SUBARU,

Speaking on behalf of the WRX and STi community WE ARE BEYOND DISSAPOINTED WITH THE NEWS TODAY, 3/11/2022, THAT YOU HAVE DECIDED THAT YOU WILL NOT DEVELOP ANOTHER INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE POWERED STI MODEL. WE DO NOT WANT AND WILL NOT BUY AN ELECTRIC OR HYBRID STI. The WRX and STI community has been the most loyal customer base in the automotive industry since you introduced the WRX in 2002 and later dropped a bomb on Mitsubishi's Evolution VIII by bringing the STI to our shores when you revealed it at the 2003 Detroit Auto Show. It was the WRX and STI that changed the United States Performance car market with affordable four-season performance that could compete with cars costing two to three times as much. The first models where quirky performance cars with hood scoops, spoilers, and bright (usually blue) paint. YOU created hundreds of thousands of newly minted car enthusiasts who were counting down the days until they could drive off one of your dealers' lots with their first taste of rally rooted performance previously only accessed through video games or trips abroad. Many of the current owners of your previous generation WRX and STI were not old enough to drive yet when the GD series WRX and STI was first out - and I remember when I was a kid how exciting it was to see a 2004-2007 STI out on the road in its famous blue and gold colors just like the WRC cars I watched on TV. The effect that your cars have had on hundreds of thousands of enthusiasts, young and old, is something that hasn't been done by a car company since the American muscle car wars of the late 60's and early 70's. In the 2000's Subaru vs Mitsubishi was the biggest enthusiast battle since Ford vs Chevy and the United States was in love with the new performance vehicles you had to offer. Fast forward to today and the news that that you decided not to develop a new STI. All of your most loyal customers and many in the automotive world are deeply saddened and angered by your decision. WRX and STI owners are your most loyal fanbase as we continue to purchase your product year after year regardless of how many head gaskets we blow or races we have lost to up and coming competition with better technology and performance at a lower price - Why? because our WRX and STI's hold a special place in many of our hearts. How can you turn your back on us when we have had yours for so many years? Many STI and WRX owners go back to Subaru for the other products they sell not because it's the best product on the market, but because it's from the same company that made the WRX or STI that we have owned and that we have the fondest automotive memories of. Unfortunately, in the near future you will see many of us will be going to another manufacturer for their next car - Volkswagen, Toyota, or Honda to name a few- because you have done wrong to the customers who care and promote your brand the most. The bean counters told you that this is okay, and you should focus on the outback, forester, and other models - but what they don't understand, and their business degree didn't teach them is that the WRX and STI is your halo car that brings in so many customers for your other products. When life gets in the way and it isn't the right time to buy a new WRX or STI, we turn to a different Subaru. Reconsider your *horrible* business decision and give your customer base the product they are asking for. Also, many of your newly minted WRX owners will be extremely disappointed when they can't swap an STI trunk on their new car. 

SUBARU: AN ELECTRIC OR HYBRID STI IS NOT A TRUE STI AND YOU ARE MAKING A HUGE MISTAKE.