Prodrive has a long history of working with Subaru, including being a partner in the automaker's World Rally Championship competition in the 1990s and 2000s. The company just posted a teaser hinting at revealing something on May 25 that might be a revival of this golden era for Subie.
The teaser image is a simple line drawing of what certainly appears to be a mid-1990s Subaru Impreza WRX. The design of the wing and hood scoop are close matches to that car's design. Plus, the location of the B-pillar towards the rear of the roofline hints that this might be a coupe.
There's also the mystery of the P25 name, but we have a theory. "P" could easily stand for Prodrive. The "25" might be a reference to an anniversary. A quarter-century ago in 1997, Subaru won its third consecutive WRC Manufacturers' Championship. In 1998, Subaru celebrated the trio of titles by building the famous Impreza 22B STI. That model attempted to create a road-going version of the 1997 rally car.
Given the similarities between the drawing in Prodrive's teaser and the look of the 22B STI, we have to wonder whether the company plans to build a tribute to the classic model.
Prodrive's announcement is especially timely because Subaru is not making a WRX STI this generation. The company said it might eventually return, possibly with electrification. This came despite Subaru showing an aggressive concept for a modern STI at the 2022 Tokyo Auto Salon.
A later report claimed that Subaru's decision stemmed from the rapidly changing regulations around the world. This situation would have limited the new STI's time on the market. The automaker decided that the investment wasn't worthwhile.
Prodrive is currently building 25 examples of the Hunter, which is a road-going version of the BRX Hunter T1+ Dakar Rally car. It packs a Ford-sourced twin-turbo 3.5-liter V6 engine making over 600 horsepower. This is enough for the off-road-focused machine reach 62 miles per hour in less than four seconds. Prices start at £1.25 million.
