2000 Subaru Impreza P1

Developed as a joint venture between the Japanese factory, Oxfordshire-based Prodrive - the people who helped Subaru to international rally success - and Subaru (UK), the P1 (Prodrive One) was offered only as a two-door saloon. Fitted with a revised version of the rally engine with recalibrated electronics and developing no less than 280bhp, 69bhp more than the standard Impreza Turbo, this was a quick car. Combine that with a big-bore exhaust, quick-shift gear linkage, 17-inch titanium finish alloy wheels and a rally proven suspension set-up, and you've got the fundamentals of something rather special.

This amazing P1 Impreza has been extensively and meticulously restored to original factory specification. The car was restored over the past five years by an employee of Prodrive who worked at the well-known Banbury base from 1999 to 2015 and therefore was very familiar with every different aspect of these cars. A hugely comprehensive report by the former head of the Subaru Rally Team forms part of the history file and gives an independent description and analysis of the restoration and the level of detail involved getting the car as close to the original specification as possible. This report includes a considerable number of photographs taken during the restoration and includes the finer detail, such as acid dipping the nuts and bolts, prior to painting and re-fitting.

For the engine restoration/rebuild, all the aluminium housings were vapour blasted to the original specification colour scheme and the silencer exterior heat pads were also replaced. The suspension was rebuilt with an STi 'Group N' bushing kit, Zinc primer was added to the coating of the suspension components to aid longevity, and again all the aluminum parts were vapour blasted. The Alcon Prodrive rear caliper housings were zinc plated prior to enameling, further demonstrating the level of attention this car has enjoyed.

The genuine outer quarter panels fitted to both sides were glued at the lower seam, unlike the factory spot weld, which is a modern corrosion prevention technique. Genuine rear arches were sourced from the USA as they are no longer available in Europe and both sides were fitted with new inner arches. All the shell panels were treated with etch-primer prior to application of original specification '74F Blue Cellulose' paint (water base not used). The restorer's market research suggests that extensive corrosion protection after painting is the best inhibitor.

The boot was painted in base coat and lacquer, however, limited paint and primer were used on these areas as they were contributing to corrosion issues when built at the factory originally. The sill inspection covers were re-sealed as per factory standard. New fuel filler pipes were zinc plated then enameled (factory spec was zinc only which was a common rust area) and new OE spec fog lights were fitted. As you can imagine with the attention to detail on this rebuild, all brackets nuts bolts and washers were acid dipped and re-plated prior to painting or re-fitting, a process that is far superior to the factory procedures. The wheels now fitted to this particular car are the 18-inch gold alloys that were an optional extra detailed in the original P1 extras booklet and not the standard 17-inch, titanium finish alloys, while the rear silencer is also the P1 spec unit.

This Impreza P1 really does need to be seen to be believed and perhaps represents an unrepeatable opportunity to acquire a car that"s been restored with well over a 1,000 hours of love and care, and extensive "in-house knowledge" of the P1 model and its potential pitfalls.