With the new redesigns of two of the most iconic rally-based performance production cars, comes lots of controversy.  The looks alone have already put off many loyal, long time STI and EVO enthusiasts who have been forced to say goodbye to these cars.  The survival of these iconic machines rests in their performance.  That's all there is to it.  If these things don't perform like hellrazors, they're doomed.

It seems like Mitsu and Subie are heading in two completely different directions.  On one hand we have Mitsubishi trying to move up market with a nicer, more sophisticated, paddle shifting sports sedan far removed from Mitsubishi's rally days.  On the other hand, it seems Subaru is setting its sights on more of the rally competition.  Hopefully, the master plan for Subaru is to build a badass rally hatchback that will dominate WRC, but only time will tell.  But at this point, the new STI looks like it's meant to compete with other European WRC production cars (Citroen, Focus, Puegot, etc).

I am definitely eagerly awaiting the next generation WRC car from Subaru, but one thing is for sure; if the new STI and EVO are to survive, they need to perform like crazy, bottom line.  If all goes well, the new STI might be America's first chance at owning a true rally style hot hatch that Europe has been enjoying all these years, but like I said, time will tell.