25 Years of the Subaru WRX

By Roy Nakano

When the Subaru WRX burst onto the North American scene 25 years ago, it introduced a new automotive category: The all-wheel drive, high performance and affordable compact sedan, which was inspired by Subaru's three consecutive wins of the World Rally Championship.

Los Angeles radio station KPFK’s The Car Show gave it the 2002 Los Angeles Car of the Year Award. I was fortunate to serve as a judge for the award, and equally fortunate to have first-hand experience with taking this lightweight, quick compact sedan with the enormous grip around the back roads of Southern California.

One year later, Mitsubishi followed suit with its Lancer Evolution “Evo”.

A year after that—in 2004—Subaru volleyed back in arms race fashion with its ultra-high performance STI version of the WRX.

The Gathering of the WRXers

Two years after the introduction of the STI and just four years after the first WRX in North America, Subaru enthusiasts in Southern California (mostly WRX/STI enthusiasts) gathered together to create the first ever Subiefest (see LA Car’s 20 Years of Subiefest).

Subiefest became a showcase for Subarus in various stages of elevated tuning. Initially, it was almost all WRXs and WRX STIs on display, but BRZs have since become a popular addition.

Soon, other Subaru enthusiast events (e.g., Wicked Big Meet, Boxerfest, and Subiefest Midwest, Subiefest Florida and Subiefest Texas) were being held throughout the country. To its credit, Subaru of America embraced the shows, along with other popular Subaru gatherings, bringing them all under the sponsorship of the car company.

You can thank Los Angeles for serving as the incubator for yet another automotive trend.

The Silver Screen

Some of the best publicity for the Subaru WRX didn’t come from car commercials. One source of publicity was the Fast and Furious franchise, now in preparation for its 11th movie, Fast Forever.

The franchise secured the WRX/STI status as a bona fide JDM (Japanese Domestic Market) performance car (see the Hot Cars segment on “Brian’s Subaru Impreza WRX STi GH” in 10 Fastest JDM Cars To Appear In The Fast And Furious Franchise).

In the critically acclaimed action-thriller film Baby Driver, the first six minutes involved a red WRX in an invigorating car chase.

The high-performing engine and agile handling of the low profile compact WRX made it an ideal vehicle for the tight city streets and precise maneuvers required for chase sequences.

A not-widely known fact about both Baby Driver and the Fast and Furious franchise: The WRX had too much grip for some of the sliding sequences, so specific cars were converted to rear-wheel drive for more dramatic sliding (see also Hot Cars’ A Detailed Look At The Subaru WRX From Baby Driver).

Ken Block’s Gymkhana

One of the best forms of WRX/STI publicity came in 2008, with the release of DC SHOES: KEN BLOCK GYMKHANA PRACTICE (KenBlockRacing) YouTube video, wherein the late Ken Block took a Subaru WRX STI—modified by Crawford Performance—through a wild and spectacular obstacle course.

The automotive public response was immediate, with the YouTube video going viral worldwide.

Branching Out

In 2015, the WRX and STI were no longer variants of the Impreza economy car. That year, they left the Impreza nest to become their own line of cars.

Subaru’s reason for going this route were threefold: (1) The Impreza audience wanted affordable, fuel-efficient, and practical economy cars, whereas WRX/STI crowd was demanding track capability, razor sharp handling and high performance; (2) separating from the Impreza platform freed its engineers from the economy car constraints; and (3) a separate line allowed a distinct look for the WRX/STI (see the “Fourth Generation (2015-2021): Forging a New Identity” section of Crawford Performance’s Subaru WRX History: From WRC to Street Icon).

This meant that WRX/STI was no longer perceived as an inexpensive car. That image was underscored by the emphasis on the premium version of the WRX STI by both the car company and by the aftermarket.

Sales were impacted. By May of 2025, the number dropped to just 482 units. But much of that was also due to low inventories and Subaru’s decision to not offer the base trim.

By the time the end-of-the-year sales were in, 2025 registered an all-time low of 10,930 units for WRX sales (see TFL Cars' Subaru WRX Storms the Sales Charts After Falling Flat Last Year).

Back to the Basics

So, 25 years after introducing the WRX, Subaru made the decision to re-offer the manual transmission-only base trim model. This reduced the price of the WRX by $5,000—bringing the base price back down to the low $30,000 range (it was not unusual for WRXes to hover in the mid $40,000 bracket).

The price drop on the WRX has not gone unnoticed. Subaru WRX sales have experienced an uptick in 2026, reversing a major slump from the prior year. Through August 2026, year-to-date sales for the sports sedan reached 10,324 units, marking a 37.7 percent increase compared to the same period in 2025.

In August 2026, Subaru moved 1,778 WRX units, representing a remarkable 191 percent year-over-year surge compared to the 611 units sold in August 2025. This August also marked the highest individual sales month of the year for the model.

The upward trajectory actually began earlier in the year, with April sales up 50 percent and May sales climbing 148 percent year-over-year.

Stick Shifting

The number of new cars available with manual transmissions keeps getting smaller every year.

Thankfully, it’s still available in the WRX, because the sportiness and fun quotient of the car rests almost exclusively with the manual transmission—the only transmission offered in the WRX base model.

Good for Your Health?

There’s a comment by Professor Ryuta Kawashima from Tohoku University’s Institute of Development, Aging, and Cancer that’s been making the rounds earlier this summer (see Autoblog's "Manual Transmissions May Be Better For Your Brain Than Automatics").

Widely circulating on social media and automotive outlets under headlines like "Japanese Study Claims Driving a Manual Transmission Keeps Your Brain Healthy," Professor Kawashima revealed to a Japanese automotive journal (Best Car Web) that he’s involved in research that appears to show the physical and cognitive benefits of a manual transmission over an automatic.

The study has yet to be published, but the manual transmission-loving automotive press has been circulating the information wanting it to be true. Scientific study or not, it makes common sense that operating a manual transmission requires more attention and physical activity than an automatic—and driving a stick shift WRX may have some positive health and cognitive benefits.

Angeles Crest Highway

Driving the WRX in its natural habitat—through our city’s great, winding roads—is something an owner will want to do. It’s like owning a herding dog, and letting it roam free every so often.

So it’s no surprise that the WRX loves Angeles Crest Highway. What is surprising is that you need not go fast in order to enjoy the drive in the WRX.

Even at a relaxed pace, going through the gears in the WRX is a pleasure. And as the wonderful adopt-a-highway volunteers I met will tell you, it’s also the best way to enjoy the beauty of Angeles Crest Highway.

* This article is an abstract of the author’s “Zero to 25 Years and Back to Zero in a Subaru WRX” - a deep dive on the WRX’s history, reliability, with links to favorite videos and articles about the vehicle. The author is the Editor of LA Car.