Grönholm's Subaru is ready

The 2008 Subaru Impreza WRC developed by Prodrive, to enable Marcus Grönholm to participate in the next Rally of Portugal, has just completed its first shakedown.

Published on 20/03/2009 à 10:05

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Marcus Grönholm gave a brief hands-on session with the Subaru Impreza WRC S14 that Prodrive will make available to the next Rally from Portugal. The Finn will carry out a test session in Wales this week, before heading to Spain for two days of testing scheduled in Spain.

Which implies that the double World Rally Champion will have a total of three days to familiarize himself with his new mount, before taking part in his first WRC round after almost 16 months of absence.

This Subaru Impreza WRC S14 version 2008 will be quite close to the one fielded last year by Prodrive for Solberg and Atkinson. “We were only able to make minor changes due to homologation restrictions,” explains David Lapworth, technical director at Prodrive. “The most significant change concerns the adoption of Öhlins shock absorbers. In a perfect world, Marcus would have spent a lot more time behind the wheel, but with his experience, we're confident in his ability to quickly find rhythm with this Impreza. »

This participation in the Rally of Portugal was made possible thanks to the support of the Portuguese Tourist Office. Grönholm's Subaru Impreza WRC S14 will be entered by Prodrive and its assistance will be carried out jointly with that of Ostberg and the Adapta World Rally Team.