On April 2, 1988, Subaru Tecnica International was born.

Then known as STi, though it recently capitalised the ‘i’, the performance division of Subaru was preparing its boxer-powered Subaru Legacy RS RA to kick off a legacy of its own.

In January of 1989, the Legacy RS RA set a new FIA World Speed Endurance Record for 100,000km. It drove for 20 days on track in Arizona, setting an average speed of 222km/h.

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The WRX became a road-going racer, and dominated the gravel in rally car guise.

So much so, that Subaru won manufacturers’ titles in 1995, 1996, and 1997, making Subaru the first Japanese company to win it for three consecutive years.

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Perhaps the best known specific example of racing technology making it into a road-going Subaru was the WRX STi 22B.

Up until 2008, Subaru was a force to be reckoned with in rally, with the legacy of cars like the 22B and… well, the Legacy, pushing it along.

Even though it was on the decline, having not taken a manufacturer’s title since 1997, or a driver’s championship win since Petter Solberg’s 2003 victory, Subaru still had a presence.

Still, there’s always the next WRX – or whatever the Subaru Viziv STI Concept turns into – to keep us hanging on.