Subaru Rally Team USA Gears up for 2002 SCCA ProRally Season

CHERRY HILL, N.J. Jan. 15 -- Subaru Rally Team USA announced that Ramana Lagemann has joined the team in its effort to capture back-to-back SCCA ProRally Driver's and overall Manufacturer's Championships for the 2002 season. Lagemann will pilot a second WRX in the SCCA ProRally Open class, replacing 2001 Group N Driver's Champion, Karl Scheible. Reigning 2001 SCCA ProRally Driver's Champion Mark Lovell will return to defend his title with navigator Steve Turvey.

``Ramana showed much promise in his maiden season last year, and we're excited about developing his talents to help ensure a bright future for the team,'' said Subaru Rally Team USA Director, David Campion. ``Everyone at Subaru Rally Team USA is very optimistic about the upcoming season, and we're confident we will be the team to beat for the driver's and manufacturer's championships.''

Lagemann, a 22-year old native of Boston, Mass., campaigned a Vermont SportsCar-prepared Subaru Impreza WRX STi in the Group N class for 2001, amassing two Group N class wins and a third overall at the Wild West ProRally. Lagemann will make his Subaru Rally Team USA debut at the Snow Drift ProRally, January 25-27th, 2002 in Atlanta, Michigan.

``Driving for Subaru Rally Team USA is a tremendous opportunity for me,'' said Lagemann. ``The team knows what it takes to win and I know I will be able to contribute toward the continued success of the program.''

The team elected to add a second Open class Impreza WRX for Lagemann due to new SCCA regulations for 2002. The rule requires overall manufacturers to elect only two cars to score points for the manufacturer's championship. Subaru Rally Team USA also announced that it will bring its Impreza WRX rally cars to compete for top class honors at the famed Pikes Peak International Hillclimb later this year.

About Subaru Rally Team USA

In its debut season, Subaru Rally Team USA captured the 2001 SCCA ProRally Manufacturer's Championship, as well as Driver's Championships in both the Open and Group N classes. Subaru Rally Team USA is a collaborative effort between Subaru of America, Inc., Subaru Tecnica International (STi) and Subaru World Rally Team Representative, Prodrive. For additional information about the team, visit www.rally.Subaru.com or www.media.Subaru.com.

About Subaru of America, Inc.

Subaru of America, Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. of Japan. Subaru pioneered the concept of the passenger car/sport-utility vehicle with the introduction of the Subaru Outback, the ``World's First Sport Utility Wagon.''

Headquartered near Philadelphia, the company markets and distributes Subaru vehicles, parts and accessories through a network of nearly 600 dealers across the United States. Over the past nine years, the company has achieved year-over-year retail sales increases thanks to its popular line of car-based sport utility vehicles, and is among the fastest growing brands in the automobile industry.