15:00 10-01-2026

Goodbye EJ20: Subaru unveils a 3.0 twin-turbo boxer

After four decades, Subaru retires the EJ20 and debuts a 3.0-liter twin-turbo boxer for Super GT and future models, echoing Porsche 911 traits ahead.

The EJ20 chapter closes at Subaru: after four decades, the iconic boxer engine retires. Taking its place is an all-new 3.0-liter twin-turbo—bigger, stronger, and conspicuously similar in layout to the heart of a Porsche 911.

Subaru retires the EJ20

Familiar from the Impreza WRX STI and the rally legends driven by McRae, Sainz, and Solberg, the EJ20 lasted longer than any of its peers. Its final stronghold was the BRZ GT300 in Super GT, where it produced 480 hp. But the 2026 regulations and the need to keep evolving pushed Subaru to an inevitable decision: to phase out the EJ.

The new 3.0 twin-turbo: an evolution of the boxer

Subaru has developed a clean-sheet 3.0-liter twin-turbo six-cylinder boxer. In Super GT it will deliver 450–500 hp, yet the design clearly aims wider: the layout suits both sports cars and larger 4x4s—future iterations of the Outback, Forester, or Crosstrek.

This isn’t Subaru’s first six-cylinder boxer—the EZ30 and EZ36 appeared in the 2000s—but the engineers now lean closer to Porsche’s philosophy: a low center of gravity, sharp response, and strong boost efficiency.

Will it return to the WRX STI

Not yet. At the 2026 Tokyo Auto Salon, Subaru showed the WRX STI Sport—essentially a refined WRX with the 275-hp FA24 and a manual gearbox back in play. It doesn’t replace a full-blooded STI, but it signals a gradual return to a more athletic identity.

Slotting the new 3.0 twin-turbo into a production STI would look like the logical next move, especially given Subaru’s ties with Toyota.

Why the new engine evokes Porsche

Twin turbos, six horizontally opposed cylinders, near-500 hp, a low mounting position—together these traits bring the BRZ GT300 and upcoming models close, in architecture and character, to the Porsche 911 Carrera formula. For brand loyalists, it’s a chance to see Subaru step into a genuinely premium sporting space.

Subaru is closing one of the most emotional chapters in its history to make room for what comes next. The new 3.0-liter twin-turbo boxer could be a turning point: it rekindles the brand’s sporting spark and leaves space to create new legends in an increasingly electrified era.