If this is true, Subaru has
If this is true, Subaru has clearly forgotten what made the STI great.
I know that HP is not what makes a car great but it certainly matters and attracts buyers so...
Back in 2004 the STI had ~300 HP. Guess what? The mustang GT at the time had around 300 as well, and mustangs back then couldn't take a corner. The charger didn't exist, and the Camaro was still an f-body that couldn't handle for shit and had low 300's HP-wise. The E46 M3 had 330-something, pretty sure the RS4 wasn't sold in the states and the S4 had 250 HP, not sure if the C class had anything above the C32 AMG which was in the low/mid 200's.
No, these cars are not in the same class but somebody would be a fool to think that the STI's popularity and greatness wasn't large in part contributed to by comparing it to these cars. For 30k you could get something with similar power to a something german and fast, or a V8 muscle car, but something that could also stop and handle, and worked in ice and light snow. It cost much less than the german sports sedans of the time.
Now the STI has ~300HP, 0-60 in the low 5's, 1/4 mi. is low 13's... I'm sorry, I want an STI that has been able to catch up to the muscle cars and german sports sedans, otherwise it's absurd paying well over 40k for a 300hp Subaru. I know it's "not about power" but by not keeping up, it's losing its original appeal. This thing needs to run 0-60 in the very low 4's and a 1/4 mi. in the low 12's.
The only plus I can think of is if the powertrain is built to withstand tuning the car to at least that level performance with a couple bolt-ons, no crazy expensive upgraded DI injectors and high pressure fuel pump, and a re-flash while still remaining very reliable and a mod-friendly dealer network. This won't happen.