Subaru Outback Gets STI Goodies Before It Dies In Japan

The wagon celebrates its 30th anniversary but retirement is looming in Japan.

Subaru Legacy Outback 30th Anniversary (JDM)

Photo by: Subaru

Adrian Padeanu

By: Adrian Padeanu

Oct 24, 2024 at 5:32am ET

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The Legacy-derived Outback has been around since 1994 in North America, prompting Subaru to celebrate the wagon's 30th anniversary… in Japan. In the Land of the Rising Sun, the model technically won't be turning 30 until next year considering the original JDM-spec Legacy Grand Wagon arrived a year after its US cousin, in 1995. Fast forward to 2024, the Legacy Outback for Japan gets a special edition before it dies.

It's more than just slapping on a badge and calling it a day since there are notable suspension upgrades. The Legacy Outback 30th Anniversary Edition has Hitachi Astemo SFRD (Sensitive Frequency Response Damper) front dampers tuned by STI. At the back, the standard dampers have also been tweaked by Subaru Tecnica International to sharpen things up without compromising ride quality, or so they say.

To make it stand out from a regular Legacy Outback, Subaru throws a bunch of black accents onto the rugged body. The dark look extends to the wheels, an 18-inch set with a matte black finish. At the rear, there's a special plaque with STI Performance branding, below a blacked-out Outback badge. Inside, there's leather upholstery and an oversized "30th Anniversary" silver logo embroidered onto the black leather of the front door cards. Frankly, that looks out of place.

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Subaru Japan is only making 500 units and is accepting orders until November 10. In case demand exceeds supply, there's going to be a lottery to determine who gets to buy the car. Time is running out for the Legacy Outback in Japan where the order books will close in late March 2025. It could happen even earlier if the company receives enough demand for the remaining production run.

In the United States, the Outback is still going strong, even if the sixth-generation model has been around since 2019. Through September 2024, deliveries are up by 2.8%, reaching 126,333 units. We sadly can't say the same for its sedan sibling as demand for the Legacy has plummeted by 25.4% to 14,642 cars in the first nine months of the year. That makes the Outback about eight and a half times more popular. The sedan is on its way out as Subaru will end production after the 2025 model year is over.