Overview

SPIRITUAL predecessor to the iconic Impreza WRX, the Liberty RS Turbo set its own scintillating performance agenda thanks to a turbocharged 147kW/260Nm 2.0-litre engine married to Subaru's symmetrical all-wheel drive transmission.

Especially in wagon form, where there was nothing at any price approaching it for its combination of power, grip and load-carrying practicality.

But these were the days before Subaru really made its name on the world rallying circuit, before Sony's PlayStation introduced the marque to millions of game-players worldwide, and before the world woke up from its 1980s hangover that was the early 1990s recession.

In hindsight, Subaru's move to replace the relatively expensive and heavy Liberty RS Turbo with the lighter and more affordable Impreza WRX was a masterstroke then...