Local Subaru WRX line-up revealed

The 2022 Subaru WRX will be available in seven distinct flavours when it enters Australian showrooms in the second quarter of next year, including three different trims levels, two transmission choices and two body styles.

According to the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications’ Road Vehicle Regulator database, the new Subaru WRX sedan line-up will be available in eponymous ‘WRX’, ‘WRX RS’ and ‘WRX tS’ guises, and the former two will offer the choice of six-speed manual or continuously variable transmissions (CVT).

At this stage it looks as if the flagship tS (short for ‘tuned by STI’) sedan will be CVT-only, just like the WRX Sportswagon – as the new Levorg will be called Down Under – and equivalent WRX Sportswagon tS.

When it was revealed in September, Subaru USA said the next WRX’s new turbocharged 2.4-litre flat four-cylinder boxer engine will develop outputs of 202kW/350Nm – just 5kW more power and no more torque than the last-generation 2.0-litre WRX.

This information broke the hearts of Rex fans everywhere, but they need not despair as it turns out the JDM versions of the new WRX actually develops 202kW/375Nm.

That’s much closer in line with pre-reveal expectations. For reference, the same engine is available overseas in the Subaru Liberty and Subaru Outback XT, in which it churns out 194kW/374Nm.

The meatier 375Nm maximum torque figure of the Japanese-market WRX is available between 2000-4800rpm, before the 202kW peak power output comes on song at 5600rpm.

Subaru Australia remains tight-lipped about which version of the engine will power locally delivered cars, but a spokesperson said more information would be shared “soon”.

While it’s hard to draw definitive conclusions from overseas market specs – especially when the JDM market has four WRX trims on offer compared to our three – we can at least get a few indications as to the standard equipment of each variant.

All new WRXs sold here will at least offer a new 11.6-inch touch-screen infotainment interface, Subaru Eyesight safety suite and 18-inch alloy wheels.

Equipment highlights on the base JDM ‘GT-H’ include 10- and eight-way power adjustment for the driver and front passenger seat respectively, plus memory function for the driver, cloth upholstery, analogue instrument cluster with a 4.2-inch TFT display, adaptive headlights, ambient dash lighting, power-folding wing mirrors and sports pedals.

The ‘GT-H EX’ then spices things up with a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster, connected services and driver monitoring system.

Second from the top is the ‘STI Sport R’ which ditches the connected services and digital dash in favour of an analogue set-up, but adds ZF adaptive dampers to the mix as well as two-tone (red and black) leather seat trim, a smattering of STI badges around the body and redesigned alloys.

At the top of the JDM tree is the STI Sport R EX, which adds the digital dash and connected services back into the equation. More aggressively bolstered Recaro bucket seats are optionally available on the STI Sport twins, as is a powered sunroof for all variants.

The vast majority of these features should find their way into the equivalent Australian models but, as with the powertrain, exact local details are yet to be locked in.

Watch this space.