Morita
By leading the way here in Super Taikyu, Morizo has changed how carmaking is done at Toyota.

Now Subaru is also taking part in the ST-Q class. Shinya, what changes have you seen that brought Subaru here?

Yamamoto
There have been many. As you know, Subaru always competed in the WRC (World Rally Championship).

By taking part in the WRC, Subaru gained a reputation for having good cars.

Imai
That’s how it used to be.

Yamamoto
So then, having quit the WRC, the question of what makes Subaru cars “good” becomes rather tricky to answer. Ms. Imai and I have been to Nürburgring and seen Subaru in action, haven’t we?

Imai
That’s right.

Yamamoto
As you might expect, they partly want to prove themselves by winning. Although the brand power speaks volumes, the company is looking for some way to prove it.

Having decided they can’t quit motorsports entirely, Subaru has taken up the challenge of Nürburgring and Super GT, where one of their goals is simply to win.

Winning is proof that you can compete against other cars and come out on top. As part of these efforts, Subaru has developed incredibly talented personnel.

In order to win, there is a lot you have to think about. By driving on test courses, or even private runs on a circuit, you might be able to test your cars more cheaply.

On the other hand, by choosing to battle it out against rivals on the racetrack, you know exactly where you stand. It would be disappointing to find that you’re slower than Mazda, for example, or maybe Toyota.

That is what drives engineers to discover new ideas and capabilities. I think that’s what this is about for Subaru, just as it is for Toyota.

Morita
After moving on with the BRZ, Subaru is now fielding car #61, known as the High Performance X, in Super Taikyu. When I spoke with drivers Hideki Yamauchi and Takuto Iguchi[K1] , they told me, “We’ve put a lot of things into it that we want to see in other Subaru cars.

Not only is it four-wheel drive, but they are also sticking with the horizontally-opposed engine for the future. Even amid the electrification shift, Subaru’s four-wheel drives are staying strong. This is what the drivers told me, but what has changed in the company’s carmaking?

Yamamoto
When it comes to mass-producing cars, there are limitations on what you can do. Here in the ST-Q class, meanwhile, you can try new things beyond the bounds of mass production. I think that’s the biggest thing.

However, although Subaru has been competing in the ST-Q class for several years now to aid its development, they apparently grappled with a dilemma.

At one point, the team found itself questioning why they were doing this, and what they were working towards.

As it turns out, Toyota and Mazda gave Subaru encouragement.

Something along the lines of: “You have these great horizontally-opposed engines, why don’t you go for it? Even we ourselves would love to have them!”

As Subaru tells it, they had felt that the horizontally-opposed arrangement might be a lost cause but receiving that encouragement spurred them on.

Imai
The same thing happened with Mazda’s rotary engine.

Yamamoto
In that case too, it seems that Toyota provided tremendous support.

Morita
Mazda, Subaru, and Toyota announced that they would do whatever they could to sustain the internal combustion engine, and those efforts are taking place right here in Super Taikyu.

Imai
It feels like Toyota’s current role is to stoke the embers of a dying fire.

Yamamoto
Wow, that’s good (laughs).

Imai
A car company is like a big ship: when it starts to sink, it goes down fast. Sinking, in this case, means losing the love for motorsports or sports cars. Just as that love was turning into a sense of shame, I think it was Toyota’s motorsports activities and TGR (TOYOTA GAZOO Racing) that reignited the flame.

Morita
They helped others to rediscover their strengths.

Yamamoto
When you’re working within a manufacturer and only looking at your own technology, you end up feeling like it’s nothing special.

Imai
And you also have to make cars that sell. Companies are not volunteer organizations; they have to generate profits.

So you end up making what sells, and unfortunately, motorsport-inspired sports cars do not sell too well.

It’s unavoidable that companies scale back such vehicles and instead make minivans and other popular models. But I feel like, just as the spirit of those who love and make sports cars was starting to fade, someone came along to say, “Here’s how you can do it,” “This is amazing,” and “What you have is so cool!”