Pretty good eye mpbiv. The pic does look a lot like an Sti 22B, but the 22B wasn't only available in Japan. There were 425 cars made. (Very limited series), and some were sent to the UK, Australia got at least one, and the Sultan of Brunei supposedly has one. The US of course, got none
There is a rumour that one was imported to the US but no confirmation.
Here's the whole thing with Initial D though. I might be wrong, but I believe Bunta's WRX in stage 4 is an Impreza WRX STi ver. 6 chassis code GC8. The chassis code doesn't help since the WRX's from '93 - 00' were GC8. What is important though is if it is an STi ver 6.
The 22B is built from a modified STi ver. 4 with a bored out engine fro the standard 2.0L turbo to a 2.2L turbo and it came out in '97. If the info I have is right, then Bunta is supposedly driving an STi ver. 6 Type-R which came out in '99.
This is of course even more confusing 'cuz if my calculations are correct, it would REALLY make more sense if Bunta was driving an STi 22B. The animated series first came out in '99 and I thought stage 1 implied that it was somewhere around '96. And in fact, stage 1-3 take place within a year.
Stage 4 is supposed to be when Takumi joins Takahashi Ryosuke's Kengai racing team, which, if my assumption that stage 1-3 takes place in '96, would mean that it is now '97 which is when the 22B debuts.
However, the little info I got seemed to indicate Bunta's car is a ver 6. There is that Initial D arcade game and I think it might in part II but they DO have the WRX in it, and you race Bunta as the last boss. In the game, it states that the car is an STi ver 6. (and my buddy didn't mention it being a 22B which I think he would have. Gotta ask him again though)
Maybe my assumption that stages 1 - 3 are in '96 are wrong. If they were in '98 or later (to allow Bunta's STi ver 6 '99), seems odd that they don't show anyone with an Evo V or BNR 33.
Oh well, who knows, guess I'll just have to see it myself to find out for sure.
BTW, the Type-R was simply Subaru's designation for the 2-door body.