Before the Subaru WRX landed in the United States, there wasn't much of a market for affordable and practical performance cars.
Think about it for two seconds. Before the WRX, name something similar. Sure, performance coupes were big, but not sedans with proper sports car credentials. It's safe to say Subaru changed the U.S. automotive landscape with the WRX's introduction.
And now, you can learn all about it thanks to Donut Media. Born from rally racing, the Subaru WRX, called the Impreza WRX for years, came to life on the rally stage in 1993. Subaru first ran the larger Legacy in rally stages, but the Impreza would become the go-to machine for victory, thanks to someone you may know: Colin McRae. Subaru introduced the first WRX, or World Rally Experimental, in Japan in 1992, and followed up the WRX with the STI in 1994 after a banner rally season.
Then, the most iconic WRX STI came: the 22B. It celebrated Subaru's first World Rally Championship in 1995 and only 424 were made. The 22B featured a functional hood scoop, rear wing, gold wheels, foglight covers, flared wheel arches, plus much more to pronounce its significance. It's arguably the most iconic STI ever made.
In 2002, Subaru finally graced the U.S. with the WRX and we can credit it for opening up the affordable performance car market. Following the WRX and STI, Mitsubishi brought the Lancer Evolution, eventually Volkswagen brought the Golf R, Ford introduced the Focus RS, and only now is America experiencing the Civic Type R. Without the WRX, we may not know these cars as we do today.
