BLACK & BLUE
Classic & Sports Car|March 2022
In an era when WRC success made a real impact on showroom sales, Subaru and Ford launched bruising rally-bred machines that would become performance icons
SIMON HUCKNALL
BLACK & BLUE

Ford and Subaru's works rally teams enjoyed great World Rally Championship success in the 1990s and noughties, and were responsible for creating two of the wildest and most potent turbocharged road cars on the market. But they appeared in showrooms for very different reasons.

Whatever your allegiance to a particular manufacturer in the world of rallying, you'd have to be an anti-Ford diehard to deny the success of the Escort during the 1970s and early '80s. The works RS 1800 roundly trounced its opposition until the all-wheel-drive might of Audi's quattro became an unassailable obstacle to rivals with only one driven axle. But that winning streak, while it lasted, allied to the then mainstream popularity of the sport, made a bluechip business case for production-car spin-offs such as the Mexico, RS 2000 and RS 1800. Within a few years, would-be Björn Waldegårds were everywhere on British roads.

But nothing lasts forever, and coincident with the launch of an all-new front-wheel-drive Escort platform in 1980, Ford's works rally team instead started to focus its attention on the Sierra RS Cosworth and mid-engined RS 200, and it wasn't until the end of the decade that, with a new Mk5 production car imminent, Ford turned again to the Escort as both a potential WRC contender and a high-performance road car.

At around the same time, David Richards' Prodrive group had become the de facto works team for Subaru, rapidly scoring rally successes initially with the Legacy and then, from 1995 onwards, the more compact and agile Impreza. Three drivers' titles and three manufacturers' titles followed, and that exposure spawned a voracious appetite among enthusiasts for more hardcore versions of the already quick Impreza Turbo and later WRX production models.

This story is from the March 2022 edition of Classic & Sports Car.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the March 2022 edition of Classic & Sports Car.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM CLASSIC & SPORTS CARView All
RAY HILLIER
Classic & Sports Car

RAY HILLIER

Double-chevron oddity proves a break from the norm for this Crewe specialist

time-read
3 mins  |
December 2024
SHORT BACK & GLIDES
Classic & Sports Car

SHORT BACK & GLIDES

Eccentric enthusiast Captain RG McLeod's series of Manx-tailed Bentley Specials reached its zenith with this unique S2 Continental.

time-read
7 mins  |
December 2024
People's choice
Classic & Sports Car

People's choice

The diminutive but multi-million-selling Fiat 850 packed a remarkable diversity of form and function into its compact footprint

time-read
10 mins  |
December 2024
PLASTIC BREAKS FROM THE NORM
Classic & Sports Car

PLASTIC BREAKS FROM THE NORM

Glassfibre revolutionised niche car-body production, but just occasionally strayed into the mainstream.

time-read
9 mins  |
December 2024
A SENSIBLE SUPERCAR
Classic & Sports Car

A SENSIBLE SUPERCAR

The cleverly conceived four-seater Elite secured Lotus a place at the big players' table, but has it been unfairly maligned since then?

time-read
9 mins  |
December 2024
"I had a habit of grabbing second place from the jaws of victory"
Classic & Sports Car

"I had a habit of grabbing second place from the jaws of victory"

From dreams of yachting glory to the Le Mans podium, via a stint at the top of the motorsport tree, Howden Ganley had quite the career

time-read
8 mins  |
December 2024
Still going strong
Classic & Sports Car

Still going strong

Herbert Engineering staked its reputation on the five-year warranty that came with its cars. A century on, this Two Litre hasn't made a claim

time-read
9 mins  |
December 2024
One for the kids
Classic & Sports Car

One for the kids

General Motors was aiming squarely at the youth market with the launch of the Pontiac GTO 60 years ago, and its runaway success popularised the muscle-car movement

time-read
8 mins  |
December 2024
A NEW BREED OF HERO
Classic & Sports Car

A NEW BREED OF HERO

Launched at the turn of the millennium, the GT3 badge has already earned a place alongside RS, CS and turbo in Porsche lore.

time-read
10 mins  |
December 2024
Brits with SIX appeal
Classic & Sports Car

Brits with SIX appeal

The straight-six engine is synonymous with a decades-long legacy of great British sports cars. Six variations on the sextet theme convene for comparison

time-read
10+ mins  |
December 2024