We bring this breaking news report to you from a very sombre DriveTribe towers, get your black armbands ready, the Subaru WRX STI is dead.

The Subaru WRX STI has been with us for some years now in varying forms of similarity, we think of it as the automotive equivalent of a thing that doesn’t really like to change its ways. Its approach to power output and the delivery of said power has remained pretty much the same for the last decade.

Its profile of being a shouty, super-quick slightly barking hot Japanese saloon car has never changed either. For this, and the fact that it’s retained its manual gearbox along with its level of driver involvement over the years, we have to salute it as one of the greatest ways to be fast.

Now Subaru has decided to say a tearful goodbye with this, the WRX STI ‘Final Edition’. Power comes from the familiar 2.5-litre four banger and remains at 296bhp, and it gets an uprated differential that’s now fully electronic for sharper power distribution.

The other changes that you can actually see include a strengthened set of Brembo brakes, along with a set of 19-inch wheels to house them. The front styling has been tweaked to make it look meaner with a larger grille for improved cooling. On the inside, it gets red stitching and matching trim throughout alongside a fancy new infotainment system with a larger screen, and heated seats to keep you warm when you’re drifting through snow and ice.

We get a sense here that this could be the light-touch facelift the WRX STI needed to soldier on for a few more years, but, sadly not. Want one? You’ll have to be quick as only 150 examples will make it to the UK, it’s on sale now and can be yours for just £33,995.

Are you sad at the news of the untimely demise of the Subaru WRX STI? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.