The Subaru WRX STI It appears it will return to take on the Honda Civic Type R after the automaker released two “Coming Soon” teaser clips on its social media channels.
The first 12-second clip from Subaru shows a WRX sedan in its classic “WR Blue” paint speeding through a snowy forest, accompanied by an audio track of a high-revving “boxer” engine.
A closer look reveals that this is not a regular WRX, but rather the performance flagship STI (Subaru Tecnica International), which is no longer offered outside of Japan and has not been seen since the current generation was launched in 2021.
The opening shot shows a grille-mounted STI emblem, its traditional pink color contrasting menacingly with the black WRX grille, as well as a slightly larger hood vent.
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The edge of the STI logo can also be seen on the front number plate, before a shot into the car’s rear thighs highlights what appear to be 19-inch alloy wheels on the tS Spec B – a manual-only WRX model launched in Australia in 2025.
The tS Spec B’s Brembo brakes aren’t shown, but the footage confirms it’s a sedan body. Apart from the date – January 9, 2026 – Subaru reveals little else.
A second teaser shows a pair of exhaust outlets shaking as a racer presses the WRX’s engine start button, before a tachometer – also showing turbo boost – appears, accompanied by the same background music revving the engine.
A blurry shot of the blue Subaru shows the hood vent and what appears to be a more aggressive side skirt on the flanks.
Subaru Australia has not confirmed details of the vehicle or event Daily Sparkzbut the WRX STI is expected to be shown at the Tokyo Auto Salon, which takes place January 9-11, 2026.
Based on its current status, the new WRX STI would be offered with a six-speed manual gearbox and would sit above the tS Spec B in the Australian range, which costs $61,490 before on-road costs.
The Spec B’s upgrades also include the aforementioned 19-inch wheels and gold-painted Brembo brakes, a larger rear wing and Recaro seats.
However, it has the same 202kW/350Nm outputs as its 2.4-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine, with the performance hero STI expected to boost those figures.
This would also improve the Spec B’s 6.0-second 0-100km/h time, as it chases the Honda Civic Type R’s 5.4-second claim with its 235kW/420Nm 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder.
The current generation WRX sold in Japan was the limited edition S210 WRX STI, whose 2.4-litre engine has been boosted to 221kW/375Nm, matching the previous 2021 WRX STI in power but with 32Nm less torque.
Subaru also showed two STI concepts at the 2025 Japan Mobility Show (JMS) in Tokyo, hinting at the next-generation WRX with hatchback body styles and an electric version.
MORE: Explore the Subaru WRX showroom
