Subaru revives dedicated performance division to build fun cars again

Subaru has confirmed it's serious about rekindling its performance car heritage, creating a dedicated division tasked with developing enthusiast-focused models as it prepares to launch at least three new manual-transmission sports cars.

The Japanese brand has established a new Product Innovation Division, with a specialist Sports Vehicle Planning Office sitting within it to focus exclusively on future performance models.

The move was confirmed by Subaru chief technical officer Tetsuro Fujinuki during an interview with Japanese publication Best Car, where he outlined a dramatic shift in how the company develops sports cars.

"The Sports Vehicle Planning Office specialises in sports models," Mr Fujinuki said.

"We decided to abandon the old way of doing things. Because it's boring. We'd have a confirmation meeting, then another meeting, and they'd bring out similar materials again.

"So we tried developing it entirely digitally. And it turned out we could do quite a lot. As a result, our development speed increased, and we were able to do more daring things."

The announcement builds on Subaru's recent teaser of three manual-equipped performance models – a WRX, BRZ, and all-new performance hatch – due to debut before the end of 2026.

The creation of a dedicated performance planning office also signals Subaru intends to keep building petrol-powered enthusiast cars, despite tightening emissions regulations and the industry's shift towards electrification.

According to Mr Fujinuki, Subaru's growing hybrid and electric vehicle sales - like the Forester hybrid and soon-to-launch Solretta EV - have given the company more flexibility to continue investing in performance models.

He said stricter fuel economy regulations had previously made it difficult to justify more powerful versions of Subaru's turbocharged engines, but stronger-than-expected demand for electrified cars has improved the company's fleet emissions position.

That has allowed engineers to revisit higher-output versions of Subaru's FA24 2.4-litre turbocharged boxer four-cylinder engine.

Mr Fujinuki also revealed Subaru still has the tooling required to build the heavy-duty TY85 six-speed manual transmission previously used in the WRX STI, despite it being discontinued after the last-generation model ended production in 2021.

While he stopped short of confirming outputs for future road cars, he noted the motorsport version of the FA24 already produces more than 350hp (261kW), suggesting there's significantly more performance available than the current road-going WRX offers.

Subaru has already confirmed three manual-transmission performance models are in development.

They include a revised WRX fitted with the stronger TY85 six-speed manual transmission, a more focused BRZ based on the Japan-only STI Sport Type RA, and an all-new five-door performance hatch inspired by the Performance-B STI concept, expected to use the WRX's turbocharged 2.4-litre boxer engine

Subaru has described the hatch as a model with "a new personality" separate from both the WRX and BRZ, though it's yet to confirm whether it will revive the Impreza WRX hatchback formula or wear an entirely new nameplate.

While none of the three models has been confirmed for New Zealand, the establishment of a dedicated sports car division suggests Subaru's renewed commitment extends beyond this initial trio.

It also represents a notable shift for a brand that, in recent years, has focused heavily on SUVs, hybrids, and electric vehicles while allowing iconic models such as the WRX STI to disappear from its global lineup.

While the WRX is still offered in local showrooms, priced from $69,990, a WRX ST hasn't been sold since 2021 when the Saigo WRX STI - meaning 'the last' in Japanese signaled the end of the brand's performance division. Only 20 Saigo WRX STIs were available for Kiwi customers.