IMPREZA GC

About the Impreza GC

This is where the entire mythology begins. A compact sedan with a turbocharged boxer four, AWD, and a brief to win rallies. Subaru gave it to Colin McRae and he drove it like he'd stolen it. 208 horsepower from a 2.0-litre turbo flat-four. Five-speed manual. Symmetrical AWD. On paper, modest. On a forest stage, devastating. The 555 livery became the most recognizable motorsport paint scheme of the 1990s. The GC didn't win on power. It won on traction, on durability, on a chassis that could absorb punishment that would kill anything from Europe. Three WRC manufacturers' championships. Two drivers' titles. Stock GCs rusted. They got modified badly. They got crashed by teenagers. The survivors are worth more now than anyone would have predicted. Turns out the car that democratized rally performance had a shelf life nobody respected at the time.