Uh oh....

[subarude]

http://www.autoblog.com/2008/12/15/r...-wrc-tomorrow/ (http://www.autoblog.com/2008/12/15/rumormill-subaru-pulling-out-of-wrc-tomorrow/)

[FREAK]

wow interesting

[Bu11dogg2]

lame...

[RCKSTR]

but why? did I miss something?

[RobE]

wtf? :eek:

[-=The Boss=-]

its a Subaru driver...we dont pull out of anything.



ANYTHING :unamused:









:rofl::rofl:




think its the economy?

[FREAK]

^^^true :rofl:

It has to be why else would they do it?

[joel21wolter]

wow thats crazy. Is subaru being hit hard by the depression too then like the american motors

[RCKSTR]

no, they just feel bad for all the other teams they've spanked over the years. so they're sitting this one out:lol:

[method]

^^^ Subaru has been spanked many times. I don't understand your comment :-x

[jonny-rockets]

the economy. lots of big car companies are ditching their nascar deals and whatnot too.

[Fishstick]

It's official

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/72492

There are all sorts of rumors. Subaru is claiming it's the economy but many in the industry are citing the recent rule changes by the FIA for the 2010 season. (moving to the s2000 spec) The economy just provides a good cover to remove themselves gracefully from competition.

Hopefully this won't impact the Rally-America series.

BTW- Jan 24th Team Oneil rally school in Dalton NH is holding a 1 day regional Rally-America event. They are looking for volunteers!

http://www.teamoneil.com/rally/

I'll probably repost rally event in the new hampshire forum

[wagonmafia]

thats crazy, just last week i was reading that they trying to change the rules so they could run the wrc tarmac car in the touring car series. maybe they gonna be focusing more on the street racing series than the wrc. Track racing is way more popular and easier to get to than the wrc(my opinion)

Didnt mitsibushi?(i typed that like 5 times and couldnt get the correct spelling) also do something like this a couple of years ago. doing that the evo became more of a track and street car than the older evoIII and those years that where focussed and designed more for rally.

If this is where suby is going with this im all for it, if not gonna suck to see a rally icon as subaru pull out....

[Subygirl8330]

wow thats craziness! although a street car might be nice

[subarude]

Official:

PRESS RELEASE

16 December 2008

Subaru to withdraw from World Rally Championship

Subaru has announced its decision to withdraw from the 2009 World Rally Championship.

This sudden decision was in response to the widespread economic downturn that is affecting the entire automotive industry, and follows Suzuki’s withdrawal announced yesterday.

After 20 years in the sport, during which time the Prodrive-run Subaru World Rally Team has won six World Rally Championship titles, this is not only sad news for Subaru and the team, but also for millions of rallying fans around the world. Thanks to its highly successful World Rally Championship programme, Subaru has developed into one of the world’s most widely recognised and evocative automotive brands.

Prodrive chairman, David Richards, said: “Subaru’s departure from the World Rally Championship is a great loss as it is one of the sport’s icons. The Subaru World Rally Team has created true champions such as Colin McRae and Richard Burns and its absence will be felt by many the world over. Although this decision closes a significant chapter in Prodrive’s history, our focus now turns to the future.”

For many, Prodrive and Subaru are synonymous, given the long-standing and close association between the two companies. However, while the Subaru World Rally Team historically represented a significant part of Prodrive’s business, today it accounts for no more than 20 per cent of the company’s turnover.

Prodrive will look to redeploy as many of the rally team as possible in other areas of its business operations, which have grown to span advanced engineering and manufacturing for the automotive, defence, marine and aerospace industries, in addition to other motorsport programmes.

Despite the current economic downturn, Prodrive’s automotive engineering business remains buoyant as it works with vehicle manufacturers to accelerate the development of next generation fuel-efficient vehicles and alternative fuel technologies.

Together with Subaru, Prodrive’s commitment to its customer rally teams will also continue unabated for 2009 and beyond. Over the past 15 years, Prodrive has sold close to 500 rally cars to more than 400 private competitors and independent rally teams in 47 countries. During this time, Prodrive’s customers have won five consecutive Production World Rally Championships and countless international rallies. In 2008, Prodrive-supported customer teams have claimed eight rally championship titles around the world.

Looking ahead, 2010 will see the introduction of new World Rally Championship technical regulations, which provide Prodrive with an opportunity to prepare for re-entering the championship with a new team and build on its 24 years of World Rally Championship experience and success.

[wagonmafia]

that sucks balls.....

[Nate8409]

Oh well. Maybe they will come back into it later when they revise the chassis again and make it better.

More like competitive.