whats the deal (true WRC car or car show queen)?
03-02-2004, 10:18 PM
#1
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whats the deal?
this is a picture of Solberg's Impreza WRC from the Chicago 03 show. what i noticed is that this doenst seem to be the real one. for one, the spoiler is different on a WRC. there are probably other things i didnt really bother looking for. so is this just some kind of 'knock-off'? what is the deal here? i know america doesnt have as many rally fans as europe, but the ones it does have will notice things like that. they basically throw in a STi with all the logos and such, dont they?
03-02-2004, 10:38 PM
#2
I'd have to see the interior to be sure, but I doubt that it has all the electronic gizmos the WRC car has too. I wouldn't be supprised, either, if it has a 2.5L USDM STi motor rather then a real WRC engine.
The real WRC car costs something like $500,000 per car, where as this probably cost less then $60,000. Its just a show car, no big deal IMO. It was probably cheaper to dress up an STi then ship a real WRC car over to the US for a show.
Also, there are some interesting little things with the stickers. There is a sticker for the Subaru rally team USA that doesn't appear on the WRC car (www.rally.subaru.com on the roof near the rear window). Probably added due to the fact that it was being shown in Detroit. The Subaru of France URL (www.subaru.fr) was also taken off the back bumper. No need to advertise for the SOF in America. On the side skirts, sometimes it should say subaru-global.com, not swrt.com. The swrt.com sticker should be on the hoodscoop, and only visible from inside the car looking out (for the TV cameras mounted incar).
Anyways, I'd actually be more suprised if a real WRC car showed up at a car show. Thats a lot of wasted money.
EDIT: The wheels and side mirrors also don't look like the ones used on the real WRC cars.
The real WRC car costs something like $500,000 per car, where as this probably cost less then $60,000. Its just a show car, no big deal IMO. It was probably cheaper to dress up an STi then ship a real WRC car over to the US for a show.
Also, there are some interesting little things with the stickers. There is a sticker for the Subaru rally team USA that doesn't appear on the WRC car (www.rally.subaru.com on the roof near the rear window). Probably added due to the fact that it was being shown in Detroit. The Subaru of France URL (www.subaru.fr) was also taken off the back bumper. No need to advertise for the SOF in America. On the side skirts, sometimes it should say subaru-global.com, not swrt.com. The swrt.com sticker should be on the hoodscoop, and only visible from inside the car looking out (for the TV cameras mounted incar).
Anyways, I'd actually be more suprised if a real WRC car showed up at a car show. Thats a lot of wasted money.
EDIT: The wheels and side mirrors also don't look like the ones used on the real WRC cars.
Last edited by Nick Koan; 03-02-2004 at 10:45 PM.
03-03-2004, 07:02 AM
#3
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The car in the picture is a real WRC car used for promotions and run-down testing. Except for the small differences you guys have noted the rest of the car is rally specific including drivetrain, suspension, exhaust, electronics, etc. It's fully functional as a competition car if they chose to do that.
A quick note on the exhaust- FHI and SOA would not go through the trouble of dressing up an STi for show purposes and spend money on modifying the exhaust on it. It's clear that a stock STi has the exhaust exiting on the left, not on the right.
A few images from last year. Aside from the rear spoiler everything is visually identical.
A quick note on the exhaust- FHI and SOA would not go through the trouble of dressing up an STi for show purposes and spend money on modifying the exhaust on it. It's clear that a stock STi has the exhaust exiting on the left, not on the right.
A few images from last year. Aside from the rear spoiler everything is visually identical.
Last edited by subyfanatic; 03-03-2004 at 07:30 AM.
03-03-2004, 09:00 AM
#4
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Originally posted by subyfanatic
A quick note on the exhaust- FHI and SOA would not go through the trouble of dressing up an STi for show purposes and spend money on modifying the exhaust on it. It's clear that a stock STi has the exhaust exiting on the left, not on the right.
A quick note on the exhaust- FHI and SOA would not go through the trouble of dressing up an STi for show purposes and spend money on modifying the exhaust on it. It's clear that a stock STi has the exhaust exiting on the left, not on the right.
03-03-2004, 11:40 AM
#6
Good catch with the exhaust. I didn't even notice that 
I guess I could buy that Prodrive sent one of their preped 03s, but it seems a little cost-inefficient. Team managers are always complaining about the shipping costs of cars on non-european rallies.
Also, if it is a Prodrive preped 03 WRC car, they took the time to localize the stickers to the North American audience, but they didn't take the time to swap on the cheese grater spoiler?
I'd need to see more pictures before I'm convinced that this is a real WRC preped car.
I guess I could buy that Prodrive sent one of their preped 03s, but it seems a little cost-inefficient. Team managers are always complaining about the shipping costs of cars on non-european rallies.
Also, if it is a Prodrive preped 03 WRC car, they took the time to localize the stickers to the North American audience, but they didn't take the time to swap on the cheese grater spoiler?
I'd need to see more pictures before I'm convinced that this is a real WRC preped car.
03-03-2004, 01:41 PM
#8
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A Prodrive rally car is used once then torn down, rebuilt and sold. Its not like NASCAR where a driver would take a liking to a and he would use it again and agian. The cars take to much of a pounding.This is most likely a real Prodrive car that was modified for market identification.
03-04-2004, 01:30 PM
#11
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The exhaust on the WRC exits on the right to reduce backpressure. It allows for a straighter exhaust flow and a larger power increase. This is the reason the gas tank is eliminated and a fuel cell mounted inside the car. On a stock vehicle the gas tanks are shaped to allow clearance for the exhaust to exit on the left. Which answers the question about STi exit point, it still has the muffler on the left just like every other factory car. This would definitely be a costly modification on a street car but, if you managed to do it it would give you a hell of a power boost, especially since rally cars use either high flow catalyst or none at all. Also the same reason you see the small fire ***** exit the muffler during downshifts, makes for a nice flash effect but illegal on the street.
Hope this clears up the exhaust question.
Hope this clears up the exhaust question.
Last edited by subyfanatic; 03-04-2004 at 01:58 PM.
03-04-2004, 01:48 PM
#12
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Originally posted by senortighto
kinda off topic, but what size are the wheels on the wrc car for tarmac use? 17s or 18s?
kinda off topic, but what size are the wheels on the wrc car for tarmac use? 17s or 18s?
Gravel and snow events are run with 15 inch wheels and the front brakes are changed to 12 inch rotor with 4 pot calipers like the rear.
03-04-2004, 04:20 PM
#13
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I beleive it is a Real WRC car that was rebuilt and then handed over to the shows. A competitive WRC car actually cost around the $1 million mark. A rebuilt WRC car, one that have been raced and then rebuilt after the round, is then sold at $500,000 or approx half the cost. When rebuilt though, not all things are handed over to the person buying it. Subaru will not just give you all there gadgets but they will give you some.
I found this out watching a special last year on Speed TV. You should see how much work is put into them, they take a new STi for every round and totally strip it and rebuilt it for the next competition rounds. The pedals even come out or the floor instead of the top portion of the car... WILD
:banana: :banana:
I found this out watching a special last year on Speed TV. You should see how much work is put into them, they take a new STi for every round and totally strip it and rebuilt it for the next competition rounds. The pedals even come out or the floor instead of the top portion of the car... WILD
:banana:
:banana:
03-04-2004, 06:54 PM
#15
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Originally posted by bartolommeff
i just want to know who changed the subject line to that? i really dont want it to be that way, can i ask that it be changed back?
i just want to know who changed the subject line to that? i really dont want it to be that way, can i ask that it be changed back?
