Yahoo Autos 2023 Subaru WRX rally car ready to flick and fly in the American woods
After we (very briefly) drove the 2023 Subaru Prodrive WRX Prototype, we wrote that the 300-horsepower, Blue Pearl-hued four-door "reinforced something we already knew: This latest iteration of Subaru’s compact chassis came from the factory practically begging for a hotter treatment; it can take this and so much more." Well, we have our own version of Prodrive in the U.S. called Vermont Sports Car (VSC), and we have our own series where rally cars can do their thing, called the American Rally Association (ARA) Championship. More to the point, Subaru Motorsport USA and VSC have given the WRX that hotter treatment. With two races left in this year's American Rally Association Championship, the local competition arm introduces its brand new WRX-based racer for the Open 4WD class.
Built on the bones of the first WRX sold in the U.S., every important bit has been remade. Class rules mean the custom-built, turbocharged 2.0-liter boxer four is limited to 22 psi of boost breathing through a 33-millimeter restrictor plate, but the mill still makes 320 horsepower and 380 pound-feet of torque. Some portion of those numbers undoubtedly come from the custom VSC exhaust manifold and quick-change exhaust system. The engine's fed by a 21.7-gallon Kevlar fuel cell where the gas tank used to be.
There's no CVT to be found, power routed through a Tilton racing clutch to a close-ratio SADEV six-speed sequential transmission. From there, fancy software apportions power to all four wheels through a SADEV custom propshaft and SADEV differentials front and rear, and GKN custom driveshafts. Four-piston Brembos clamping 11.8-inch rotors manage the reverse of speed.
