleet averages are compared to every other brand. They’ve busted their butts to squeeze out fractions of an MPG in every car they sell.
Too bad they stopped making the turbo Forester XT, just as turbos were getting popular in that segment.
Well considering how ugly the VB wrx is, I have little to no faith.
As a Subbie fan (I’ve had 4-5 including a BRZ and bugeye WRX) I hope for the best. But I’m happy with my 23 GR Corolla.
I’m sure they’ll be JDM only too
How hasn’t Subaru WRXified the Crosstrek yet?
…we haven’t seen the final product yet.
…the Crosstrek has been on sale for 13 years.
I know, I have a ’19. I meant this new thing.
When I “wrx’d” my Crosstrek, I “wrecked” it.