The Hottest Cars Subaru’s STI Division Has Ever Created

For more than 20 years, Forza or Gran Turismo video-game simulations were the closest most Americans have gotten to whiffing one of the fabled S-cars from Subaru's in-house tuner, Subaru Tecnica International. These cars are positioned above Subaru's WRX STI models, with more power and a harder-core focus on high performance; our S-car references here nod to their names: S201, S202, and so on. Until the S209, which you can read all about here, arrives in the U.S. in 2019, every S-car has been sold exclusively in Japan. (Before you say it, yes, there are some gray-market cars out there that have made their way elsewhere, but they're the exception, not the rule.)

To celebrate and prepare for the S209's impending trip stateside, bone up on your STI S-car history with this rundown of each model going back to 1998. Swipe through for each model's specifications:

Okay, we're already lying to you. The STI 22B isn't an S-car by name—but it might as well be known as S-prime, or S-car ground zero. Built to commemorate Subaru's three consecutive World Rally constructors' championships in 1995, 1996, and 1997, the Impreza-based 22B sports a turbocharged 2.2-liter flat-four beneath its stubby hood. In keeping with the so-called "gentleman's agreement" between car manufacturers in Japan at the time, the 22B's engine is capped to just 276 horsepower. (No automaker could, under this arrangement, offer any more horsepower than that.) Just as we find in today's S209, the 22B's intercooler features a water sprayer, while the body sprouts oh-so-good fender box flares, and the chassis is completely retuned. Only 400 22Bs were made. A fun fact: "22B" is hexadecimal (a positional numerical system) for "555," which also happens to be a cigarette brand that sponsored Subaru at the time. The brand's backing and livery is where Subaru's now famous World-Rally Blue color sprang from; you'll recognize World Rally Blue—it's been available on practically every STI product Subaru has offered since.

The 22B's follow-up, the S201, trades emulating a rally legend for a concentration on maximizing on-road performance. For this mission, it is given a 296-hp EJ20 turbocharged flat-four engine, a height-adjustable suspension, a (mostly) ball-jointed rear suspension, ultra-lightweight Rays wheels, a rear diffuser, and a helical-type limited-slip front differential. The STI S201 has all-wheel drive, of course, and a five-speed manual. STI limited the production to 300 examples.

The S202 is based on the Impreza-based type RA Spec C that STI builds for competition. Its EJ20 engine breathes through a titanium muffler (a more than 10-pound weight reduction) and is controlled by a new ECU tuned to make the 6400-rpm, 316-hp power peak feel as broad and usable as possible. Like its bug-eyed WRX contemporaries, the S202 begs to be revved, and you really have to thrash its engine to make the most of its moderate torque output. An adjustable carbon-fiber wing and six-speed manual transmission are new to the S202, while the ball-jointed rear-suspension design carries over from the S201. Production was limited to 400 vehicles.

For the S203, Subaru sets the design target as Global Pure Sports Sedan. This ambition is developed and shaped with the help of none other than Norwegian rally ace Petter Solberg. The S203's 2.0-liter EJ20 engine is modified to improve midrange power, so while its 316 horsepower is no greater than the S202's, there is more low-end torque, and peak twist swells to 311 lb-ft at 4400 rpm. Like many previous STI creations, the S203's suspension trades its rubber bushings for ball joints; carbon-shelled Recaro buckets are standard kit. The year 2003 marks the last that "555" logos adorn Subaru's rally cars, though the iconic blue-and-yellow livery lives on. In a tip of its hat to its longtime sponsor, STI limited S203 production to 555 units.

If there is any theme with these S-models, it is the EJ20 engine. For the S204, the venerable powerplant continues to make 316 horsepower, but STI blueprints it, weighing and matching pistons. Any remaining mass-induced engine imbalance is addressed by hand polishing the crankshaft. With the addition of a slightly larger turbocharger turbine, the EJ20's peak torque grows by 8 lb-ft over the S203's to 319 lb-ft. This seems like a lot of work for not much return, but that is what helps make these cars so special. So, too, do the suspension modifications (ball joints, again, and for the first time a unique set of dampers, not just retuned STI dampers), titanium muffler, forged 18-inch BBS wheels, and Pirelli P Zero tires. Rarity, as in previous S-cars, is included: Only 600 of these S204s are made.

In the six years separating the S204 and S206 models, STI builds and sells other projects, including 2006's WRX STI spec C Type RA-R, 2007's S402 Legacy sedan and wagon, and 2010's R205 STI hatchback–based hot rod. But things at Subaru begin to change. The automaker exits the World Rally Championship at the conclusion of the 2008 season, while at the same time STI shifts its focus to road racing. Oh, and you probably noticed that STI skipped an S205. The S206 is also two limited-production cars in one: Of the 300 units STI makes, 100 are special editions commemorating STI's class win at the 2011 24 Hours of Nürburgring. Each of these 100 cars ship with a carbon-fiber wing and roof, 19-inch BBS wheels, Bilstein dampers, and Michelin tires. The engine in every S206, you guessed it, is an EJ20. Subaru gifts the EJ a ball-bearing turbocharger, shoving the torque peak of 318 lb-ft down lower in the rev range, to 3200 rpm.

For the first time since 2002, STI gives its S-car line an injection of good ol' vitamin horsepower. The EJ20's leap to 324 horsepower is made possible by a few more revs to work with (its power peak is 800 rpm higher, at 7200 rpm), without diminishing the low-end torque improvements achieved with the S206. The S207 also receives adaptive Bilstein dampers (a first for Subaru), Recaro front buckets, and a beefy chin spoiler. For the full boy-racer look, you'll need to keep an eye out for one of the bewinged NBR Challenge package cars that commemorate another class win at the 2015 24 Hours of Nürburgring. About half of the 400 S207s STI builds are NBR Challenge-spec cars, and half of those (that's 100) are painted Sunrise yellow.

Subtle upgrades highlight STI's S208. A weight-saving carbon-fiber roof aids acceleration performance and lowers the car's center of gravity. Chassis enhancements include adaptive Bilstein dampers, a flexible strut-tower bar (to preload the chassis laterally without compromising ride), forged BBS wheels wearing 255/35R-19 tires all around, and a quicker steering rack. Subaru's aim is to make the S208 the "ultimate driving car." While there is no class win at the Nürburgring this year, STI still offers an NBR package with an exposed-weave carbon-fiber roof and rear wing. Of the 450 S208s Subaru sells, 350 of them are the NBR cars, making the sleeper, less ostentatious "base" S208 the rarer car.

Unlike every S-car that came before it, the S209 is coming to the U.S. (in fact, it'll only be sold there) and is powered by the EJ25, not the EJ20, just as all American-market STIs have been since 2004. A new turbo and an intercooler water sprayer contribute to an as yet to be officially confirmed power increase. Sources tell us 341 horsepower, but that estimate could change. Chassis tweaks galore contribute to a ton of front-end grip. How do we know? We’ve already driven it. Around 200 of these will be imported.