1998 Subaru Impreza S5 WRC – ‘P2 WRC’ started its racing at the 1997 Rally Monte Carlo driven by Colin McRae with Silverstone Auctions, Stoneleigh Park, 25th February
This spectacular car registration number ‘P2 WRC’ was originally mounted to Chassis 3 and started life as a works Subaru entry in the 1997 Monte Carlo Rally to be driven by the late, great Colin McRae alongside his co-driver Nicky Grist. Sadly, Colin had an accident at the event resulting in a DNF. ‘P2 WRC’ was then mated to Prodrive Chassis 21 and was subsequently privately campaigned in Europe during the 1998 to 2000 seasons with a number of wins including the Hungarian Championship in 1998 and 1999.
Harry Whale of Silverstone Auctions, comments: “‘P2 WRC’ represents a fascinating piece of rallying history and we’re honoured here at Silverstone Auctions to be asked to offer it to the open market.”
Ownership then moved from continental Europe to the UK with Mark Slater and Steven Fleck during 2001 and 2002 for a few events prior to seeing competition in 2003 with Noel Redmond. The car’s current owner bought ‘P2 WRC’ in 2004 and has owned it ever since using it as intended competing in a number of rallies during 2005,’06 and’07 with some excellent results against newer machinery.
It then enjoyed a quieter life, safely stored until 2015 when the decision was made to bring it out of retirement and use it for shows and events with the owner’s son doing most of the driving. Highlights of more recent outings include a 1st overall at the 2016 and 2017 Wethersfield Stages Rally and its most recent public appearance was at Race Retro in 2020. Full details of the illustrious career of P2 WRC can be found here: https://www.ewrc-results.com/
Our vendor informs us that marque experts, Autosportif, rebuilt the engine and gearbox only a few hundred miles ago. The car was professionally converted to right-hand drive by Stan Harper in order to better handle the Irish stages prior to our vendor’s long-term ownership. For the past seven years, the car has been prepared by run by Edward at EJM Preparations. We’re informed that it could be converted back to left-hand drive should the new owner wish to. P2 WRC is a well known car having been featured in many videos and press activities and a quick visit to YouTube will show some incredible footage of this famous car.
‘P2 WRC’ is a real car. It’s been used as originally intended and some of the results achieved in recent years against modern machinery really show how well ahead of the times these special cars really were. This also represents a rare opportunity to either leave the car as it is, and carry on using it on events and shows, or, with a little time and effort, convert it back to its original specification as a showpiece of a significant period in motorsport, having been originally driven by one of the most respected drivers in motorsport.
Many in the motorsport community still see this 2-door Subaru as one of WRC’s all-time legends, as it was piloted by some of the best crews on the planet at the time whilst being managed by one of the best motorsport outfits of all time.
Harry Whale adds: “P2 WRC is a well-known 2-door Subaru WRC car and very desirable in its own right. It has certainly lived a busy and fascinating life and in our opinion is all the better for it. It’s been well cared-for in private ownership for almost 20 years and combined with its links to the great Colin McRae, this really is a very rare opportunity to continue the fascinating story of P2 WRC.”
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