This is a Subaru Impreza Turbo 2000, and when new back in 1996, it probably would have cost just under £20,000 in the UK. Except, this particular Turbo 2000 wasn’t immediately sold when it first arrived...
Nope, this was an official Subaru UK media test unit, and as such was one of the first hood-scooped, UK-supplied Turbo 2000s. And after just a few months of press service, this very car went to live with a rather special family.
Yep, N489 SOC was a runaround for the McRaes between 1996 and 1999, and we doubt they had to pay for it after Colin McRae’s World Rally Championship title win in 1995. Not least because Subaru also secured the manufacturers’ title that year (and then again in 1996, and again in 1997).
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This very car is now going up for auction at Iconic Auctioneers’ Classic Sale this weekend, and the estimate is...well, basically what it would have cost new, not accounting for inflation. Somewhere between £15,000 (P1.2 million) and £20,000 (P1.6 million), apparently. Not bad for all that history.
We’re told that it was likely driven by Colin, Jimmy, and Alister McRae during its time with one of rallying’s greatest families, and it now wears the signatures of Jimmy, Alister, and Max on its sun visors.
“Cars connected with the McRae family always capture the imagination of enthusiasts, and we have had the privilege of selling several, including Colin McRae’s 1998 Subaru Impreza STI 22B, which sold for £480,500—an auction world record,” said Iconic Auctioneers boss Rob Hubbard.
“This Impreza is a particularly interesting example: Not only is it an early UK Turbo 2000 and a former Subaru UK press car, but it was also owned and used by the McRaes during the height of Colin’s career. For fans of the marque and rally history alike, it represents a rare opportunity to own a car with a genuine link to one of the sport’s most celebrated families.”
Looks like it might be a bit of a bargain compared with that 22B too, doesn’t it?
More photos of Colin McRae’s Subaru Impreza Turbo 2000:
