Under the skin: what Subaru bolted onto the WRX GD25
The WRX GD25 makes 271 horsepower, exactly like every other 2026 WRX. Subaru left the engine alone and spent the anniversary on the parts that turn, stop and grip.
Hardware, production and timing checked against Subaru's Sept. 28, 2026, release and the 2026 WRX specification sheet on Oct. 5, 2026. Subaru has not published spring rates, damper settings, brake sizes or pricing for the GD25.
The WRX GD25 makes 271 horsepower. So does every 2026 WRX, from the base Premium to the tS. Subaru’s own 2026 spec sheet lists the same 2.4-liter turbocharged boxer four for every trim: 271 hp at 5,600 rpm and 258 lb-ft from 2,000 to 5,200 rpm. The GD25 release quotes the same 271 hp and mentions no engine changes.
So the 25th-anniversary WRX is not about going faster in a straight line. Subaru spent the occasion on the parts that turn, stop and grip, plus one very visible part that mostly gets looked at.
Turn
Subaru calls the GD25’s suspension performance-tuned, with stiffer springs and revised damping calibration. Under the hood sits a flexible strut tower bar, which Subaru says enhances rigidity. The stated goal is “more composed, confident cornering.”
That is the full extent of what Subaru has said. There are no published spring rates, no damper names and no ride-height figures, so we are not going to invent any. If you were hoping for a spreadsheet, the spreadsheet arrives “closer to market launch,” along with the price.
Stop
The GD25 gets uprated Brembo brakes with gold-painted calipers. Subaru does not say what they are uprated from, and that matters a little, because the 2026 WRX tS already comes with a Brembo system and gold monoblock calipers: six-piston fronts on 13.4-inch rotors and two-piston rears, per the spec sheet. Whether the GD25 goes beyond the tS hardware or simply brings it to an anniversary car is a question for the detailed specs. Either way, the calipers are gold, and Subaru has never met a gold brake caliper it did not like.
Grip
The tires are Bridgestone Potenza S007 high-performance rubber on gold-painted 19-inch alloy wheels. Subaru pairs the S007s with the suspension changes in the same sentence, so the tires are part of the handling story, not just the photo shoot. The gold wheels, to be clear, are part of the photo shoot.
The wing
On the back is a dry carbon fiber swan-neck wing from Subaru Tecnica International. Subaru says it is the same component used on Travis Pastrana’s WRX ARA25L rally car, and Car Line Planning Manager William Stokes calls it “the wing it shares with the ARA Championship-winning ARA25L.”
A swan-neck wing mounts from the top, so the underside stays clean. On a rally stage it earns its keep. On the commute it mostly tells the car behind you what you bought, which, to be fair, is also a job.
Homework for your left foot
The only gearbox is a six-speed manual with an STI short shifter. That is a real choice in the current lineup: the 2026 GT trim is automatic only, while the GD25 has no automatic at all. Drive goes through Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive, and the cabin adds performance-design Recaro seats with black Ultrasuede inserts and red stitching, plus an STI shift knob.
The short version
Subaru will build 350, all in World Rally Blue, with deliveries in summer 2027. The engine is the one you can already buy. The money went into springs, dampers, a strut bar, brakes, tires and a wing with a rally résumé. We covered the wider launch here.
So, keep the wing, or delete it?
