Modern-day take on 1990s Japanese hero is a hot-four wet dream
The all-new Subaru WRX STI will bring some serious artillery when it emerges later this year, but if Subaru really wants to get the Rex faithful frothing, a tyre-shredding two-door unicorn like the classic Subaru WRX STI 22B would absolutely do the trick.
As luck would have it, CGI maestro Rain Prisk has conjured up this sleek new take on a modern-day two-door Subaru WRX STI 22B, dubbed the WRX 2022B, showing how such a vehicle could shape up.
The unique two-door WRX STI’s profile has been sculpted to deliver lower, leaner and more athletic visuals compared to the upcoming STI, featuring sportier rear-end lines from the B-pillar aft.
Prisk is no stranger to the world of wild WRX designs, having previously penned a 22B design and even a WRX ute.
Details of the next Subaru WRX STI are still thin on the ground ahead of its global launch (expected late in the year), but a higher-output version of the bigger new 2.4-litre turbo-petrol FA24 boxer engine that powers the new Subaru WRX will be central to the hero car’s appeal.
If the new Subaru WRX STI does indeed manage to bang out around 250kW of power and 450Nm torque –
up from 202kW/375Nm in the regular WRX – this fanciful 22B two-door could hypothetically pack an even larger 2.6-litre turbo-boxer engine that may be capable of producing a Mercedes-AMG A45 S-like 310kW/500Nm.
That would make it an apex predator in every sense of the phrase, and there are precedents for the possibility.
The original Subaru WRX Type R STI 22B – to use its full name – hit the scene in 1998 powered by a heavily modified version of the WRX’s 2.0-litre four-cylinder boxer engine, with an increased 2.2-litre capacity.
That engine belted out a claimed 206kW/360Nm and hooked up to a five-speed manual gearbox, giving the compact AWD car plenty of pace: the 0-100km/h sprint took 4.7 seconds, which was very rapid for its day.
Other upgrades included Bilstein dampers, Eibach springs and 17-inch gold BBS wheels, which have been repeated on this modern-day belter.
Just 400 versions of the classic Subaru WRX STI 22B were sold in Japan, plus 16 in the UK and five in Australia. Naturally the vehicles are highly collectible today, with one example selling for more than $400,000 at auction in the USA last year.
As it stands Subaru has only confirmed the regular WRX range for Australia, including the sedan and the return of the WRX wagon, both of which are due for release here by mid-2022.
The new Subaru WRX may be sold exclusively online in Australia and sources have already stated that pre-orders for the new model are “very significant”.
Like many popular new models, the new WRX could be completely sold out before it arrives here. If that happens, imagine the demand for a low-volume, high-output WRX coupe!
Digital Images: Rain Prisk
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Keyword: New Subaru WRX STI 22B imagined