Suzuki pulls the plug? So can Subaru!

[Bram Turismo]

Unfortunately, they've pulled out of WRC as well. Norwegian link: http://www.vg.no/pub/vgart.hbs?artid=555524

 

[ExigeEvan]

Was that the article mentioned on Autoblog? I thought it wasn't entirely official yet?

 

[Mt. Lynx]

Two manufacturers left... So is WRC sustainable at this point? Or should they move on a bit and introduce the S2000 rules a year early?

 

[Bram Turismo]

Was that the article mentioned on Autoblog? I thought it wasn't entirely official yet?

The Norwegian article mentions that one of the higher placed persons at Subaru announced the pull-out early today.

 

[ExigeEvan]

You're right 👍

BBC source
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/world_rally/7785299.stm

 

[Tornado]

Am I the only one who thinks this was something that Subaru was going to do anyways?

 

[Bram Turismo]

Am I the only one who thinks this was something that Subaru was going to do anyways?

I can never imagine Subaru pulling out of the WRC for no special reason. Without WRC, Subaru wouldn't have been the brand it is today, and let's not forget, Subaru was the team that brought stars like Colin McRae and Richard Burns. I'll never forget the Subbies myself, I used to watch rally when I was a little child. Back in those days, Subaru were running the oldschool Impreza:

It still remains my all-time favourit rally car 👍

 

[Sureboss]

The new model Impreza looks awful as a rally car.

 

[showoff3civic]

it is very true, i live where most of the subaru rally cars are built and they said that subaru is pulling back the factory team

http://www.fhi.co.jp/english/contents/pdf_en_49558.pdf

 

[Speedster502]

The new model Impreza looks awful as a rally car.

Funnily enough, I said that before I actually saw one. When I went to the RBMR Marrko Martin entered in one, a brand new 2008 spec, it looked fantastic nothing like the old WRC car's I'll give you that but it certainly wasn't ugly...

 

[Tornado]

I can never imagine Subaru pulling out of the WRC for no special reason. Without WRC, Subaru wouldn't have been the brand it is today, and let's not forget, Subaru was the team that brought stars like Colin McRae and Richard Burns. I'll never forget the Subbies myself, I used to watch rally when I was a little child.

Rallying greats Toyota and Lancia pulled out at the drop of a hat, and in their case they had been front runners up until the day they pulled out. Subaru has been uncompetitive at best for 4 years now, and Mitsubishi has already shown that it doesn't much seem to matter in the grand scheme of things whether you are fronting a professional team when the biggest market for your cars (particularly the one that looks like the one they race) doesn't get any coverage at all. Even ignoring the theories (ie. The Impreza has gone soft, or Toyota had a hand in it, or other such probably-false yet thought-provoking claims) and staying strictly to fact, it doesn't make that much sense to keep pouring money into something that doesn't see any gains.

 

[Bram Turismo]

Didn't Toyota pull out of the WRC because of its Formula 1 plans?

 

[MagpieRacer]

This is a massive loss for WRC I would hope to see them back in it in the future.

 

[ROAD_DOGG33J]

I don't think they were planning to pull out at least not so soon. But the economy gave them major incentive to do it and they bit.