The 1997 Subaru Impreza WRC revolutionized the world of rallying with the incredible new-at-the-time World Rally Car formula.
Taking full advantage of new FIA rules, the folks over at Prodrive got together to design a car that would not only look fast sitting still but would also shatter the competition and bolt itself to the podium. All of that, without sacrificing reliability. It's a pretty tall order, but they pulled it off.
Prodrive's engineering team, led by David Lapworth, alongside Peter Stevens, designer of the McLaren F1, spent a year honing the design and mechanics of the new WRC. The car was built on the two-door Impreza body, to increase rigidity, and featured a 1994cc engine with a turbocharger and front-mounted intercooler, all of which combined pushed out 300 brake hp and 347 Ib-ft of torque.
All-in-all, the WRC '97 family of cars won 119 stage wins and eight World Rally Championship rounds. Collin McRae even praised the cars as faster than its Group A counterparts, so that's pretty cool.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aUZ0v80nzys
All of that racing pedigree and late 90's glory was up for sale. Britain's GAUK motors had all the details of how this one of a kind rally car was ready to go to the highest bidder, and when all was said and done, it sold for $300,000! Do you really need that house, anyways?
Related: What it looks like when a champion drives a Subaru