Subaru Impreza WRC: Why RUIN Such a Good Thing?

I think this is the first time I’ve ever written about cars twice in a row but it just had to be said.

I’m a big fan of fast car, especially ones that look as good as they go and one of my favorites has always been the Subaru Impreza, which is strange since Subaru has a design team full of hyper-active, ADD kids on a diet of sugar cookies and maple syrup. I mean, seriously, who changes the design of a freakin’ car four times in less than ten years?! However, each time they’ve done it, even though I was a bit gutted that the previous design was gone, I grew to love it. I thought the 2006 version was ugly as sin when I first saw it but eventually, I started to like it.

The first one I saw was in 1998, the 22B and it was a thing of beauty. A friend of mine owns the “civilian” version of this and I still think it’s one of the best handling cars I’ve ever thrown around a track.

Even better was the 2002 model, which I think was the best looking with those blacked out projection headlights and personally, I think a rally car like this looks better…more substantial with four doors.

In 2004, it started to get all modern and strange but still not bad. I honestly considered buying a used STi recently since I found one in the color scheme I always liked (all black…pink accents). I started to like the front end more just as they killed it in favor of…

…the 2006 model which was the first I seriously didn’t like at the beginning. That front end looks like one of the ugliest cars of all time, the Subaru B9 Tribeca. However, even then, it wasn’t terrible since it retained the general shape of what you’d expect from a STi.

But then this year, it went all wrong. What the hell is this thing? For some reason, Subaru have looked at the latest hideous Korean cars and said “Hells yes!”. It’s like the love child of a Ford Focus and a Kia Rio and seriously no longer looks like a rally car should. Unfortunately for the rest of us, the looks have translated to the consumer production models, which look even worse since they lack the racing pedigree. The STi is still the previous, better looking body but it’ll probably be discontinued for the new one soon. I don’t doubt that the latest WRC car will be seriously quick but god, it makes me want to throw up. I don’t know who did the photoshop for the shoot was but he must be an idiot. You can’t have limo tint on a rally car!

So if you’re thinking of getting a STi, buy one quick before you get stuck with this gross Hyundai knockoff.

in Cars