Subaru first presented the Levorg STI as a concept at the Tokyo Auto Salon, a kind of SEMA of the East. And like some of the brightest ideas from SEMA, the super-hot Levorg will enter production. A couple of photos and a short video have also been released, announcing to the world that the STI wagon is coming back.
By "world" we mean "just Japan," as there are no plans to offer this car anywhere else. The production model will be revealed this summer and won't be as lame as the BRZ STI. We'll get a real performance engine and chassis tweaks befitting one of the most legendary companies in rally racing history.
No details are available, but we are 99% sure the engine for the Levorg STI will be a tuned version of the WRX 2-liter turbo, not the 2.5-liter found in the American STI. The Japanese version of the STI has already made the switch, and its said torque, the power curve, and fuel economy are all better.
We just got a few goose pimples thinking back to the JDM Bugeye STI Wagon and the boxy yet beautiful Forester STI from many years ago. Walking in their footsteps, the Levorg wagon needs to put its best foot forward.
The Tokyo Auto Salon concept suggests no stone has been left unturned in the effort to make the Levorg into an actual STI. It featured new bumpers, bigger side skirts, front fender vents, a carbon fiber splitter and mirror caps, 19-inch forged BBS rims and Michelin PSS rubber.
Inside, the STI concept adopted bucket seats, Alcantara flat-bottom steering wheel, aluminum pedals, red accents and a push-start button. You don't have to like it, just respect the hell out of it. Unlike the Golf R Variant, which the Levorg will undoubtedly be compared to, there won't be an automatic gearbox, not even as an option. Instead, you're going to have to change the gears yourselves using a short-throw six-speed.
We judge the chances of this car being sold in America as 0%. However, Australia might get it since it's okay to have the steering wheel on the wrong side there.
Mihnea's favorite cars have already been built, the so-called modern classics from the '80s and '90s. He also loves local car culture from all over the world, so don't be surprised to see him getting excited about weird Japanese imports, low-rider VWs out of Germany, replicas from Russia or LS swaps down in Florida. Full profile
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