The ten best WRC cars ever | From Quattro to Impreza

Some rally cars are good, some rally cars are great, all really cars are really capable machines. But sometimes you just need to separate the wheat from the chaff, and while that chaff is still incredible in general terms, in the WRC it just doesn't even break into any list.
So we have picked the cars that stick in our brain the most from the history of the WRC the ones that have, through success or just plain awesomeness, meant we cannot forget about them. That means cars from the Subaru Impreza, to the Quattro and even the little Fiat 131.
But of course you will disagree, so let us know in the comments what we got wrong.
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
01:00 Subaru Impreza
02:15 Volkswagen Polo R WRC
03:25 Fiat 131 Abarth
04:25 Audi Quattro
05:22 Citroën C4 WRC
06:39 Toyota Celica
07:52 Peugeot 205 T16
09:00 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution
10:13 Lancia Delta HF
11:07 Peugeot 206 WRC
#gwflatout #WRC #BestWRCCars
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[@GoodwoodRR]

You're all going to be angry aren't you?

[@MulettoMotorsports]

No, no. It's a pretty complete list.

[@grandicellichannel]

Nono you pretty nailed it, I'd only have added the Stratos and maybe the Lancia Rally 037 Evo.

[@benjaminbenson8714]

Mk2 Escort. Idiots.

[@benjaminbenson8714]

Mk2 Escort. Idiots.

[@TVtwarn]

Tough job with such a small list target …. Even tougher job to please everybody

[@gabehowe2778]

I find the lack of multiple Lancias on this list disturbing. At LEAST the Stratos deserved to be here, and possibly the 037. I think the Mini should also have been on this list. 10 is hard though

[@jtwells1227]

Although in fairness the Mini (of the 60s) wasn't in the WRC.

[@Da5idc]

DEFINITELY the Stratos should have been here - beautiful, built just to race and fiendishly difficult to drive. Also, the last RWD car to win the championship

[@p_jones]

@@Da5idc 🤔 the 131, Escort and several others won after the Stratos and they were all RWD.. albeit yeah I'm sure not as twitchy!

[@PrinceVeganin]

@@Da5idc The 037 was RWD.

[@AbrahamArthemius]

@@Da5idc The 037 was the last RWD to win the championship.

[@bazzacuda_]

The best thing about rallying used to be that you could buy a rally car for the road. Plenty of people did buy Impreza STis, Evos, Escort Cosworths, Lancia Integrales, Toyota Celicas with a 4wd drivetrain and 2.0 turbocharged engine that looked like a rally car and you could get them through a dealer showroom. Rallying lost something when it allowed manufacturers not to have to make a roadgoing model. You could not go into a VW dealership and buy a 4wd Polo R or a Hyundai dealership to buy a 4wd turbo i20.

[@codemy666]

Atleast Toyota created the GR Yaris to keep the spirit alive

[@ShubhoBose]

Well you can still buy the Focus RS, WRX, as well as the GR Yaris.

[@codemy666]

@@ShubhoBose Wrx is a shadow of it's former self and the Focus RS isn't in production anymore

[@crazyquilt]

Stratos is life.

[@Falkenlp3]

Impreza is Love

[@joshjackburns]

That Ferrari Dino V6 is incredible

[@realkirbo]

stratos is love

[@cossie60]

You cannot have a rally car all-time great list without the Ford Escort, honourable mention for no Lancia Stratos.

[@GoodwoodRR]

Aha, we said WRC cars, the Escort is a legend across rallying, but its victories at the very top level have been quite slim compared to others. Stratos, we'll give you, but it was a tough choice to come down to 10.

[@cossie60]

@@GoodwoodRR sure it won 2 world titles in 79 and 81

[@chrisbiewer-rallye-info]

Yes, definitely missing the Escort here. Sure it's slim on victories? As James Doherty mentioned it won even 3 World Championships, 2 drivers in 79 and 81 plus the makes in 79. Alone the Escort Mk2 won 17 WRC rallies, that is only 1 less than the Fiat 131 and as many as the Stratos. If you go over all generations, as you do with Impreza and Lancer Evo, the Escort has 31 victories, that's still more than the Lancer.

[@kwamea.n1723]

@@chrisbiewer-rallye-info i love the escort i had it in 1/24 as a child but it is less iconic and it has less cultural impact than the Lancer Evo

[@benjaminbenson8714]

@@kwamea.n1723 I don't agree there. Rallying spawned 2 special addition escorts. On top of that they are making new Mk2 escorts now and I can guarantee the Lancer won't be remanufactured. Its the original working man's warrior. Not to mention Roger Clark in his iconic white and blue escort.

[@nagasako7]

WRC hasn't been same since Subaru/Mitsubshi left.

[@anamayarawa514]

And vice versa.

[@codemy666]

@@anamayarawa514 Mitsubishi is just dead at this point, creating boring budget cars to stay afloat and i heard they'll stop producing cars in the future altogether

[@heesingsia4634]

Someone needs to purchase the Evo rights from Mitsubishi and enter the wrc for one last time. They can introduce it in its final version with a zerg voice and call it "evolution complete"

[@codemy666]

@@heesingsia4634 The "evo" name isn't taken by mitsubishi, many companies have used the evolution name on their cars, before and after Mitsubishi

[@dct1]

The golden era of rallying has been and gone.

[@legoferrari14]

A little bit of trivia about Volkswagen; before the Polo R, VWAG Fielded two entries into the World Rally Car category in the late 90's and early 00's with their subsidiaries; the Spanish Seat, and the Czech Skoda. Ultimately the self-competition between the brands and the two teams' less than ideal platforms meant both struggled, with Seat pulling out their Cordoba around the turn of the Millennium, while Skoda continued with their unwieldy Octavia until '03 when they switched to the Fabia, before they pulled out of the top flight 2 years later. Skoda however stuck around in the lower classes, most notably in Super 2000 with the Fabia in its Second Generation guise where it saw major success and even helped springboard the VW Rally Team into action with the experience of fielding a car in the lower class

[@elnino7822]

Mmmm the WRX really gets my juices flowing. Absolutely adore it. That blue and gold is so iconic. 💙💛

[@Tony-1971]

Impossible to pick a favourite rally car. Love them all.

[@randolphkummer2720]

Certainly, a Stratos as well as a Delta S4 deserve a mention. Yet to pick 10 is never doing everyone justice. For the 131, I remember Walter quoting 240hp not the quoted 140.

[@codemy666]

Well tbh with already two group b cars on the list, the S4 just wouldn't fit in, it didn't have enough time to elevate it's legendary status above the early Quattro's success and the 205

[@robertrishel3685]

Lancia 037!

[@kwamea.n1723]

France and Japan with 3 cars are really a massive part of the story of rally cars i love it because their production counterpart is not too expensive

[@littlepeugeot8341]

people just don't appreciate the French enough

[@kitzbuehel910]

1. Ford Escort RS Cosworth 2. Lancia Stratos HF 3. Lancia 037 4. Mini Cooper S 5. Renault Alpine A110 6. Renault 5 Turbo 7. Peugeot 504 8. Saab 96 and so on. Rallying is always entertaining! Great List of yours anyway..

[@connor6984]

You guys at goodwood know how to kick things off… with a banger…WOOHOO

[@RenR70]

No Lancia 037 Stradale? C’mon now.

[@mariojakel5544]

with only one title?

[@Tom_Hadler]

Stradale is the street version for homologation. But yeah the 037 is super cool

[@RenR70]

@@Tom_Hadler I know, i was just putting the car in case people wanted to look it up.

[@RenR70]

@@mariojakel5544 Yeah but it was the last rear wheel drive to win it.

[@troynov1965]

No Lancia Stratos? Thats just WRONG !

[@KuroNekoKohi]

Awesome vid. Please make more of these, i love it. Kinda feel like the 037 should be here, the last successful rwd wrc car

[@BlackRootsUNLIMITED]

I'm with the Audi Quattro, the Mitsubishi Evolution and the Lancia Delta 🔥❤️🖤 Greetings from Uganda 🇺🇬👊🏿🖤❤️

[@Morbieman]

As others have mentioned, the Lancia Stratos needs to be there. I would also argue the Lancia Delta S4, if for no other reason than it’s pure insanity. Definitely need an Escort or two in there, but I also cannot argue with the cars on the list.

[@mariojakel5544]

each car in the list won more or the same amount WRC titles as Stratos(3), DeltaS4(0), Escort1800RS(1) and Escort RS Cosworth(0) combined

[@TheRUBrally]

Great list, we have lots of other great cars that should be here (Stratos, Alpine, 037...) But I know it's hard select Just 10 rally Legends

[@s2korpionic]

I find the Impreza, Celica and Lancer fascinating.

[@AlphAriesBoyz8497]

WHERE THE HECK IS STRATOS ? OH COME ON GUYSSSS

[@EDGEDAZZA]

I was going to spit chips if the Celica wasn’t there

[@choppereight]

Cool, informative video✌️

[@rns_nickitoloko_psn5775]

RS200 needs some love as well

[@stevewilliams2498]

FORD ESCORT !!!

[@FarWesT3188]

Fantastic list, love most of those cars. One of the few cars I wish I could have is a Lancia Delta HF (or Integrale). One car that could've been added is the Lancia Stratos, only because it was able to challenge and beat the Quattro, despite being rear wheel drive.

[@GoodwoodRR]

Do you mean the 037? The Stratos and the Quattro were different eras, the 037 was the Group B car.

[@FarWesT3188]

@@GoodwoodRR Oops, yes, my bad.

[@codysykes5568]

@@FarWesT3188 The name moniker for the 037 was Stradale, in case you need an S word to keep them apart like I do :v

[@Slush_]

@@codysykes5568 it's definitely a helpful way to remember them, but technically the 037 Stradale is a different car. Stradale is just an Italian work for road-going, and the label was applied to the homologation specials for the 037. The racing version was genuinely just called the 037.

[@mtsproduction29]

6:38 Yassssss!!! Toyota Celica rally is my favorite rally car!!!

[@WerdnaLiten]

A rallycar list without the Ford Escort, or Stratos, really?? And Toyota weren't banned, but TTE were; Toyotas entered by Toyota Team Sweden & Grifone were still seen in 1996.

[@john.s1962]

Started with the best!

[@isaacsrandomvideos667]

Amazing

[@fancyslimoshady]

I have a Toyota Celia GT 1995 just sitting in my garage and has not been started in two years.. I might make it a project car this summer.

[@boosterseat740]

Evolution is true Evolution :3

[@maxmustermann6612]

The Lancia 037 is one of the best looking cars ever

[@Official_MikeyT]

Pretty solid list my only change would have been dropping the Fiat in favour of the Stratos or 037B.

[@highspeedhawk]

Ford Escort MK2

[@marcusraz5677]

The Citroën Xsara is constantly being overlooked.

[@maycondeivisferrari7422]

NICE VIDEO..........BRAZIL HERE

[@minibus9]

nice video

[@csamby1694]

Did stig blomqvist. Not Driver Scooby some time Mabe he woos a legend also love the video pall thanks

[@cj15941]

Ford Escort, Mini, 037, RS200 is a cool one but never got it’s chance to really be sorted to be as competitive as we would’ve liked to have seen

[@wsk350pl6]

The best times for WRC were the 80s and 90s, and then after 2007 everything started to break down until the complete destruction of WRC, i.e. the introduction of Hybryd .. I can not imagine a Rally car without the sound of the engine, even on a driveway and no matter if the new cars will be they had 800 horses and they will achieve better times. No engine sound is like a Super model without teeth And the Audi Quattro is for me a lesson and the epitome of Automotive As it should be, that is pure power without any limits and a show of German unfettered engineering. Yes, there were mishaps, but when the car worked and the accountants did not interfere, it ruled the Rally routes. And the sound of this monster's engine still makes me feel like goose bumps all over my body

[@TheLRider]

Lancia Delta S4 followed by the Peugeot T16 and the Stratos. Top three no contest.

[@jonfriktion07]

Delta s4!!!

[@dct1]

The Mitsubishi Lancer WRC at 9:45 was absolutely honking and shouldn't be confused with the previous Evo cars. Why Mitsubishi swapped to the WRC lancer midway through the 2001 season was ludicrous and basically killed Tommi's title challenge, also the corsica crash in that car lead to his co-driver with permanent injuries.

[@chrisprud7688]

Subaru Impreza for me

[@alessandrolibero0401]

The 131 abarth gr.4 had 200hp, and around 220hp on the latest evolutions. Only the road version had just 140hp

[@evolveVIII]

I've own 2 evos... Happy they were even mentioned

[@ReadyAimFire_]

Really solid list, but Lancias Stratos and 037, Ford Escort, Alpine A110 and Mini imo should be here. So maybe top15 would be better, as really its hard to remove cars from video.

[@TougeSolo]

Lancia 037 or the Stratos should be on here. As well as the GR Yaris. Although it's the new kid on the block, it marks the return and dominance of Toyota and WRC.

[@GoodwoodRR]

The GR Yaris has never rallied...

[@X8X8X8X8X8X8X8X8X8X]

GR Yaris?

[@TougeSolo]

@@X8X8X8X8X8X8X8X8X8X My original reply was deleted for some reason, but the Gazoo Racing Yaris won the triple treble of WRC in 21. Driver - Co driver - Manufacture championships. Even the now production car called the GR Yaris is based off of the WRC version of the Yaris.

[@JosesitoSaldivia]

the Focus and the i20

[@X8X8X8X8X8X8X8X8X8X]

@@TougeSolo The current Yaris did very well, but I think it is a bit too little to put it down as one of the top 10 WRC cars of all time. Even more so, to add a future car which has yet to prove itself.

[@giuseppemaggio5894]

Imagine making a top 10 list of WRC cars and including the Polo or the Evo but no including all the Lancias with the exception of the Delta....

[@carlosmagnus717]

Peugeot 205 Turbo 16, Lancia Delta S4 and Ford RS 200 have the best configuration a rally car can have. The difference is in the mid-rear engine. What gives an optimal distribution of weights with the best possible polar moment of inertia. Obviously this cars haven't been able to evolve or benefit from the progress of technology in suspensions, tires, transmissions, etc., which have been endowed with the passing of years the Gr. A, the WRC and the current cars of the Championship , which are also much easier to carry and forgive many piloting mistakes.

[@mariojakel5544]

you forget only 1.8l engines= less weight, shorter Wheelbase, Audi Coupe Quattro 2144ccm= the rally car must have over 1000Kg, Audi Sport Quattro same engine but 2133ccm= can go under 1000Kg

[@tomasnokechtesledger1786]

I like a Pug 206 Turbo 4x4

[@happitok]

If you talked about WRC rules, many on this list did not qualify. It got mixed up with Group A and B. The Ford Escort Gr.A or in WRC guise is an icon for just 1 reason...that giant whale tail spolier. And many cars followed that.

[@simoneburini4036]

I think he talks about WRC in the sense of "world rally championship", not "world rally car"

[@SpartanGuy]

No RS200 or Escort? Really?

[@vagjagan]

Lancia ❤️

[@josh1alderete]

Love that fiat 131

[@ilkkak3065]

Ford Escort should have been on list!

[@Ben-wd2in]

The Yaris will find its way onto future top 10s methinks

[@eni3995]

Fiat 131 but no Stratos ? Must be a joke lol

[@stevenfernando1842]

The 037 and Stratos have to be on the list.

[@czeresnia7318]

Xara, focus mk1, lancia stratos

[@semiretired86]

Opel Ascona/Manta 500?

[@manoliswec5674]

stratos?

[@OverTheHillsAdventures]

Cant get any more British than 'go togethet like hot water and a tea bag'

[@marciocarvalho8975]

Citroen also has a wonderfull history at WRC

[@3gsmotorsport]

Ciao 👍👍

[@user-vc2rf7qr9z]

The Queen should be first not second. I love the 206 but it shouldn't be 1 first place instead of lancia for sure. Also you should have add Stratos!

[@StarFox85]

celica tshe - lee - cah like lan- tshia lancia👀

[@ssoth1762]

Escort rs cosworth?

[@TheGAVstudio]

Dunno why, but I would have put the Focus RS on this list....

[@ilkkak3065]

After watching this it's crazy that If you want successful rally car you need to get it from PSA, France...😲

[@tensevo]

2003 Impreza

[@bhuuthesecond]

Sometimes while I’m day dreaming I like to imagine what it would have been like if Ferrari entered the fray during the 80’s

[@extragoogleaccount6061]

Stratos kinda feels like it...?

[@nikomoin7604]

Can’t argue with the cars but it just feels like there are many missing

[@80sAudiSport]

"Capital Q by the way" Thank you Sir!

[@yannishiladakis5421]

where is the ESCORT RS?

[@wakamoto361]

7:10 suleeka?

[@splitdiceyt9236]

I keep hearing Impretzels

[@x2jzdave668]

The octavia wrc is the best, nothing even holds a candle to it

[@ripmax333]

No Skoda?

[@damircro1975]

FIAT 131 abatrth did not have 140 horse power...it was much morre...250-280 horse power...

[@benardojambojr5030]

Group B Subaru is still ma thing big up to Subaru USA

[@VisceralDisgust]

Imprezaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

[@marciocarvalho8975]

I dont like french cars but this is a fact! Citroen dominate WRC and Dakar for years

[@grandicellichannel]

Am I the only one that thinks that the Lancer EVOs and the Impreza have been the last "real" rally cars or I am only a nostalgic boy born in the mid 90s?

[@simoneburini4036]

In fact, they were the most famous cars of the final years of Group A. So yeah, they are the last "real" rally cars. But going with that rulebook was way too expensive, and that's why rallying went with the World Rally Car rules and touring car racing went with Supertouring rules (which later got out of hand as well and had to be replaced with Super2000 and then TCR). It sucks for us car guys, but it was the only sustainable thing to do.

[@randorand2231]

Now with new hybrid cars we can soon add Toyota gr yaris rally1 into here.

[@bigsmoke05pl80]

Where xsara wrc?

[@laurensfoekens6896]

the audi sounds the best of all

[@egg0534]

I feel like this list is missing something... Oh... I know, the 037

[@brianmorecombe2726]

They havent mentioned the Ford Escorts that won multiple rally championships

[@joe5boost]

lol you missed the 037

[@louisc76]

Quattro has to rank higher, just on awesome 5 cylinder sound alone! Plus, ground breaking awd.

[@TheLRider]

Leyland Siecial Tuning produced a 4wd Mini for rally Cross in 1972. That was ground breaking.

[@JD-eo7dr]

@@TheLRider off to have a look at this. I no there was a twin engine one called the 'twini' not sure what year but could be awd. Or is that cheating 🤷🤣🤣🤣

[@dianhermawan3262]

What about Ford... They have Focus WRC, Fiesta WRC... So Sad,.....😭😭

[@RealRiders]

ze leek ah

[@M.ARSEVEN]

You put the 131 on the list so you get an automatic like

[@Lunacy_Rs]

Lancia delta s4 Henri toivonen

[@diponegorosiregar1489]

Citroen xsara great

[@lutherblissett9070]

140hp even for the 70s seems like a low figure. That would put them about 120hp behind the Escorts, which surely can't be right?

[@sylvaincastano3294]

The 1600 Alpine A110 barely had 160hp-180hp on race trim, back then tyres weren't able to digest monstrous powers so weight was key ! Fiat wasn't the giant Ford was back then espacially Abarth which was a small boutique. With the DFV Ford knew how to get big power with a small unit but Lancia needed a Ferrari V6 to get similar HP

[@nachof248]

well... VW had Skoda racing on WRC