Akira Teshima

The Designer Who Went Racing

Akira Teshima joined the Fuji Heavy Industries design department and, right after joining, became part of the team designing the production first-generation Impreza. Centering on the styling and parts that turned the base sedan into the WRX, the strategic motorsport model, he designed more than ten wheels, logos, and even the STI demo car before the WRC entry. Subaru at the time had a strong image from rallying and dirt trials, but little appeal on the circuit or the street. Though a designer, Teshima joined a racing team of volunteer test drivers, competed as a driver in production-car races, and placed. He also accompanied late-night circuit tests of the WRX prototype under development, and fed his firsthand sense of its high potential back into the design.