Subaru still refuses to build another WRX wagon/hatchback for the US, and we can’t figure out why. The old five-door was hugely popular among enthusiasts before it disappeared for good in 2012. Since then, we’ve only gotten increasingly worse versions of the sedan—with no hint of a returning hatchback (unless you live in Europe).
One WRX fan, though, decided to take matters into his own hands.
Stephen Ketelsen—who goes by @vb_hatch on Instagram—transformed his stock Crosstrek into a proper WRX hatchback. And we don’t mean a lookalike body kit; this is a true FA24-swapped Crosstrek with pieces ripped straight from a modern WRX. And it absolutely rules.
We reached out to Stephen via email, and he was gracious enough to share details and photos of the build—and explain exactly how the project came to life.
The project started with a stock Crosstrek, which Stephen bought new in 2020. He quickly realized that the factory 150 horsepower wasn’t exactly what he wanted. It did have a manual, at least, but he immediately went to work on figuring out how to make his otherwise ho-hum crossover into something more closely resembling a sporty Subaru.
After doing some research, Stephen got in contact with Dan Hurwitz, owner of Mach V Motorsports, a Subaru specialty shop in Sterling, Virginia. Stephen pitched the idea of doing a WRX-swapped Crosstrek. After some thinking, the duo got to work on figuring out if it was even possible.
"With my car up on one lift and Dan’s VB on another, we measured the subframes to see if they were similar," Stephen explains to Motor1 via email. "Dan was also gracious enough to let me peer around the interior of his car to try and eyeball what, if anything, might be the same."
"There were indeed similarities, but nothing that gave me absolute certainty," Stephen says. "Ultimately, I had reached the limit of what research alone could tell me, so I had to make a decision whether or not to take the risk and go for it."
'Ultimately, I had reached the limit of what research alone could tell me, so I had to make a decision whether or not to take the risk and go for it.'
After a few weeks of thinking and a quick test drive in a new VB WRX, Stephen was convinced: He would go through the process of transforming his Crosstrek into a modern WRX hatchback. Of course, it wasn't nearly as simple as slapping in a new engine and calling it a day.
"I immediately began to scour salvage auctions for potential donors," he says. "In early October 2024, I won an auction for a 2022 Subaru WRX Premium, with the promising FA24 and six-speed manual transmission. Not long after the car arrived, I began tearing it down in my tiny one-car garage at my apartment. I didn't really have a game plan; I just started pulling parts off and setting them aside."
In tiny apartment garages over the span of a few weeks—and with some help from his friends at Mach V Motorsports for heavier elements like the engine and transmission—Stephen stripped his Crosstrek and newly owned salvaged WRX down to the essentials, meticulously labeling and organizing each and every piece in preparation for the swap.
Then came the fun part: Installing WRX pieces onto the Crosstrek.
"I began by running the interior wiring all throughout the cabin, and feeding the bulkhead harness through the firewall," Stephen says. "For the most part, everything lined up well. There were a few issues toward the rear of the car, mainly to do with making systems designed for a sedan function in a hatchback. Not having much experience with wiring, I entrusted Mach V with resolving those issues."
Once the cabin was mostly reassembled, Stephen went to work on swapping the WRX’s rear subframe onto the Crosstrek.
'For the most part, everything lined up well. There were a few issues toward the rear of the car, mainly to do with making systems designed for a sedan function in a hatchback.'
"I swapped the WRX's rear subframe onto the Crosstrek. Everything bolted up perfectly, and I was able to carry over most of the suspension modifications that were already on the Crosstrek before the swap. I got both cars ready for transport to Mach V, and after making sure I had everything in order, the two cars were towed to the shop in late August 2025."
From there, Stephen brought both cars to Mach V’s shop for the final mechanical work: Installing the WRX’s VB engine and six-speed transmission into the Crosstrek. Over the next few weeks, he shuttled parts back and forth as Dan and his team worked on the swap. According to Stephen, the engine “required absolutely no modifications—it just bolted right up."
But the team did hit one minor snag before the car was fully drivable.
According to Stephen, the Crosstrek's radiator core support wasn't compatible with the WRX's radiator and accessories. That meant they would have to transplant the WRX's core support and swap the entire front end of the Crosstrek to make it work.
Both cars were then transported to Marc Gomez, owner of Independent Car Collision in Sterling, Virginia, who was able to get the core support swapped over relatively simply. After some quick tests to see how the body panels would line up, though, Stephen quickly realized that the front fenders would be a bit of an issue.
"The front bumper and hood fit perfectly, but the front fenders were a different story," he says.
"The mounting points of the fenders were not the same on both cars, so we decided to cut both fenders and re-stitch them back together such that they would mount up to the chassis correctly, but follow the body lines of the VB front end."
Once those minor fitment issues were resolved, the cars went back to Mach V for the final upgrades. With a few tweaks to the powertrain and interior, Stephen’s VB WRX wagon was finally ready for the road. With just a few months of hard work and help from guys like Dan Hurwitz and Marc Gomez, Stephen’s dream of a modern WRX hatchback was fully realized.
But according to Stephen, the swap is just the beginning.
"For now, it behaves just like a stock VB WRX, but that won't last long," he says. "The goal was always more power, and while the swap nearly doubled the Crosstrek's original horsepower figure, I fully intend on adding bolt-ons and experiencing for myself what this powertrain is capable of."
Stephen plans to continue upgrading his WRX Crosstrek (or whatever you want to call it) with more parts, pieces, and power. We can't wait to see what the final form looks like. You can follow his progress on his Instagram page: @vb_hatch.