“Subaru Corporation will fast-track their investment in future performance technologies, today confirming there will be no STI variant for the new generation Subaru WRX.”
And with that short sentence one of the great performance cars of our time died a sudden and unexpected death.
The impending launch of the new-generation Subaru WRX had all performance car fans eager in anticipation of what the red-hot WRX STI would bring. Rumours from Japan tipped the new 2.4-litre turbocharged engine would be tuned to make a very punchy 295kW of power to pitch the WRX STI against the likes of the Audi RS3 and Mercedes-AMG A45.
But alas, the rumours were just rumours (although there hasn’t actually been any official confirmation on when Subaru decided to axe the STI, so development or plans could have begun) and a 295kW rally-inspired sports sedan remains a dream.
While this announcement doesn’t mean the end of STI models (and I’ll have more on that later) it does mean the end of an era which began back in 1994. This was a period when Subaru was largely known as a ‘farmer’s car brand’ because of its Brumby and all-wheel drive Liberty models.
In the 1990s Subaru used its forgettable Impreza sedan as the basis for its World Rally eXperimental car and the WRX was born and became unforgettable. By ‘94 the first Subaru Tecnica International version, with a more powerful engine and sharper chassis, arrived on the scene.
In no time, Subaru and the WRX STI became heroes in the performance car landscape with its relatively affordable but very rapid sports sedan. It helped that the brand and the car were linked to some of the coolest and most successful rally drivers in history too, including Colin McRae, Carlos Sainz, Richard Burns, Petter Solberg and eventually Australia’s own Chris Atkinson.
However, as the brand’s reputation improved and sales grew, Subaru began to give the distinct impression that it wanted to ditch its rally-inspired image. Whether true or not, that’s the signal the brand sent out, especially in Australia.
How else do you explain Subaru Australia’s decision to stop its Australian Rally Championship program just two years after Molly Taylor won the title. Sure, the WRX STI she was driving may not have been a new model, but when Subaru pulled the pin at the end of the 2018 season the STI still had at least four more years of sales left in it.
While the local rally series isn’t a huge marketing program for Subaru, Ms Taylor is without question one of the most high-profile and marketable racing drivers in the country, as evidenced by her global success in the Extreme E championship, not to mention the fact Subaru have kept her on as a brand ambassador.
Holden maintained its involvement in V8 Supercar racing right until the very end, because even if it didn’t save the brand it was at the core of its identity and management knew that. Rallying with the WRX STI is at the core of Subaru, and yet it has abandoned the sport at both a local and global level.
In hindsight that should have raised alarm bells about the future of the WRX STI but the idea of dropping it altogether never seemed to enter anyone’s mind. At least any Subaru or performance car fan, because it was obviously an idea Subaru management has had for a while.
There is a silver lining to this dark cloud though, because at the same time Subaru killed the WRX STI, it confirmed that the badge has a future with its statement reading: “This announcement paves the way forward for an exciting new era of performance exhilaration; with Subaru Tecnica International (STI) focusing on bringing forward new technologies for future Subaru models.”
The ‘new technologies’ points to a strong possibility that Subaru will revive the STI badge for a future electric-powered performance car.
At the 2022 Tokyo Auto Salon Subaru took the covers off the STI E-RA Concept, a car that looked more like a Le Mans Prototype than a rally car. But underneath its sleek bodywork was reportedly a 60kWh lithium-ion battery and four electric motors that Subaru claims will make 800kW.
While it’s highly unlikely the next Subaru STI will be an 800kW supercar, the STI E-RA is serving as a test-bed for this technology and will almost certainly lead to a production performance car in the not-too-distant future. What form that takes is a mystery for now, with either a standalone model or an electric version of the WRX both possibilities.
Which is a positive sign for both Subaru and its fans, because it’s important that while brands must evolve it’s dangerous to lose touch with your past entirely. Subaru today would not be where it is without the WRX STI, so it should also play a role in its future.
Keyword: Axed Subaru WRX STI deserved better, even if an electric future is bright | Opinion