The 2015 Subaru WRX is about to be unveiled next week at the 2013 LA Auto Show. In preparation for the event, Subaru put out a teaser picture, which was quickly followed by a supposed ‘leaked’ production renderings.
Like I said in the original posting, I don’t know if they’re real. Frankly, I don’t really care. They’re fantastic looking.
Some Belgian Subaru nerds at autofans.be decided to go one step further and put in a couple hours in Photoshop with those WRX renderings, creating a digital mockup of what the next STI might look like. The result has left my mouth agape.
I realize, unlike the WRX renderings, the next-gen STI images have no chance of displaying the genuine article. Regardless, they’re spot on.
In the front, they’ve widened the lower air intakes and beefed up the wheel and tire combo. And in the back, they’ve virtually bolted up the iconic honkin’ real wing. Finishing it off, they slapped on the requisite STI badging and slathered the thing in WRC blue paint.
Subaru had said that the next STI would not be offered in hatchback form. This worried me a bit, as I loved the aesthetics of the current-gen STI in its five-door form. If the next STI looks anything like the Belgian rendering, though, I’ll be completely sold.
Of course there’s no telling what the Belgians imagine will lie under the hood. I, however, am hoping for a version of Suby’s new, direct injected 2.0-liter bored-out to 2.5-liters topped off with a massive turbo. The current STI makes 305 horsepower. I’d like the next-gen to make no less than 320 hp.
A boy can hope, can’t he?
We won’t know any production specs – or see any official images – of the next STI for some time. Delightfully, we’ll see the 2015 WRX in just a few days when we’re on the show floor at the 2013 LA Auto Show.
If you’re half as big a WRX fan as I am, you’ll definitely want to check back for more 2015 WRX info. Hopefully, while at the show, I’ll be able to drag some more info out of the Subaru brass surrounding the new STI.
(Photo credit: Autofans.be)
