Subaru’s New WRX NBR Looks Ready For Nurburgring 24-Hr Challenge

Subaru and Subaru Tecnica International (STI) will bring an all-new 2023 Subaru WRX NBR and run in this year's Nurburgring 24-hour race. And you won't have to wait long to see if the Subaru WRX can win its seventh title. The 51st Nurburgring 24-Hour race takes place next month, May 20-21, 2023, at the Nurburgring circuit in the Eifel region of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.

Since its debut in 2008, this participation marks Subaru's 14th time participating in the grueling Nurburgring 24h race. Unfortunately, Subaru withdrew its entry from the 2020 and 2021 races due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on its preparations.

Last year, Subaru fell short of its goal. After a two-year hiatus, the 2022 WRX STI NBR Challenge performance car returned with improvements, but a set of tires kept it from winning. Subaru Tecnica International upgraded the STI NBR with larger tires and wheels for added grip and stability. But one set of tires during the early morning hours couldn't hold traction.

Subaru is back in 2023 with an upgraded WRX NBR Challenge car. The WRX will compete in the "SP4T" class for cars with turbo engines between 2.0-liter and 2.6-liter and will attempt to win its class again.

2023 Subaru WRX NBR upgrades

The 2023 WRX NBR upgrades to a new 2.4-liter direct injection turbocharged Boxer engine along with its new next-gen body. Previously, the WRX STI NBR performance car was powered by a 2.0-liter turbocharged engine. The 2.0-liter engine produced 335 horsepower and 340 ft-lbs of torque. However, Subaru did not reveal the specs of the new 2.4-liter engine.

The 2023 WRX NBR runs on the Subaru Global platform and gets larger ball joints on the front lower arms, improving durability and reliability. The new car also receives an oversized muffler, a revised layout to meet driving noise regulations, and improved aerodynamics with a flat floor. Additionally, it gets a lighter and more rigidly balanced, flexible draw tower bar bracket.

Hideharu Tatsumi will be the team's General Manager, and Takuya Sawada will be the Team Manager. The Project Leader, Naoki Shibuya, will be in charge of developing the new race car. Carlo van Dam (Netherlands), Tim Schrick (Germany), Hideki Yamauchi (Japan), and Takeout Iguchi (Japan) will be driving the 2023 WRX NBR for the STI team.

Eight Subaru service technicians selected from its Japanese dealerships will again join the team to support the race this year.

The course is arguably the toughest in the world, with a total length of approximately 15.5 miles (25km), a 984-foot (300m) increase in elevation, and ever-changing weather conditions.

The all-new 2023 Subaru WRX NBR uses Subaru's Symmetrical all-wheel-drive system paired with a new horizontally-opposed 2.4-liter Boxer engine. Can Subaru and STI win its seventh Nurburgring 24-hour race? Stay tuned.

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Denis Flierl has invested over 30 years in the automotive industry in a consulting role working with every major car brand. He is an accredited member of the Rocky Mountain Automotive Press. Check out Subaru Report, where he covers all of the Japanese automaker's models. More stories can be found on the Torque News Subaru page. Follow Denis on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

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Photo credit: Subaru Corporation