Air born

Every racecar engineer's dream is a blank sheet of paper design. When Hoonigan and Subaru approached Vermont Sportscars about building the next generation of Gymkhana racer, that's just what the company was given

-  LAWRENCE BUTCHER

Racecars are defined by regulations. From the entry-level kart to F1, the rulebook dictates what can and can't be done, rather than what an engineer may think is the ideal approach. The skill in designing and building a winning racecar is finding every ounce of performance within the rules, but not breaking them.

Throw that rulebook in the bin, though, and things get a whole lot more fun. The result? Cars like this, built by Subaru's works team in the US, Vermont Sportscars (VSC).

The company has a long history of constructing cars to the 'rules, fielding a variety of machines in Rally and Rallycross, but this project was very different.

Initially built for the Gymkhana video franchise (for those not familiar, these were essentially a showcase for driver, Ken Block, sliding around like the 'Hoonigan'he is in various high-profile locations), the franchise is now known as Airslayer, and encompasses more than just videos, while former FMX star, Travis Pastrana, has taken over as wheel man.

Setting the stage