Yahoo Autos 2020 Subaru WRX: This Could Be Its Most Important Redesign Yet
What It Is: A redesign of one of the most iconic performance cars of this decade-and the last, too.
Why It Matters: Subaru should probably do something to burnish its slipping credibility among enthusiasts. A decade ago, the company exited the World Rally Championship. And now its street cars have been subjected to a broad deployment of continuously variable transmissions. We see no better way for Subaru to prove that it still cares for us than by building the best WRX ever (and eventually following it up with a new generation of the BRZ sports car).
Platform: The WRX will join the rest of Subaru’s lineup on the Global Platform first used beneath the 2017 Impreza. Subaru says the new architecture is stiffer and has a lower center of gravity than the outgoing one-both desirable traits in a sports sedan-but improvements in noise and vibration will be even more welcome.
Powertrain: A version of Subaru’s FA-series turbocharged flat-four will most certainly find its way under the WRX’s hood. Expect an increase in both displacement and output over today’s 268-hp 2.0-liter. Subaru is using a 260-hp 2.4-liter FA in the new Ascent three-row crossover; a higher-horsepower version seems bound for the next-generation WRX and even the WRX STI. A six-speed manual or a CVT will still route torque to all four wheels.
Competition: Ford Focus ST, Honda Civic Si, Hyundai Veloster N, Volkswagen Golf GTI.
What Might Go Wrong: With Subaru focused on growing its commodity-car business, and with the archrival Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution consigned to the history books, the WRX may be less of a corporate priority than it’s been in the past. It has to be awfully tempting for the product planners to just phone this one in, knowing full well that the vaping demographic has nowhere else to go.
Estimated Arrival and Price: Today’s WRX is priced just above its front-drive rivals, and while we don’t expect Subaru will raise the base price too much, the new WRX is likely to creep closer to $30,000 when it makes its debut in 18 months as a 2020 or 2021 model.
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