Photo: YouTube screenshot
With each year that passes, Subaru is moving further and further away from the company it used to be. The STI's role has been taken by ultra-safe, reliable and spacious crossovers.
This rendering has a little bit of both. X-Tomi Design took one look at the brand new Subaru Forester and decided to give it the STI treatment.
This includes a fictional body kit, which adds side skirts, aero bumpers, and body-colored fender flares. The STI sedan's latest wheel design, combined with a bold grille further transform the Forester into a performance SUV.
This segment definitely exists right now. Volkswagen plans to drop the 2.5-liter TFSI under the hood of the Tiguan R, perhaps giving it as much as 400 horsepower. There's also the Spanish Ateca Cupra, not to mention all those ultra-fast German 4x4s.
However, the Forester STI existed even before there was a Tiguan. Back in 2004, the model debuted in Japan with the same 2.5-liter turbo engine as the Impreza, though export models got less. It was about as fast as today's Golf R, and pretty light too.
Sadly, the company has lost its performance prowess. The new SUV we saw in New York last month had only a naturally aspirated 2.5-liter with 182 hp and 176 lb-ft (238 Nm) of torque. Gone is the 250 HP Forester 20XT, apparently killed by lack of demand.
Even if Subaru were to muster all its engineering strength, we doubt they would compete with the Germans. Hit the accelerator hard on a modern WRX and you are presented with harsh noises or turbo lag. The Germans have gotten so much better at the game that customers simply cannot live without their quality interiors and creamy powertrains.
Based on current prices, a Forester STI would cost about $45,000. Sure, it might carve some corners, but few people would buy a family car that rattles your bones and bruises your liver. So it's probably for the best that this rendering stays just that.
This includes a fictional body kit, which adds side skirts, aero bumpers, and body-colored fender flares. The STI sedan's latest wheel design, combined with a bold grille further transform the Forester into a performance SUV.
This segment definitely exists right now. Volkswagen plans to drop the 2.5-liter TFSI under the hood of the Tiguan R, perhaps giving it as much as 400 horsepower. There's also the Spanish Ateca Cupra, not to mention all those ultra-fast German 4x4s.
However, the Forester STI existed even before there was a Tiguan. Back in 2004, the model debuted in Japan with the same 2.5-liter turbo engine as the Impreza, though export models got less. It was about as fast as today's Golf R, and pretty light too.
Sadly, the company has lost its performance prowess. The new SUV we saw in New York last month had only a naturally aspirated 2.5-liter with 182 hp and 176 lb-ft (238 Nm) of torque. Gone is the 250 HP Forester 20XT, apparently killed by lack of demand.
Even if Subaru were to muster all its engineering strength, we doubt they would compete with the Germans. Hit the accelerator hard on a modern WRX and you are presented with harsh noises or turbo lag. The Germans have gotten so much better at the game that customers simply cannot live without their quality interiors and creamy powertrains.
Based on current prices, a Forester STI would cost about $45,000. Sure, it might carve some corners, but few people would buy a family car that rattles your bones and bruises your liver. So it's probably for the best that this rendering stays just that.
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