Subaru filed a trademark application in the United States on December 12, 2018, for the term S209, suggesting the possibility of a performance-tuned WRX STI coming to America. Presumably, the model follows in the lineage of the Japanese-exclusive special editions like the S206, S207, and S208.

Subaru's application says the company would use the S209 moniker for "automobiles and structural parts and structural fittings therefor" and "floor mats for automobiles." Autoguidefirst discovered the filing.

Subie refers to these S-series vehicles as the ultimate versions of its STI models. For example, the S206 in 2011 had weight-balanced pistons, connecting rods, crankshaft, ball bearing turbo, and revised ECU that boosted the 2.0-liter turbocharged engine to 316 horsepower (235 kilowatts) and 318 pound-feet (431 Newton-meters) of torque. Bilstein shocks and a variety of chassis braces helped sharpen the handling. An optional NBR Challenge package added a carbon fiber roof and black BBS wheels.

The S207 version in 2015 and S208 in 2017 kept upping the ante on these improvements. By the S208, STI managed to push the engine's output to 325 hp (242 kW) and 319 lb-ft (432 Nm).

STI has produced previous S-series models in very limited numbers, including just 300 examples of the S206 and 450 units of the S208. This would likely be the case for the S209, too.

It Subaru really wants to make the S209 special, it should put the moniker on the South-Africa-exclusive WRX STI Diamond Editionand bring the machine to the U.S. The model is the most powerful factory-built, road-going STI ever but only 30 of them are hitting the road. Parts like a revised ECU and performance exhaust push the output to 349 hp (260 kW).

Subaru Tecnica International (STI), a wholly owned subsidiary of Subaru Corporation, introduced the limited-edition STI S209, the first-ever S-line STI product produced exclusively for the U.S. market. As an S-line product, the STI S209 encompasses upgrades in power, handling, aerodynamics and driver engagement, and undergoes final assembly in Kiryu, Japan, where it receives engine modifications and bodywork alterations that in total require it to be homologated for the U.S. by STI; thus, the S209 is considered the first "STI-built" Subaru sold in the U.S. The S209 carries on a high-performance tradition that dates to STI-built models that were exclusive to the Japanese domestic market - the 2000 S201 through the 2018 S208.

Designed with a focus on high-performance driving, the S209 draws inspiration and tech transfer from STI's most formidable track machine: the WRX STI Nürburgring Challenge racecar, which won the SP3T class at the 2018 24 Hours of Nürburgring, marking the fifth time STI dominated the SP3T class at the grueling endurance race. The S209, like the Nürburgring Challenge racecar, wears an expanded wide-body exterior treatment, which extends the vehicle's overall width to 72.4 inches, or 1.7 inches wider than a standard WRX STI. The bulging fenders accommodate wider front/rear tracks (+ 0.6 in front/rear) and 265/35 Dunlop® SP Sport Maxx® GT600A summer-only tires wrapped around lightweight 19 x 9-inch forged BBS alloy wheels. The all-new tires, developed exclusively for the S209 by Dunlop, are a significant contributor to the car's tenacious maximum lateral grip of over 1.0 g. Vents on the front fenders provide additional engine cooling, while vents on the rear fenders rectify air turbulence to reduce drag. Brembo brakes, with cross-drilled steel rotors and 6-piston monoblock front calipers and 2-piston monoblock rear calipers, provide stout stopping force, thanks in part to upgraded high-friction pads that deliver improved fade-resistance.

Underneath the S209's broader body are specially developed Bilstein® dampers, stiffened coil springs, a 20mm rear stabilizer bar and pillow-type bushings for the front/rear lateral links. The S209 incorporates reinforcements to the front crossmember and rear subframes and, a la the Nürburgring racecar, a flexible front-strut tower bar and flexible front/rear draw stiffeners. The flexible tower bar, unlike a conventional rigid bar, is split and joined with a pillow ball joint in the center to be longitudinally mobile while helping laterally stiffen the body of the car. The result is optimum tire grip during lateral moments combined with compliant ride during longitudinal moments. Meanwhile, the draw stiffeners apply tension between the body and cross member to optimize chassis flex, improving stability when cornering and delivering better ride, handling and steering response. Other Nürburgring racecar tech that trickles down to the S209: front, rear and side under spoilers; front bumper canards; and carbon-fiber roof panel and rear wing.

A thoroughly reworked version of the legendary EJ25 2.5-liter turbocharged BOXER engine propels the S209. Featuring an STI turbocharger manufactured by HKS®, the EJ25 serves up an estimated 341 horsepower, thanks in part to a larger turbine and compressor (up 6 and 8 percent, respectively, compared to WRX STI) as well as maximum boost pressure that has been increased to 18.0 psi (16.2 psi for WRX STI). Proudly displaying an S209 serial number plate, the enhanced BOXER engine utilizes forged pistons and connecting rods that are both lighter and stronger. Midrange torque, too, gets a notable bump, up 10 percent at 3,600 rpm, delivering higher corner exit speeds when driving on track.

For ultimate driver engagement, the S209 comes exclusively with a close-ratio 6-speed manual transmission that routes power to a full-time Subaru Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive system with front/rear limited-slip differentials, a Driver Controlled Center Differential (DCCD), Active Torque Vectoring and Multi-Mode Vehicle Dynamics Control. A recalibrated SI-Drive system offers three modes: Intelligent (I) for improved fuel economy and smoother power control; Sport (S) for optimized power balance between response and control; and Sport Sharp (S#) for achieving the best acceleration times. STI engineers recommend Sport over Sport Sharp for circuit driving, as the less aggressive throttle map allows for greater driver control.

To feed more air to the EJ25, the S209 uses a high-flow intake system featuring a new intake duct, induction box with conical air filter, silicone turbo inlet duct and, a nod from the 2004-07 WRX STI, an intercooler water spray system that lowers intercooler temperature via manually operated steering-wheel paddles. More air demands more fuel, so the S209 receives a new high-flow fuel pump, larger fuel injectors and an STI-tuned engine control module. High-performance mufflers deliver 17-percent less airflow resistance while larger hand-polished stainless-steel exhaust tips - 101mm in diameter - deliver aggressive appearance and acoustics.

The S209 receives multiple tweaks to elevate it from other STI sedans. An STI badge replaces the traditional Subaru star cluster on the center of the D-shape steering wheel, which is wrapped in Ultrasuede® with silver stitching, a treatment that carries over to the lid of the center console storage box. An S209 serial number badge resides on the center console, and S209 badges adorn the passenger-side dash and the headrests of the Recaro® front bucket seats, which feature new silver-hued inserts. Outside, special S209 badges are affixed to the front grille and fenders as well as the rear decklid.

Only around 200 units of the STI S209 will be built, earmarked exclusively for the U.S. Available exterior color/BBS wheel combinations will be WR Blue Pearl/gray wheels and Crystal White Pearl/gold wheels. Pricing will be announced closer to the on-sale date in late 2019.

Subaru introduced its EJ family of engines way back in 1989, and variants of this mill have continued to be under the hood of Subie's models ever since then. In fact, the 341-horsepower S209 packs a highly tuned version of the EJ25 from the current and previous WRX STI models. Despite its age, the company isn't ready to give up on this long-lived series of powerplants yet.

During the Detroit Auto Show, Road & Track specifically asked STI chief engineer Masuo Takatsu whether the EJ25 in the S209 was the final iteration of the engine. Before Takatsu could answer, a Subaru spokesperson told Road & Track: "We still have a few more things we can do with it. [It's] not the final-final."

The Subie spokesperson didn't offer any further details about what this means. While there's absolutely no evidence at the moment, one possibility is that the company might do a final farewell by bringing the 349-hp (260-kW) variant of the 2.5-liter mill from the South African STI Diamond Edition to the United States.

For now, the S209 is the hottest STI that Americans can get. Rather than 310 hp (231 kW) from the stock model, the new special edition boasts an estimated 341 hp (254 kW). The upgrade comes from parts like a larger turbo, forged engine internals, a revised intake, hand-polished tubular exhaust headers, and a new exhaust.

If there's any downside to the S209, it's the model's limited availability. Only 200 of them are coming to the United States. Subaru isn't discussing pricing yet, but with so few of them on the way, there's little doubt that demand should outstrip the small supply.

The recently-unveiled, track-slaying Subaru WRX STI S209 adopted the company’s top-level S-line branding, but it nearly went a step beyond that, with the almost-revival of a 22B-like name.

While getting pictures of a pre-production prototype version of the STI-built, 341 horsepower S209 model at the company’s 30th-anniversary event at Fuji Speedway in early March, myself and some other journalists noticed something peculiar on the car. There was a branded plaque on the center console below the shifter, just like normal, but instead of reading “S209,” the plaque on this test mule read “25B.”

Yes, that’s right. 25B. You know... like the ultra-legendary, supercar-beating Subaru 22B from the late ‘90s.

When I asked about the mismatch, Subaru explained that it considered giving the “25B” name to the new model, but felt it would be more appropriate to stick with the S-line naming scheme. Subaru North American business planner Yoshihide Yano seemed a bit frazzled when we noticed the strange plaque, but he explained the decision stemmed from higher-ups who were concerned about how the car would be sold in America.

“[Subaru] executives discussed [what] this car should be called...because it’s the first U.S. car [from STI],” Subaru North American business planner Yano told Jalopnik.


Yano wouldn’t explain deeper than that on why the company shied away from the “25B” branding, except for explaining that it was what Subaru used for internal development purposes.

Subaru spokesman Ron Kiino added some clarity in a followup email.

“Given the history of STI’s limited-edition models (22B followed by S201 through S208), it simply made sense to name the next car in sequence the S209 – especially since the car is US only and US-based STI fans have been clamoring for an S model for years,” Kiino told Jalopnik in an email.

So does this all mean the S209 is the spiritual successor to the 22B—the one true Subaru god? Sure. Maybe. Subaru at least thinks so, or did, just not enough to tell it to Americans.

Earlier this week, we saw the updated Subaru Impreza for the Japanese market. Pre-order books are now open in the United States as well but there are no signs of a refreshed WRX yet. While we expect more details on the hotter version of the car in the coming weeks, a new report from Japan suggests a new generation WRX, together with a new WRX STI and Levorg, should debut in the second half of next year.

Take this with a tiny grain of salt, as the report from BestCarWeb doesn’t mention any insiders, but the publication claims the next-gen WRX will finally move to the Subaru Global Platform that underpins the current Impreza. This should bring healthy improvements in terms of performance, which should be combined with a new downsized 1.8-liter turbocharged boxer engine. According to the report, the power output of this motor will be in the region of 270 horsepower (201 kilowatts) and, at least initially, the WRX will be offered only with a CVT gearbox.

As far as the WRX STI is concerned, BestCarWeb says it will move to the FA20F direct-injection engine. The 2.0-liter unit will be massaged to deliver 320 hp (239 kW) in stock form and will come exclusively mated to a six-speed manual transmission. Visually, the performance model should be inspired by the Viziv Performance concept, as also previewed in our exclusive rendering from March this year.

Last but not least, a new generation Levorg is also in the works and it should adopt a new 1.5-liter turbocharged engine, good for 150 hp (112 kW). An evolution of Subaru’s current CVT gearbox should channel the power to the wheels, providing significantly improved fuel efficiency.

BestCarWeb says concept cars previewing the three new Subarus should be revealed during this year’s Tokyo Motor Show.

The U.S. government has finally allowed STI—Subaru’s elite squad of performance engineers—to build a tricked-out WRX for the American market, and the result is an incredibly sticky track-slayer. It’s the 341 horsepower 2020 Subaru STI S209, and it has so much grip even professional rally drivers will struggle to get it sideways.

The 2020 Subaru STI S209 is very similar to the 2018 Subaru WRX STI Type RA, which was based on a regular 2018 STI but featured weight reduction, suspension tuning, and tweaked calibration across the car for improved track performance. (The “RA” stands for “Record Attempt,” which was actually what the first STI car was built for, though it is a slight departure from the brand’s better-known all-wheel drive rally legacy).

But the Type RA didn’t get any power upgrades, like the Japan-only STI S208, leaving a hole in the U.S. market for something that takes the Type RA’s formula even further. That car is now the S209.

The S209 keeps the Type RA’s 2.5-liter boxer flat-four cylinder engine but adds a larger, HKS tuborcharger boosting power from 310 horsepower in the Type RA up to 341 hp and 330 lb-ft of torque in the S209, with a claimed top speed of 162 mph.

The engine gets a larger air intake duct, a more efficient intake, higher flow injectors, and an improved catback exhaust system. The SI-Drive engine software has also been tuned with S-mode defaulting to circuit driving, S#-mode for acceleration-focused performance, and I-mode for slightly better fuel economy when not pushing the car too hard.

Subaru stated on this trip that there will only be 209 models built exclusively for the U.S. market. (Even if previous reporting stated 250, the company presented a slide dictating 209 cars this time around.) As for specs, 81 of these cars will be delivered in Cyrstal White Pearl paint over matte gold wheels, and the other 128 delivered in World Rally Blue over matte gray wheels. Subaru reps were saying that you can contact a dealer and have your name put on a list for the car, but if you want to mix and match the paint and wheels (like, I don’t know, gold wheels with World Rally Blue??) you’re going to have to sort it out yourself after you take delivery.

STI stands for Subaru Tecnica International, the semi-independent company that kits out regular Subarus for motorsports and the occasional limited edition production car.

The WRX has always been a Subaru, and the WRX STI has always benefited from some beefed up “Tecnica” from the firm, but the special production cars engineered in-house by STI haven’t always been truly “international.”

But now, for the first time, STI itself is finally taking its exclusive S-series of tuned production cars international, at least as far as we’re all concerned. They’ve broken free of the borders of Japan and the S209 is the first S-series production car to be (legally) sold in America.

Why now? Because the current generation of the STI sedan is the best-selling ever; because the STI Type RA featured hardware improvements and sold promisingly well but didn’t satisfy America’s demands for more power; because there was probably at least a little bit of pride within STI of keeping its best cars for the Japanese market up until now; because STI has to assemble its own special edition production cars and they can only do about two per day (in the S209's case, at least), which is not a lot and very difficult; and because, generally, the U.S. government is a bitch to homologate a limited production car with, the process is very expensive, and there’s likely very little direct monetary payoff for the company at the end of the day—but like all of life’s challenges, they have to be faced eventually, and STI feels that now that they’ve gotten one car through the door into the U.S. market, it will be easier for more to follow in the future.

Taking the S209 around Palmer Motorsports Park I discovered grip, grip, some more grip, fuck I’m not sure I can handle all this grip, where is all this grip coming from?

The Japanese STI engineers on-site for the event kept encouraging us to push the cars, suggesting we put the adjustable differential in its rear-biased mode, and sent us around the track clockwise, where most of the corners featured a late, sometimes initially blind, apex. This was all an attempt to get us as close to feeling the 1.08 lateral g-force Subaru claims the car is capable of achieving.

And you sure do feel something. Chris Atkinson, the World Rally Championship driver Subaru brought out to make sure we knew how to drive, even suggested most of us were “over-driving” the car due to the grip—if you took a corner too quickly or initially missed your line, the car was more than capable of making a mid-corner adjustment, despite the special Dunlop summer tires developed specifically for the S209 shouting in pain. (They are Dunlop SP Sport Maxx GT600As, if you were wondering.)

Atkinson actually suggested most of us make slower shifts and enter some of the corners slower, despite the sensation that the car could handle more, if we wanted to improve our overall time (we were not being timed).

Later, I rode shotgun with Atkinson on a hot lap, halfway through which he attempted to get the car sideways. With traction control all the way off, the rear-diff in its rear-biased mode, and only a few minutes after a light drizzle of rain, it took a World Rally Championship driver three attempts to get the car to cleanly slide due to the sheer amount of grip.

The first two attempts you could feel the car almost hopping under the pressure of breaking traction, almost as if traction control was still on (though it definitely wasn’t), frustrating Atkinson to eventually really throw his shoulder into a spin, finally managing three or ten celebratory donuts before we headed back to the pits reeking of burnt rubber.

The modifications to the S209 translate directly to its performance, with the tweaked front suspension offering incredible control in the hydraulic steering, and the noisy six-piston Brembo brakes never seemed to lose feedback or begin to fade, despite six hot laps in quick succession.

The car is incredibly easy to drive and extremely confidence-inspiring, third gear is a gift from god and your best friend on most of Palmer track, and then there’s the looks.

The wide-body kit on the S209 looks incredible, with stretched fenders making more room for functional cooling ducts, a massive rear-wing that should tell everyone your STI is super special, and the Cherry Blossom Red STI accents making the car look as awesome as it drives—there’s even a painted bar in the trunk that guards the added rear draw stiffener so you don’t bump it with your Costco pack of 3,000 vape cartridges.

The incredible traction of the S209 is great for high speed precision track driving, but if the car has to piss off a professional rally driver before it can reliably get sideways, I worry STI hasn’t engineered in any sort of “fun mode” that allows for some smokey silliness. They definitely hit their targeted mark, improving the car in every way for circuit work, but some people want cool drifts sometimes, too, and I feel they’ll miss it here.

I mean, even as it is, the S209 is a fun car, just a very strict one.

Jalopnik Social Media Editor Aaron Brown, the only other person on staff who has driven the S209 in prototype form, owns a regular WRX STI which I frequent many miles in. The one thing I hate about long journeys in his car is sitting in the back seat, where the exhaust noise, especially around third gear, drones at such a loud volume I grow sick of it in about two minutes. It appears to be no different on the S209.

Speaking of the noise, one of Aaron’s complaints when he drove the car is the tweaked exhaust on the S209 really isn’t very special at all, and I have to agree. It’s only loud for the rear passengers, and while its note from the exterior or the driver’s seat isn’t bad by any margin, it has no real special character or quality over a standard STI.

On the track, I found that trying to get the car to gain speed was somewhat of a struggle past 100 mph. While Palmer doesn’t really have any long straights, it does have a long stretch past the pits with a gentle curve that should allow for any car to really open up.

Entering the straight in third and shifting to fourth, I was bumping into the rev limiter around 115 mph with no time to shift into fifth before having to brake no matter how hard I pushed it. I felt like I should have been able to get more out of it, especially with its claimed top speed of 162 mph. I’m not sure how you’d ever realistically achieve that speed. (Not that you’ll have very many chances to try.)

As for the interior, it’s all the standard STI layout, with some welcome soft-touch materials on the dashboard and leather trim around the center console, and lovely alcantara-like Recaro seats. But I did have a few issues with the seating position.

In my ideal position, the seat still felt high with no electronic adjustment to lower it any further, and my left shin would rub the plastic edge of the paneling under the steering wheel occasionally when shifting.

And while the seats were mostly comfortable in everyday driving, the bolstering seemed very insufficient for track driving. I even got Atkinson to say he wished for more bolstering, and the STI representatives on sight confirmed to me that the Japanese-market S208 got similar seats with more bolstering, but they won’t be available on this car.

Other than that, I really have to dig for complaints. I think it’s curious that there’s only two cosmetic options for specifying this car and wish you could at least request swapped wheel colors, there are no options available (you’ll have to navigate exclusively using Apple CarPlay or Android Auto, which is honestly fine), and, uh, I guess I wish it were a hatchback? But you can’t have everything.

It’s hard to come to a strong verdict now without knowing how much Subaru plans to charge folks for the S209. In the event presentation, they mentioned the car’s carbon roof—which saves eight pounds of weight—is commonly only available on cars valued around $70,000. The 2018 STI Type RA was around $50,000.

I would guess we can expect the S209 to MSRP for somewhere between that, at least before the dealerships throw on their markups and people start asking ridiculous sums for the car on Bring A Trailer a year out from its November delivery date.

On paper, maybe the S209 will not quite seem to be enough for what people will have to pay for it, if only because the next STI better step up to a level pretty close to matching this. But given how popular the STI has become in America, Subaru will have no problem moving 209 of these. I just hope owners go out and actually drive them.

The flat-four Subaru EJ engine is like that tough old man who’s a fixture at a local dive bar: he won’t start shit with you, but he’ll definitely finish it if you step to him. Now, after 30 years in service, one of this engine’s more notable variants—the EJ20—finally sees an end to its production run.

Fittingly, this happens in a car called the Subaru WRX STI EJ20 Final Edition, which was unveiled this week at the Tokyo Motor Show. It’s a Japan-only car limited to just 555 examples (Internet Glory to the first commenter who can point out why that number is notable) and features the final example of the 2.0-liter turbocharged flat-four that’s made its home in many WRXs and STIs over the decades. Here, it makes 304 horsepower and 311 lb-ft of torque.

The EJ series made its debut way back in 1989 in the Legacy and has spawned a number of variants in displacement over the decades. Here in America, we’re probably slightly more familiar with the bigger 2.5-liter EJ25 that currently lives in our WRX STI and hopped into our WRX in 2006; America’s current WRX uses the newer 2.0-liter FA20 engine.


But the EJ20 managed to be popular here anyway among JDM swappers, tuners and even enthusiasts up for tossing them into Volkswagen Beetles and Karmann-Ghias. (I call those people “heroes.”) And with ever-tightening emissions standards across the whole world, it’s quite amazing this motor lasted as long as it did.

We also caught a glimpse of the future at the Tokyo Motor Show: a brand-new 1.8-liter turbo boxer four that will see duty in the latest Subaru Levorg wagon. Word on the street is that car, or that motor, will preview the next WRX in some way; it’s smaller than we’re used to, but these cars are rarely disappointing to drive, so I’m not worried.

Damn, I thought there was always 3 things you could count on: Death, Taxes and the EJ20. Looks like it’s time to pour out some coolant and oil together, as all Subaru engines intended.

In its next iteration, the Subaru WRX STI—as well as its more civilian WRX brethren—could reportedly abandon its current four-door body style to bring back the coupe format not seen since the rally-inspired car's first generation.

Japan's Best Car claims the new two-door WRX could use an updated version of the current 2.0-liter turbo power plant, the FA20. This echoes a prior story that the FA20 would stick around in the new WRX and would be paired exclusively to a continuously variable transmission (CVT) with sport shifting modes. It will reportedly use an improved version of Subaru's performance all-wheel-drive system, upgraded with the help of Toyota.

More significant but still incremental powertrain updates will reportedly come to the WRX STI, which is apparently set to retain a six-speed manual transmission and upgrade to Subaru's turbocharged, all-aluminum FA24. This engine has also been identified as a possible power unit for the next generation of Subaru BRZ/Toyota 86, known to some as the Toyobaru

Though Subaru has committed to building all near-future models on the Subaru Global Platform or "SGP," which platform the WRX and STI will use remains uncertain. It could possibly share a platform with the BRZ/86, although the sports car twins may jump ship and be built on Toyota's TNGA platform as opposed to Subaru's SGP.

Best Car also alleges that a performance model smaller than the current WRX—with performance equivalent to the outgoing STI—is also in the works, and will be co-produced by Toyota. It too will reportedly feature AWD and could be based on the new generation of Toyota Yaris. As such, if this hot hatch is real, it may not be sold in the United States as Toyota discontinued the Yaris earlier this year.

This echoes a prior story that the FA20 would stick around in the new WRX and would be paired exclusively to a continuously variable transmission (CVT) with sport shifting modes.

The 2019 Subaru STI S209 may just look like a modified Subaru sedan on the outside, but it’s technically a product of STI, Subaru’s motorsports division. When STI went to homologate the car to our crash and emissions regulations separately from Subaru, it faced one setback: the U.S. government couldn’t wrap its head around what exactly the car was supposed to be

The STI S209 is a heavily modified version of the 2018 Subaru WRX STI Type RA, which itself was a modified version of the regular 2018 Subaru WRX STI. It’s the latest in a series of what Subaru and its motorsports division, STI, refer to as “S-cars,” which are modified performance versions of Subaru’s street cars.Until now, S-cars have never been exported and were only ever sold in the Japanese market, the most recent being the S208 back in 2017. Because of the heavy modifications, those cars were always deemed too difficult and costly to certify for sale in the U.S., so we’ve been missing out.

But with demands for a more powerful STI coming from the U.S. and strong sales of the current standard WRX STI, Subaru bit the bullet and certified its latest limited edition performance street car, the S209, for the American market—but it was far from easy.

Earlier this year, Subaru paid for my lodging and nourishment to drive the production version of the S209 around Palmer Motorsports Park; you can read more about that here. There, Subaru revealed just how complicated a process it was to actually sell the car in this country

According to Subaru, certain federal organizations that have to approve and certify production cars for sale in the U.S. were confused about what exactly “STI” is.

Here’s why it was so confusing: There’s Subaru, the automaker which has sold cars in the U.S. for decades, then there’s the Subaru WRX STI model, a version of the regular Subaru WRX sedan that is, we’ll say, moderately tuned by Subaru’s motorsports division and already homologated for sale in the U.S. as a Subaru. Then there is STI itself, which stands for Subaru Tecnica International and is the name of said motorsports division, which considers itself mostly separate from Subaru in its operations.

And now there’s the STI S209, a modified version of the WRX STI which isn’t technically assembled on the same production line as the Subaru model it’s based on, but instead is corporately considered a product of STI and assembled in a separate STI facility, not by Subaru proper. Evidently that was all initially confusing for the government to get straight

Homologating a car in the U.S., as Subaru pointed out to journalists in its presentation, takes millions of dollars and requires full certification from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the California Air Resources Board for the states that follow those emissions rules.

Each certification requires individual extensive testing, including emissions testing, physical crash testing, durability testing, and there are usually few exceptions made for cars that are only intended to be sold in small volumes, like the limited edition S209. It’s all a very exhaustive and expensive process with hundreds of tests.

That’s why, most of the time, homologation is only done for cars that sell in the thousands of units, or for limited models that are sold at extremely high prices to cover the disproportionate certification costs.

But STI is only manufacturing 209 examples of the S209 at a price of $63,995, making it the most expensive Subaru ever sold in the U.S., and even then it’s still probably not enough to make up the cost of certifying the car.

Subaru glossed over the rest of the process, but STI reps did tell me they actually had to crash test the S209. It is extremely similar to cars that have already been through the crash testing process and it is a low volume of production, but as far as the government sees it, certain changes to the front of the car may have altered its crash profile

This included upgrades like the front suspension and new 19-inch BBS wheels and Dunlop SP Sport Maxx GT600A summer tires developed for the S209. (Jalopnik reached out to the NHTSA for more details on the S209 certification process, but after months of waiting, it still has not been able to provide more information.)

A source within the company with knowledge of the S209's emissions certification reached out to Jalopnik with more information on that part of the process, though. STI started with the S209 back in 2017, and the process was expected to take around 18 months but ended up taking closer to two years (which is still fairly reasonable).

Initially, STI tried to certify the car as an independent manufacturer. That proved to be next to impossible for STI due to certain rules from the EPA, and so STI had to turn to the Subaru homologation team and other resources for help.

This resulted in STI working with government organizations as a secondary manufacturer, similar to how Lexus is considered a secondary manufacturer to Toyota. Because of STI’s secondary manufacturer status, the S209 gets lumped into the Subaru lineup when it comes to fleet emissions requirements, etc., but allows STI to be listed as the main manufacturer of the car still.

With that, the S209 achieved homologation in the U.S., but it was a point of pride for the STI team that the car be known to come from them—it’s not just another Subaru.

STI executives, including Yoshio Hirakawa, the outgoing President of STI who spoke to me at the drive event, was proud that his organization achieved U.S. certification, and that it would be STI listed on the car’s certification labels inside the driver’s door, which you can see below

So with the homologation of the S209, STI has established itself, in the eyes of the U.S. government, as its own entity, even if it’s ultimately still considered a secondary manufacturer to Subaru.

But now Subaru and STI have a deeper understanding of importing its best performance models to the U.S., and the government has a better understanding of what the hell Subaru Tecnica International is. Here’s hoping they don’t shy away from bringing us more fantastic toys in the near future.

Besides, the goal of a halo car is not to sell itself—it’s to sell everything else the company makes.

Outrageous dealership markups on desirable vehicles, limited-edition or otherwise, are no new phenomena. We saw it with the Honda Civic Type R, the Toyota GR Supra, and the Jeep Gladiator. And now, we're seeing it with the ultimate Subaru WRX, the STI S209, of which only 209 will be built. Subaru's recommended MSRP on these cars is a hair under $64,000, but for one Californian dealer, that's not quite enough.

Serramonte Subaru in southwest San Francisco, California has listed its S209 allotment (car number 195) with a $49,995 markup, so with a few options tacked on, its asking price reaches a dumbfounding $115,750, according to a photo uploaded to Facebook by Jason Shaffer. For reference, you'll be able to get a 2020 Audi RS 6 Avant for similar money when it launches stateside this year. Unsurprisingly, the internet isn't a fan of $50,000 markups on Subarus, and one irate six-star diehard has gone as far as threatening to ruin the dealer's Yelp rating over the listing.

As this Yelp review is nearing three weeks old, and the controversial S209 isn't listed in Serramonte's online inventory, The Drive checked with the dealer whether the car had sold between then and now. Serramonte's sales manager Ron Antonelli confirmed to us that the S209 was still in stock, and that because the S209 is a limited-edition model the dealership's management feels no obligation to fulfill the price-match guarantee it proudly promises in its email responses to customers.

Antonelli told us he wasn't responsible for this S209's price—so don't shoot the messenger—and that management is comfortable allowing this special-edition Subaru to sit on the lot until a buyer shows them the money. That probably won't be for some time, because according to a CarGurus search, at least 33 of the 209 S209s built are still sitting on Subaru dealer lots, most of them at or near MSRP. At this rate, Serramonte's S209 will still be without an owner when the next-generation Subaru WRX drops in April of 2021 if Japan's Best Car is to be believed.