At next month's 2009 LA Auto Show, Subaru will launch a more hardcore version of its 2010 Impreza WRX STI aimed at the driving enthusiast. Available in an initial limited run of 125 units finished in an Aspen White color, the Impreza WRX STI Special Edition does away with some luxury amenities of the standard model while adding an upgraded suspension and wheels from the Japanese domestic market STI Spec-C.

Suspension goodies borrowed from the Spec-C include a 1-millimeter thicker rear stabilizer bar, stiffer rear sub-frame bushings plus upgraded and retuned springs. Up front, the springs are 16-percent stiffer, while at the rear, the shocks have been stiffened by 29-percent.

Furthermore, the Special Edition gets the JDM Spec-C's charcoal-colored, 18-inch 14-spoke alloy wheels shod in the same Dunlop SP600 tires as the other STIs.

Compared to the standard 2010 Impreza WRX STI, the Special Edition features halogen instead of HID headlights while the 6-CD /10-speaker system has been replaced with a single-disc CD player / 4-speaker audio system and the automatic climate control with manual air conditioning.

Other than that, the new Special Edition comes with the same 305HP turbocharged boxer engine, 6-speed manual transmission and Driver Controlled Center Differential (DCCD) version of Subaru's Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive system as the standard STI.

The 2010 Impreza WRX STI Special Edition will go on sale in the States in early Spring with pricing to be announced at the Los Angeles Auto Show. According to Subaru, after the initial run of 125 units in Aspen White, the Special Edition will become a regular production model later in 2010, offered in all standard colors.