Skip to main content

Subaru tackles the British Touring Car Championship with a hot-rodded Levorg wagon

Subaru Levorg BTCC rendering
Autocar magazine
Subaru has won countless rally events over the past couple of decades. The Japanese car maker is out to prove it can win on the track, too, by sponsoring Team BMR’s Levorg station wagon in the British Touring Car Championship (BTCC).

The BTCC-bound Levorg will be powered by a turbocharged and direct-injected, 2.0-liter, flat-four engine. Subaru hasn’t revealed precisely how much power the mill will pump out, but BTCC regulations dictate that it must generate at least 300 horsepower. While the street-legal Levorg is exclusively offered with Subaru’s time-tested all-wheel drive system, the two modified examples that will compete in the BTCC will need to hit the track with rear-wheel drive in order to comply with the race series’ regulations.

A sketch published by British magazine Autocar sheds insight into what the Levorg touring car will look like. Notably, the wagon will gain a deeper front bumper with a splitter, center-locking wheels tucked under wide fender flares, and a roof-mounted wing added to create downforce. Pictures of the cabin aren’t available yet, but it’s safe to assume the wagon will boast a stripped-out cabin with a bucket seat for the driver, a digital information display mounted behind the three-spoke steering wheel, and a full roll cage.

The Levorg will be the only station wagon in the BTCC series, and Team BMR explains it was chosen because it’s the newest addition to the Subaru lineup. The team is no stranger to racing with odd, unexpected cars; last season, it campaigned a front-wheel drive Volkswagen CC.

Team BMR’s Subaru Levorg will be fully unveiled in the coming weeks, and it’s scheduled to make its competition debut at the Donington Park track in England on March 22. To earn Subaru’s first-ever BTCC win, it will have to beat an eclectic array of winged and flared-out competitors including a BMW 1 Series, a Honda Civic Type R, a Mercedes-Benz A-Class, and even a Chevrolet Cruze.

Editors' Recommendations

Ronan Glon
Ronan Glon is an American automotive and tech journalist based in southern France. As a long-time contributor to Digital…
Rivian R2 vs R1S: How will Rivian’s cheaper SUV compare?
The front three-quarter view of a 2022 Rivian against a rocky backdrop.

Rivian has finally unveiled the R2, its long-awaited attempt at a more affordable electric SUV. The new vehicle may not be available just yet, but fans of Rivian's design aesthetics and feature set are already looking forward to being able to order the new car. The R2 is targeted at being a more affordable take on the electric SUV and will sit alongside the flagship-tier R1S.

Let's get this out of the way right now: The R1S is most likely going to be a better vehicle than the R2. Rivian isn't replacing the R1S with the R2 — it's releasing the R2 as a more affordable alternative, and there will be some compromises when buying the R2 over the R1S.

Read more
Cybertruck production reportedly halted over pedal issue
Tesla CEO Elon Musk behind the wheel of a Cybertruck.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk behind the wheel of a Cybertruck. Tesla

Tesla’s Cybertruck has been hit by a production delay caused by an issue with a part of the vehicle, a number of media reports have claimed.

Read more
Don’t let the gimmicks fool you. The Ioniq 5 N is a serious track car
2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5 N drifting.

We’re finally getting to the fun part of automakers’ methodical quest to replicate their lineups with electric cars.

Performance versions of ordinary cars have been a staple of the auto industry for decades. But while we’ve already seen some variants of EVs boasting more power and more impressive stats — think Tesla Model S Plaid or Lucid Air Sapphire — the 2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5 N is the first to truly apply that format to an EV.

Read more