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Comment by hideo | Hacker News Reader

I'll miss the Focus RS hot hatch the most. Fords sedan/hatchback line wasn't something that stood out but MAN the RS hot hatch was a brilliant car.

With the Subaru WRX STI hatchback gone and the Focus RS gone - is the VW GTI the only good hot hatch left on the market?

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The loss of the hatchback on the WRX continues to confuse the hell out of me.

I'll also miss the Fiesta ST. I liked the idea of a cheap, entry level track car.

Even Subaru retailers and corporate that I've spoken to as a Subaru ambassador are still not sure why the hatch was discontinued and it is still one fo the most requested things from Subaru.

A WRX hatchback would be amazing

Doesn't the Crosstrek fill this role?

Crosstrek is just a jacked up Impreza hatch. People want the turbo 2.5L engine in a hot hatch instead.

Nah, the 2.5L engine days are done. The new engine design is much better, only 2.0L, and can do much higher numbers than what Subaru has tuned them for. The power comes on quicker so it's got the same 0-60 as the 2.5L in the STI due to turbo design. the EJ25 has served its time, it is time to retire it.

Also, Subaru STI has already been using the 2.0 DIT engine for the WRX STI in Japan. See the WRX STI S208: https://www.caranddriver.com/news/wing-swap-jdm-subaru-wrx-s...

Nope. As mentioned, the Crosstrek is just a slightly higher Impreza.

A hatchback WRX is an Impreza with an entertainingly powerful engine.

STI has close to (or more than) 300hp. Crosstrek has, what, 80?

The Crosstrek has 152.

the most requested things from Subaru.

The other being a BRZ STi?

"I got the Subaru STI, and now it just burns!"

Sorry, but the naming (and maintenance on Subarus) just makes pot shots so easy :P

Not many Subaru enthusiasts that I've talked to want the BRZ to continue. It's a fun little car, but since it is not AWD it just doesn't really feel like a Subaru and the fact that it is also sold as a Toyota and a Scion really detracts from it.

I expect it to continue being a naturally aspirated engine with no STI badging, but I may be surprised.

My WRX was just getting to the end of its life (in terms of rock-solid dependability) when I moved to Texas. And at that time I no longer needed the AWD. So I went shopping for something else fun without that requirement, and BRZ was high on that list. But I wanted rather more power. I even put the decision off for awhile when I saw rumors of a BRZ STi.

But in the end, I went for a Hyundai Genesis Coupe, which has all the power I could ever want. It seems like there's a sizable chunk of GenCoupe drivers who got there through a similar path.

Can confirm, this is the most fun entry-level car on the market. Sad to see it go - I was actually hoping for a fiesta RS some day

By both performance and price range, I wouldn't put the STI and the RS (~$40k) in the same category as the GTI(~30k). The Golf R is more directly comparable. And with regards to the lower end market, we may be losing the Focus ST, but we still have the Civic SI, and Hyundai is putting out their new i30n this year as well. You can include the Veloster in that list as well, if you don't mind the weird 3 door thing going on. In the higher end of the market, competing with the STI and the RS, we have the Golf R, the Civic Type R, and the Audi S3 off the top of my head. Although to be fair, the Civics are getting less and less hatch-y every redesign.

I've got an FoST and I don't think it compares with the Civic Si or i30n/veloster turbo at all. It's a full 5-door, and the civic Si is only available in 2 or 4 door sedans, and with barely 205hp to the ST's 250. Basically the same with the Hyundai. Since the WRX Hatch got the axe the Focus ST is really the only hot hatch on the market. Everything else is an underpowered sedan or a coupe (until you hit RS/Golf-R/STI territory, but that's out of my price range).

Supposedly the WRX wagon is coming back soon.

I have the Fiesta ST and it's my favorite car I've ever owned. Too bad :(

Same, bought last June. It's mostly a weekend driver, maybe this will boost the resale?

On a side note, it's my third fiesta and I still own my second haha. I will miss them :(

I drive a Focus ST and I think it's the perfect bay area car. It's large enough (bigger than Fiesta) to fit me and 4 friends in relative comfort, or fold the back seats flat and fill it with skis and other gear for a weekend trip to Tahoe.

The clutch has a hill-assist so it's a breeze to drive even in hilly SF, and on a sunny weekend 250hp is more than enough to have a blast taking the 1 down the coast to Half Moon Bay.

I'm so glad I got my '17 when I did, with this news.

I recall seeing in the UK our local dealer had one of the Mid engined Group B Ford Escort the RS200 that was a beast.

Though I did have one of the Volvo Group B's transitioning between stages drive slowly past me years ago and that was an amazing sound.

> Ford's sedan/hatchback line wasn't something that stood out

It did in Europe!

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