Colin McRae the standings in either 1996 or 1997, on both occasions behind Finland and Mitsubishi Ralliart's Tommi Mäkinen. He helped Subaru complete their run of three consecutive manufacturers' titles during this time. In what would turn out to be his final season with the team, in 1998 he won three more rallies and placed third in the standings, as well as winning the Race of Champions in Gran Canaria, the Canary Islands. After several years of varying success, McRae switched to the M-Sport-run Ford factory team for 1999, driving the new Ford Focus rally car. The deal saw McRae earning six
Mitsubishi Lancer WRC manifold and a single-scroll turbocharger, and new engine parts (lightened crankshaft, flywheel and other rotating parts). The suspension was also updated to offer more travel and rigidity, and slight changes were made to the transmission, too (to suit more the very different driving style of McRae and Delecour). Mitsubishi pulled out of the WRC at the end of 2002, but in 2003 they used this car for developmental purposes on some WRC events, with McRae clinching a 6th place at the 2003 Rallye New Zealand. In the Lancer WRC04, around 6000 changes were made compared to the Step2. The car