Subaru fans take note, the car manufacturer recently brought some news, and unfortunately it’s bad news. The manufacturer has confirmed that the groundbreaking WRX STI gasoline version will be officially discontinued, meaning the current latest “eleventh generation” SJ20 will be the swan song.
It is believed that you will notice that the so-called discontinued news specifically mentions the words “gasoline version”, which stems from an official statement issued by Subaru (America) President and CEO Thomas J. Doll, stating that the car manufacturer must focus on the development of the next generation based on the changing market demands for environmental protection and zero emissions, as well as legal restrictions. Therefore, Subaru will develop in a new direction, with the biggest possibility being in the direction of “electrification”. At the same time, the statement clearly indicates that the next generation of STI with internal combustion engines will not be produced based on the new WRX platform.
After this announcement, it means that the WRX EJ20 STI Final Edition, based on the WRX STI Type S production, limited to 555 units globally, which made its debut at the 2019 Tokyo Motor Show, will become a legend in Japan’s 11th generation. It can even be considered a part of history.
Actually, rumors about the “12th generation” STI have been circulating in the automotive industry for some time. Last July, there were rumors that a STI known for its 345 horsepower was under consideration. However, at the Tokyo Motor Show held in early 2022, Subaru only presented the concept car S4 STI Performance. Although the S4 still shows the characteristic features of STI, many car enthusiasts speculated that this could be a preview of the “12th generation.” Unfortunately, the final announcement brought cruel news.
Since the establishment of the STI department in 1988, the original EJ20 engine was upgraded to the first-generation STI exclusive engine EJ20G/B, marked with a pink emblem. In less than a year, the new car was equipped with an improved version of the EJ20G/C and the iconic DCCD configuration. In 1998, three championship versions commemorating Subaru’s team winning the 1997 WRX championship were released, including the legendary 22B model, which remains iconic to this day. Following this, the WRX Type-R STI was transformed into a two-door version and gradually transitioned to the GD generation, officially entering the era of pursuing lightweight. By the ninth generation, the appearance of the S204 model opened a new chapter for the GR generation. However, after celebrating the 20th anniversary in 2008, Subaru officially separated the WRX STI from the Impreza, positioning the latter as a regular model while designating the WRX and WRX STI as high-performance models.
Witnessing the WRX and WRX STI go through these twenty years, I believe that car enthusiasts who have heard that the WRX STI gasoline version will be discontinued, and it is very likely to usher in a new generation, their emotions will definitely be more complicated than ever before. Because they know that although this generation change still has the opportunity to continue the past appearance, interior design, the most attractive “Boxer” feature, DCCD, extremely rigid suspension, four-cylinder Turbo engine, manual transmission operation, etc., are very likely to disappear from now on.
資料及圖片來源：Web Photo
