The long-awaited 2008 Impreza WRC rally car will make its factory-backed World Rally Championship debut at the Acropolis Rally later on this month, instead of August’s Rally Finland, as originally planned. The race car, based on the third-generation Impreza WRX STI platform, has been undergoing testing since last year, with an official debut at last September’s Frankfurt auto show and official photos coming a month earlier. Replicas of it have been shown at auto shows around the world, including the Detroit show this past January.
The reason for the car’s early debut include strong early tests that encouraged Prodrive, who’s in charge of the race car’s development, to run it in Greece on May 29-June 1, according to Autocar. The same flat-four engine will power the new car, though Prodrive supposedly worked diligently on optimizing the car’s weight distribution and engineering a new transmission. The differentials used in the current car have been blamed as the cause for the car’s many retirements and poor performance in recent races.
With 2003 World Champion Petter Solber currently in eighth place in Championship standings, and teammate Chris Atkinson in third, the new car could bolster the pair’s chances, although traditionally, new cars have been problematic due to technical problems not even extensive testing could unveil.
With the new car’s launch, its success in competition would give Subaru priceless marketing for its upcoming sports coupe better, and differentiate it from Toyota’s nearly-identical offering? The new car is the first Impreza to compete in the WRC with the hatchback body style.
05/20, 2:39 PM
posted by:
xyunya
Not a bad looking thing, without that wing.. Wing puts it into ugly airplane division.
05/20, 3:04 PM
posted by:
mr.meanpants
I think the new Impreza needs all the marketing help it can get.
05/20, 3:06 PM
posted by:
mr.meanpants
I have seen about five WRXes and zero STIs since the new car was introduced.
05/20, 3:09 PM
posted by:
kagon
I think the whole hatchback/station wagon thing hurt the image a bit, and the new evo really knocked it out in the looks department. What do you guys think is keeping them from selling? I mean there has to be something else, the used to have a huge cult following.
05/20, 3:35 PM
posted by:
mr.meanpants
I have not driven one yet, but apparently the steering is lifeless, something the previous model had in spades. And in WRX form it is suppository bland.
05/20, 4:02 PM
posted by:
A4
someone in my town has a new STi, its hella sexy.
05/20, 4:03 PM
posted by:
A4
and wtf meanpants? suppository? it goes in your ass?
05/20, 4:14 PM
posted by:
Impulsive
It may not go IN your ass but it definitely looks like all Subarus in general … it LOOKS like ASS.
05/20, 4:17 PM
posted by:
sprockkets
The front is like a sebring
The EVO also took a nose dive in looks too. Its like that and the GT-R both want to look like a Toyota Tundra.
but, what does toyota use in rally racing?
05/20, 4:35 PM
posted by:
mr.meanpants
STI looks great, the WRX looks like a slightly funky bar of soap.
05/20, 7:36 PM
posted by:
johnnycanuck
Whatever you want to say about Subaru I love the new TV Ad with the Sumu wrestlers washing the Forester. Whoever thought that up is a sick twisted f*ck and if he was here right now I’d buy him a beer.
05/20, 9:31 PM
posted by:
brocky
LOL ^
05/21, 7:26 AM
posted by:
JohnnyBlazE
It’s “Solberg” LLN; Sort it out.