Subaru confirms November reveal for Japan’s WRX with STI manual gearbox

Key takeaways

• Subaru will reveal the manual WRX in November 2026
• It gets the heavy-duty TY85 six-speed gearbox from the WRX STI
• Built as a regular production model, but not confirmed for Australia

Subaru has confirmed it will reveal a new manual WRX in November 2026, fitted with the heavy-duty TY85 six-speed gearbox from the WRX STI. The announcement came on Thursday with the launch of a teaser website in Japan.

Subaru is developing the car as a regular catalogue model rather than a limited edition. It has not announced a reveal date and Australian availability is unconfirmed.

Subaru WRX STI

Subaru WRX TY85 manual gearbox

The TY85 was last used in the previous-generation WRX STI, which ended production in 2021. It is built to handle more power and torque than the lighter-duty six-speed fitted to non-STI WRX models, including the manual sold in Australia.

Subaru has not revealed power outputs or equipment. It says the car will use technology and knowledge from its motorsport programs, and it is not yet known whether it will get the STI’s driver-controlled centre differential.

Japan currently has no manual WRX in showrooms. The limited-run WRX STI Sport#, a Japan-only model capped at 600 units earlier this year, used a six-speed manual but not the TY85.

The WRX is the first of three manual models Subaru has promised by 2027. The others are a lightweight BRZ based on the STI Sport Type RA, and a five-door hatch based on the Performance-B STI concept. Subaru has not given reveal dates for either.