Both are icons of the car world and both were massively successful on the World Rally Championship stage, but which is the best?

The battle between the Mitsubishi Lancer Evo and the Subaru Impreza has been played out on gravel and tarmac across all corners of the globe. In terms of WRC victories, it’s the Subaru Impreza that has won the most silverware, with 46 wins compared to the Evo’s 26, but which one of these two icons of the 1990s and early 2000s is the one most favoured by Japanese car fans?

The organisers of Japfest – Europe’s biggest Japanese car show – want to know, and to do so they need YOUR input. Japfest has created a special survey, where fans of both marques, or of performance cars in general, can cast their votes. Which would you like to see crowned the most iconic Japanese rally hero of all time? Place your votes here in the Evo vs Scooby vote.

The survey will remain open until Sunday, April 9, with the winner being announced the following week, ahead of the Japfest event, which will feature a special Evo v Impreza stand-off celebrating an old school rivalry between Subaru and Mitsubishi that can trace its roots back to the halcyon days of Group A rallying in the mid-1990s.

Japfest will be putting the iconic rivals to the test, inviting clubs to nominate five cars each to take part. They will be given a slot to set the fastest time on the Silverstone Handling Course, with the fastest combined score winning for their club and their model.

Event director, Phil Weeden said: “There are loads of clubs for both Mitsubishi Evos and Subaru Imprezas, which shows just how much enthusiasm there is for these two rally icons. We love both of them, but ahead of our event at Silverstone we’d like to know which one will be crowned Japan’s greatest rally icon, before the battle is played out on track.”

Japfest is set to return to the iconic home of British Motorsport in 2017, after drawing a record crowd to the new venue when it moved there last year. Almost 20,000 people turned up, an increase of 20 per cent over the previous record achieved in 2015, and this year’s event looks set to be even more exciting, with a host of new features alongside some of the more traditional attractions.

The British Drift Championship drivers will again be in attendance, once more competing in the Drift Kings competition, guaranteeing some tyre-smoking, sideways action to thrill the crowds, alongside the opportunity for show visitors themselves to buy time to take their cars on the famous circuit.

Visitors will also be given the chance to win a Honda S2000 – 2017 sees the Japanese company celebrating 50 years in the UK, and what better way to celebrate than by entering a competition to win one of its most appealing sports cars?

2017 also marks the 25th anniversary of the Honda Type R range, and Torque GT, the leading Japanese car import specialist in the UK, will be bringing a very special display highlighting the evolution of the Type R from its origins through to the latest models, along with an extremely rare FD2 Mugen RR. Exclusive to Japan, only 300 of these Mugen-spec’d cars were built, all in Milano Red. Only a handful of Mugen RR’s have been imported into the UK, so this is a very rare chance to see one in the metal.

Other new features for 2017 will include a ‘Retrofest’ paddock paying tribute to some of the most celebrated old school Japanese classics, and a special ‘Power Paddock’ – a zone devoted to cars that rely completely on their power to weight ratio.

The new features come in addition to Japfest’s already established attractions, including a show ‘n’ shine, individual and club displays and a sprawling retail village where you can find everything you need to maintain and modify your Japanese car.

A second Japfest Donington event is also planned for later in the year, taking place at Donington Park on July 1 in conjunction with the Fast Car Festival.

Full details of the show, the cars and the various activities can be found at Japfest, or via the official Japfest Facebook page and Japfest Twitter feed. Entry tickets are available via the website, with the option of overnight camping and an early bird offer of an exclusive Japfest T-Shirt and issue of Banzai magazine (worth £15) with every advance ordered before 3rd April.