The Prodrive P25 will make its debut at the Goodwood Festival of Speed this Thursday 23 June.
It’s 25 years since Prodrive debuted the two door Impreza World Rally Car (WRC), which inspired the Subaru Impreza 22B. Only 424 of these special edition road cars were manufactured and over time it has achieved cult status as the ultimate turbo charged four wheel drive car of its era.
Now 25 years later using the latest technology and materials, Prodrive has reimagined what this car would have been today. Just 25 cars will be produced, each with an original two-door Impreza WRX chassis at its core. This is the very same chassis used in the first Impreza WRC, but now with reduced weight, a more powerful engine and improved vehicle dynamics.
Extensive use of carbon composite means the car weighs less than 1200 kg. The use of the latest 2.5 litre flat four ‘boxer’ engine producing over 400 bhp and 600 Nm of torque, combined with a six speed semi-automatic gearbox, WRC-derived launch control and turbo anti-lag, means the P25 will reach 100kph from rest in under 3.5 seconds.
Weight has been removed from the chassis by manufacturing the boot, bonnet, roof, sills, door mirrors, front and rear quarters, WRC style rear wing and bumpers from carbon composite, while inside there are optional lightweight race seats with carbon door cards and a lithium-ion battery.
The engine is based on Subaru’s latest 2.5 litre cylinder block, but has been totally re-engineered by Prodrive’s powertrain team with bespoke internal components, including new cylinder liners, pistons, con rods, and a valve train with variable cam timing. There is a Garrett performance road turbo with a high performance intercooler and airbox and an Akrapovič titanium and stainless steel racing exhaust system.
The engine is mated to a six speed sequential gearbox with helical cut gears and semi-automatic shift via a paddle on the steering column, giving precise gear changes in 80 milliseconds. The car has a WRC-style launch control system, which combines the fly-by-wire throttle and clutch in the floor mounted pedal box to automatically take the car through first, second and third gear to achieve the optimal acceleration from standstill without any driver intervention.
Power is delivered to all four wheels via a drivetrain which features an adjustable active centre differential and limited-slip differentials front and rear. McPherson strut suspension has been retained, but with machined aluminium uprights which can be tuned for camber and geometry optimised for the wider track and lowered ride height. The Bilstein dampers are adjustable for compression and rebound while the springs and anti-roll bars optimise the tarmac handling.
