While pre-snow drives on Colorado highways often take on the speeds and competition of a racing event, there’s nothing like a few laps on a real racetrack to let you remember what high performance feels like, or should feel like.

That was the sensation a week ago at Northern California’s renowned Sonoma Raceway, where Subaru assembled us for a morning of high-speed drives in the 2025 all-wheel-drive WRX tS, the brand’s newest variation of the fifth-generation WRX. The slightly Scion-styled nomenclature is supposed to signify “tuned by STI,” the Subaru Technica International race technology group that gave its name to WRX’s previous, high-output editions.

There has been a fair amount of griping since the current WRX’s debut that the newest iteration of America’s favorite hooning car is maybe a little light on power, with a 2.4-liter turbocharged Boxer engine putting out 271 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque — unlike the 300-plus-hp STI variants found in previous generations, and on many of WRX’s current competitors.

That part has not changed in the new WRX tS, though there is some glimmer of hope that a full-blown STI rendition will return in the future, probably complete with a wing, gold wheels and its public annoyance level turned up to 11. (That one may also be an electric vehicle, as well, provided the auto industry is still interested in EV development three years from now.)

In the meantime, the tS is happily not quite there, as its looks have changed very little from Subaru’s current lineup of WRX models, minus a blacked-out purple shade of paint and the presence of bright gold Brembo brake calipers both front and back. Happily it’s still got a six-speed manual transmission, just to keep the sport feel alive.

On the racetrack, an environment I visit very, very infrequently, the tS’s current power and capability felt perfectly adequate considering Sonoma’s highly pitched elevation changes, hairpin turns and high-speed stretches. 

What has changed with the tS is an upgrade to the suspension that enhances the ability to digitally select a wide range of settings on its electronically controlled dampers and suspension system, as well as a series of steering settings – all controlled from the oversized 12.3-inch touchscreen or via wheel-mounted controls.

After our full-throttle track experience, we headed off into the hyper-twisty mountain roads on the edges of the Napa Valley and discovered the WRX’s enhancements do play out pretty well in the real world. 

For the best results, steering has to be dialed up to its sportiest setting, while that top-level suspension mode will become unpleasant quickly for anyone who’s not planted in the driver’s seat. The toughest modes will reduce body roll by 30%, but the comfort mode will actually make the vehicle passable for other passengers during regular outings. 

I rode along with the test chief from one of the major auto magazines, and we delighted in cornering as aggressively as possible for a couple of hours, with no fade in the six-piston front/two-piston rear Brembo setup. The standard Bridgestone Potenza S007 tires also did an admirable job of providing grip deep into the corners of the track, and were mostly comfortable on the road, though likely not quite up to Colorado winter standards.

The WRX tS tops out a line that currently includes four regular trim levels – Base, Premiun, Limited and GT, with prices starting at about $33,000 – as well as the more performance-oriented TR model. Last year’s TR was a further step in the traditional STI direction as it beefed up the suspension and damping, added Brembo brakes and 19-inch wheels, as well as black and gray Recaro seats up front. Prices for the tS model will likely come in at about $43,000.

The tS changes the interior color scheme to a bold blue and adds a lot of red outside badging, and those blue-edged Recaro Performance Design seats are indeed supportive, if you plan to drive like a track day, all year round.

A new digital instrument panel can provide performance specifics or a full-screen map or route guidance. They’ve also pulled the moonroof to offer more clearance for drivers wearing helmets, so let us hope that many WRX tS drivers do end up using theirs for track meets.

As a precaution for on-road use, the Eyesight driver assist package is standard here, with adaptive cruise control and pre-collision braking. 

The WRX tS still vastly outsells the wide array of similarly performance-focused automobiles on the market, including the Volkswagen Golf GTI and R, the Honda Civic Si and Type R, plus the Toyota GR Corolla and the noisy Hyundai Elantra N. 

Andy Stonehouse’s column “Mountain Wheels” publishes Saturdays in the Summit Daily News. Stonehouse has worked as an editor and writer in Colorado since 1998, focusing on automotive coverage since 2004. He lives in Golden. Contact him at summitmountainwheels@gmail.com.