The launch of a new book profiling one of motorsport's modern leading figures is a notable event. We had no hesitation in accepting the invite. I arrived at the Prodrive headquarters in Banbury along with other invited guests and assembled in their showroom which contains some of the race and rally cars produced by Prodrive and driven to success by well known names such as Colin and Jimmy McRae, Richard Burns, Francois Chatriot and Jensen Button.

An introduction from the publishers, Motorbooks, was followed by an entertaining video presentation of 20 years of Prodrive and a brief talk by the book's well known author Alan Henry gave us an insight into the research and writing of the work.

A question and answer session followed in which David Richards praised his workforce for their dedication in helping Prodrive achieve its many successes.

Due to the number of people and the time available, the tour of the Prodrive facility had to be rather rapid but we were left with an overall impression of organisation, cleanliness, professionalism and attention to detail. All of these qualities are driven and exhibited by David Richards himself and contribute in no small way to Prodrive's continuing success.

During the tour, many statistics are presented, too many to list in full but here are a few that stick in the mind:
- 80% of the components are made in house at Banbury.
- All wiring looms are made and tested in house.
- Every engine, turbocharger, gearbox and differential is built and tested at Banbury.
- All of the turbochargers that are sent out on an event have to be matched so that they have exactly the same output. The drivers can tell if the torque alters by as little as 5%!
- All hydraulic systems are built in a "Clean Room" and sealed. They remain sealed until the moment that they are fitted to the car.
- Normally, it takes 3 weeks to build an Impreza Rally car from scratch, but it has been done in as little as 2 days!!!
- Prodrive are the only manufacturer offering a warranty on their rally cars covering 1000km actual competitive distance.
- Approximately £1 million will provide you with a Group A Impreza for a full season of events and includes your own dedicated race engineer.
- The car is built, serviced and repaired by Prodrive and presented ready for each event. The engine management system is coded so that it will not exceed 2000rpm unless it is "unlocked" by the race engineer prior to starting each event, after which it is "locked" again for transportation.

- The Impreza Rally Car is designed so that on an event, all suspension, three differentials and the gearbox can be changed within a 20-minute service interval.

The last part of a very informative and interesting day was a visit to Prodrive's Test Facility near Warwick where their demonstration drivers took us around the test track in "standard" Imprezas. We were then able to drive the cars with the demo guys as passengers to advise on how to drive the track quickly.

Finally, we were taken around again by the drivers but this time for 3 laps flat out and finishing with a gratuitous doughnut! That experience could fill another report.

The book should be just as interesting. It sells for £16.99 and you should find it in most major bookshops.

Bryan Sims - 15 Jun 2005