Subaru used to offer its WRX sport compact car with a variety of body styles, sharing two-door, four-door, hatchback, and station wagon form factors with the more humble Impreza lineup upon which it was based. But in 2015, the car became its own model (rather than a trim level of the Impreza), losing all other body styles but the sedan. WRX fans have been asking for a hatchback ever since, but so far, Subaru has merely toyed with us, first with the Performance-B STI Concept from last year's Tokyo Auto Show and now with this, the High Performance X Version II. Tantalizingly Practical The followup to the High Performance X Future concept, the Version II clearly adopts a different bodystyle than its sedan-based predecessor. The front end is cribbed from the current WRX, complete with its signature hood scoop venting air onto the intercooler, while the body aft of the B-pillar seems to come from the current Impreza and Crosstrek hatchbacks.SubaruThere are a few touches that are unique to the race car, however, including a wider grille that dovetails into the WRX headlights. Furthermore, the wide, boxy fender flares have a rounded profile that's roughly in line with the Impreza's design than the plastic-clad performance sedan, though clearly much more aggressive than either. The shape of the front and rear bumpers also seems to be exclusive to the STI-branded racer, with the WRX, Impreza, Crosstrek, or JDM-market Levorg having different designs.SubaruBeing a hot hatch, the rear view is its best angle, with a motorsports-derived diffuser down low and an aggressive, carbon fiber–clad spoiler up high. Apart from the aerodynamically vented fenders and aggressive wheel fitment, you can see shades of the final-generation Impreza WRX hatchback in the slope of the roofline and the shape of the hatch-mounted wing, although clearly, the race car is much more aggressive and modern. Green Flag On Green Fuel The Subaru High Performance X Version II uses a motorsports version of the company's turbocharged 2.4-liter flat-four engine, which makes 359 horsepower and 350 pound-feet of torque – a big improvement over the standard WRX's 271 hp and 258 lb-ft. However, despite the added power, Subaru says the race car will run with reduced emissions thanks to a 20-percent ethanol blend fuel, with the gasoline derived from waste biomass sources of carbon and hydrogen. The automaker has been using such fuels in the Super Taikyu Series since 2022.SubaruThe green-running engine sends power to all four wheels (natch) via Symmetrical all-wheel drive, and like any good product wearing the STI badge, there's a driver-controlled center differential that varies torque split front to rear. The only gearbox available is a six-speed manual transmission, while braking comes thanks to six-piston front and four-piston rear brakes hiding behind BBS 18x10-inch lightweight racing wheels.Subaru High Performance X Version II 3As exciting as the prospect is, the Subaru High Performance X Version II might not presage a future production vehicle from the company. The aforementioned Tokyo Motor Show concept may have been built to drum up excitement for the automaker's return to Super Taikyu, rather than preview a production-oriented WRX STI five-door. Still, the automaker did say that its racing programs were intended to help it evaluate potential products on the high-intensity testbed that is motorsports, so we could get lucky in a year or two with a sporty hatch of our very own. The Version II makes its competition debut on March 21 at the legendary Mobility Resort Motegi race track.Source: Subaru