With the exception of a limited-edition, Japan-only model, it doesn’t sound like the current-generation Subaru WRX will spawn a quicker, more powerful STI. One of the company’s top executives blamed the WRX STI’s death on Europe’s ever-stricter emissions norms, while hinting that Subaru could ride the electrification wave back into the sports sedan segment.
“Ask the average person what Subaru means and they’ll say STI. You can’t disassociate this from Subaru. So, we need to bring sportiness back to Subaru,” said David Dello Stritto, the head of Subaru’s European division, in an interview with British magazine Autocar. “Right now, we couldn’t do it: Europe says you can’t, because you have a gasoline particulate filter that can literally choke your engine.”
He’s got a point. In recent years, draconian emissions regulations have kept numerous sports cars away from the European market. Nissan doesn’t sell the Z in the European Union because “a shrinking European sports car market and specific regulations on emissions” made it impossible to put together a viable business case. Renault stopped building hot hatches for the same reason. Honda still sells the Civic Type R, but the model costs €106,121 (about $120,762 at the current conversion rate) to buy (€57,220) and register (€48,901) in France. It’s not quite a ban on sports cars, but it’s pretty damn close. Cast in this light, it’s hardly a surprise that Subaru chose not to renew the WRX STI.
And yet, I’m not convinced it’s right to hold European regulators accountable for the STI’s demise. They deserve the full blame for the gradual death of Europe’s sports car market, but how many units of the WRX STI would Subaru have sold there? Not many. Even a decade ago, when it was easier to sell sports cars in Europe due to looser regulations and higher demand, the WRX STI’s largest market was the United States by a not-insignificant margin, and European sales figures represented a rounding error at best on a global scale.
One key detail is that the decision to can the WRX STI was taken in the late 2010s, when everyone still believed, argued, and/or hoped that the electric future was right around the corner. Making that happen requires investing a substantial amount of money into new technology, and adopting a “greener” image. The WRX STI is expensive to develop, and it’s not the most environmentally conscious car out there.
I don’t have a crystal ball, and this is pure speculation, but I’d argue the WRX STI died mostly because it was the wrong car at the wrong time. Don’t hold your breath for a next-gen WRX STI—at least not one powered by a sonorous turbocharged flat-four engine alone. “There are plans to bring back the sportiness in Subaru,” Dello Stritto said, adding that electrification allows the brand to inject performance into its range without pissing off regulators, which usually results in hefty fines that a relatively small brand like Subaru isn’t in a position to absorb.
“We’re working on more sporty models, and electrification allows us to do this,” Dello Stritto summed up.
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