Subaru has whipped the wraps off its new Forester STI Sport over in Japan, but unfortunately the upgrades don’t extend to the powertrain…

Though Subaru has confirmed there will be no STI version of the new WRX, the Japanese company’s performance division is keeping itself busy. Its latest creation? The new Forester STI Sport.

Launched in the automaker’s domestic market, the box-fresh Forester STI Sport gains sportier exterior styling, a handful of interior upgrades and model-specific damper tuning that Subaru promises will result in “handling like [that of] a sports sedan” as well asa “high-quality ride”.

What it sadly doesn’t win, however, are any under-bonnet tweaks. Since the fifth-generation Forester in Japan is equipped as standard with Subaru’s turbocharged 1.8-litre, 4-cylinder petrol unit (as opposed to the naturally aspirated 2.0- and 2.5-litre units offered in South Africa), the all-wheel-drive STI Sport’s peak outputs are unchanged at a fairly pedestrian – considering the badge it wears, that is – 130 kW and 300 Nm. It’s also saddled with a continuously variable transmission.

Still, at least it looks quick. Key upgrades to the styling include a raft of new gloss-black components, such as a rear spoiler, rear diffuser, side skirts, front skid-plate and foglamp bezels. The 18-inch alloy wheels, meanwhile, likewise boast a black finish, as do the side-mirror caps.

Subaru has also seen fit toadd STI badges fore and aft, each finished in its signature bright hue. Four body paint colour options are available in Japan: white, grey, dark silver and black. Inside, you’ll find 2-tone Nappa leather upholstery (black and red) for the figure-hugging front seats, a colour combination that extends to the centre console. There’s also a special driver display in the instrument cluster, replete with unique STI Sport information.

What might have been? A look back at the 2004 Forester STI

Of course, Subaru has made a full-fat STI version of the Forester before. Back in 2004, it launched the Forester STI as a Japan-only model, handing it the Impreza WRX STI’s turbocharged 2.5-litre boxer 4-cylinder tuned to deliver 195 kW and 378 Nm to all four wheels via a 6-speed manual gearbox.

The high-performance wagon also gained items such as a bigger intercooler, larger-bore exhaust system, uprated (Brembo) brakes, tuned suspension, tweaked steering, model-specific exterior styling (including the obligatory bonnet scoop) and all sorts of sporty upgrades to the cabin.

As a reminder, the Subaru Tecnica International (STI) division was established in 1988 as part of the firm’s involvement in rally racing. By 1992, the STI badge had made its way onto a production vehicle (a limited-production Legacy STI also offered only in Japan) for the first time, with the original WRX STI following in 1994.