In honor of the Throwback Thursday phenomena, Volkswagen Motorsport have assembled a gallery of significant rally cars, from the Golf GTI's first entry in the German Rally Championship in 1977 to the 2011 Dakar, where Volkswagen took home their third-straight victory.  We'll go into detail about a few of our favorites, but be sure to click through the full gallery below.

Golf Rally Cup GTI

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In 1980, the Golf Rally Cup was started as a series to nurture the up and coming talent of the day.  Running until 1984, the one-make series utilized relatively low-tech cars when compared to those used in the legendary Group B series which began in 1982.  This made the series an affordable and effective launching pad for those who wanted to become professional drivers.

World Rally Championship Group A GTI

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For the 1987 season of World Rally Group A competition (a class comprised of modified street cars which met homologation requirements) the team of Kenneth Eriksson and co-driver Peter Diekmann entered a front wheel drive GTI 16V.  Modified to have roughly 214hp and reinforced throughout, the team went on to win the FIA Two-Wheel Challenge that year.

Dakar Touareg 3

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In 2011, Volkswagen returned to Dakar seeking a third-straight victory with the Touareg 3.  Updated from previous Dakar Touaregs, this version featured a five-cylinder TDI which was good for 310hp.  This new TDI motor propelled the carbon-fiber race truck to Volkswagen's third straight victory, which also market the last time that Volkswagen participated in official capacity at the event.

Check out more Volkswagen Rally Legends in the gallery below, and let us know which one you'd like to drive.