Although the Subaru Impreza and WRX are intimately linked to the World Rally Championship in the minds of many enthusiasts, the automaker hasn’t actually competed in the FIA’s top rallying series since 2008. That may soon change, though.
On hand at the Acropolis rally in Greece, FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem suggested that Subaru may soon rejoin the primarily European racing series. It may do that with the help, and under the aegis, of Toyota, which owns a share of the company.
“It’s not a secret I had a good meeting with Mr Akio Toyoda, and I ask him what we can do [about enticing more manufacturers into the WRC] and I listened to someone who is passionate. And he mentioned Subaru,” said Ben Sulayem, per Dirt Fish. “I hope that some of that will come. I feel more manufacturers are good.”
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The support of Toyota will be important for Subaru because designing a car to race in the WRC may be difficult for it. To start, it would need to make a new chassis, since all teams are required to use bespoke space frames that are not related to a road car for crash safety purposes.
That means that it likely won’t be able to borrow much from the recently unveiled WRX rally car that is competing in the American Rally Association Championship this year, and is ultimately based on the production car. Moreover, the other cars in the WRC are hatchbacks, making Subaru’s historic competitor an awkward fit for the championship.
Another issue is the engine. The WRC requires automakers to use a 1.6-liter turbocharged engine with a mandatory hybrid unit, and Subaru doesn’t really have anything that matches that description. However, Toyota does.
“I see positive signs from the chairman of Toyota in convincing Subaru to come back and providing the engine, where Subaru’s issue is with the engine,” said Ben Sulayem. “It’s not with the car, it’s with the engine they have. And I can see some signs of optimism there, really.”
While there are still some questions to answer, and no official timeline on when they will be provided, it will no doubt lift the spirits of many Subaru fans to hear that a WRC challenge is possible.
