Subaru Levorg being reborn with 'performance' focus in Australia

The Subaru Levorg is coming back, but not as we know it.

Subaru has confirmed a new version of the mid-sized wagon, which sits between the Impreza and Outback in the local range, will come Down Under.

But the car we’ll see won’t be the same as the Japanese version, which is powered by a 1.8-litre turbocharged engine with 130kW of power and 300Nm of torque.

Subaru Australia pointed to a faster, more overtly performance-focused version heading our way instead.

“We see Levorg very much as a niche performance product,” Subaru Australia communications boss, David Rowley, told CarExpert.

“While the car in Japan cosmetically will give you some clues, the [Australian] specification will be quite considerably different to what’s in the Japan Domestic Market.

“I think I can say confidently… as a Subaru performance enthusiast you won’t be disappointed by it.”

It’s likely the Australian-market Levorg will share at least some of its hardware with the upcoming Subaru WRX, set to launch locally before the end of 2021.

BestCarWeb reports the new generation Subaru WRX will go on sale in Japan in August.

The long-awaited fifth-generation of the nameplate is expected to migrate to the Subaru Global Platform underpinning the current Impreza, XV and Levorg, as well as the sixth-generation Outback.

It will reportedly upgrade to a version of the turbocharged 2.4-litre flat-four offered in the North American Ascent SUV.

While the Ascent produces 190kW of power and 376Nm of torque, the WRX’s application of the 2.4-litre will reportedly pump out upwards of 213kW.

The outgoing Levorg is a low-volume car for Subaru Australia, with just 306 sales in 2020.

It was outsold by even the now-retired Liberty.

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