We all love seeing an old friend get their groove back. Get in shape. Dress with new style. Remember what they love and wake up to it anew.
Subaru has been OK lately, but just OK. It could still build an Outback everyone admired. But it hadn’t been passionately throwing itself into its old hobbies. For a minute there, it was more likely to build rebadged Toyota EVs with wheels that popped off than to call its old tuner friends about a weekend of racing.
But earlier this year, you noticed Subaru up early, running in the morning mist. It started to sound like itself again. It refreshed its wardrobe. You wondered if the old days might come back.
This seemed more likely when it showed off a more performance-focused edition of the BRZ, the 2024 BRZ tS. You suspected it was waking up to its old hobbies again.
And now you have the proof. Once known for great, rally-inspired cars that fed the tuning community, the automaker teased one for the old crew this week.
“Subaru of America, Inc. today announced the sharper and more enthusiast-focused 2024 WRX TR will debut at Subiefest Florida with the help of Travis Pastrana, Subaru Motorsports USA driver, and extreme sport icon, and Bucky Lasek, legendary professional skateboarder and rallycross driver,” the company announced.
The TR moniker is an old Subaru trick. It means “tuner ready.” That badge traditionally sits on a WRX meant to be modified. The 2006 TR had a few performance upgrades, like a more powerful turbocharged engine and beefed-up brakes. But it skipped all the luxuries because Subaru assumed people would buy it to spice it up for track days and wouldn’t need a 6-disc CD changer (we did say 2006).
We don’t know what the current TR will include. The photo Subaru released with its announcement shows a set of Brembo brakes and no other clues.
But a TR edition is a fantastic sign that Subaru is back to its old ways. Combined with the BRZ tS, it means the company is once again thinking of its performance reputation.
And, of course, it’s not the STI everyone wants from Subaru. But, with performance models and rallycross events, Subaru seems to be shaping up for something, doesn’t it?
