2007 Subaru Impreza WRX STI RB320

Highlights

• Very rare, no. 155 of 320 built

• Just 38,494 miles on the clock, verified

• Excellent service history

• Full engine rebuild and upgrades by Chevron Motorsport in April 2022

• Believed to be putting out c.470bhp / 500lb-ft

Overview

As perfection is a physical impossibility in a universe of entropy, how do you improve on what is an almost perfect machine? This was the quandary that faced the engineers at Prodrive when Subaru tasked them with creating a car that would be a successor to the legendary RB5.

And to really ramp up the pressure, the RB320 was to be built in honour of the late, great WRC winner Richard Burns, who had recently passed away at just 34 years of age. Not a job to be taken lightly.

Thankfully, Prodrive’s engineers are some of the best in the world. Not only were they very much up to the task, but what they created is quite possibly one of the fastest, most satisfying and competent real-world cars ever built. Very little will keep a well-driven RB320 in sight on a cross-country run, and you’ll struggle to find anything that provides the same level of performance, intuitive handling and sheer joie de vivre for the money. A fitting tribute to a motorsport legend then.

Of course, it’s a vanishingly rare beast too, with just 320 made (“320” referring to the metric horsepower output of the powertrain). This is number 155, and has been beautifully kept and maintained by the current and previous owners. Serviced by marque specialists and treated in a “no expense spared” fashion, this is a superb example of a fantastic car.

When the owner discovered the engine required a rebuild in 2022, they commissioned Chevron Motorsport in Stafford (Subaru specialists who build race cars for some big name drivers) to undertake the work. They also asked them to improve and future-proof the engine, so it was treated to all manner of upgrades and improvements, resulting in a very healthy estimated power output in the region of 470bhp. More than enough to worry even the most exotic of machinery.

Coming with a great history and being presented in excellent overall condition, we think this RB320 is the kind of car that could happily and proudly sit in any collection. If you love motorsport, fast road driving and the kind of car that rewards precision and (on a track, obvs) bravery – and as you’re reading this, we’ll assume that you do  – then you simply have to consider this.

History and documentation

• First registered 1 June 2007

• Four former owners, current owner since 18 May 2019

• 38,494 miles on the clock, verified by the service and MOT records

• Only 320 made – this is number 155

• Current MOT with no advisories expires 27 February 2026, excellent MOT record with no advisories since 2018

• Stamped service book and invoices detail a service history as follows: Jun 2007 @ 1,108 miles, Feb 2008 @ 9,221 miles, Aug 2012 @ 19,789 miles, Dec 2012 @ 21,102 miles, Sep 2014 @ 24,262 miles, Jun 2015 @ 24,782 miles, Apr 2016 @ 26,428 miles, May 2017 @ 27,752 miles, Apr 2018 @ 30,651 miles, Feb 2019 @ 31,115 miles, Mar 2020 @ 33,265 miles, Apr 2022 (engine rebuild c.34,000 miles), Sep 2023 @ 37,043 miles, Feb 2025 @ 38,000 miles

• Full document pack, including stamped service book

• Collection of invoices and old MOT certificates, including invoice for engine rebuild in April 2022 by Chevron Motorsport at a cost of nearly £14,000

• Rarely used in the rain, and kept in a positive air flow chamber when not in use

• V5 present in owner’s name

• HPI clear

• Private registration will be staying with the car

• London ULEZ compliant

Interior

• Smart black leather upholstery, with black Alcantara centre panels to the seats front and rear

• All of the upholstery shows very well, with some light creasing from age, but no tears, significant wear, damage or sagging that we could identify

• Deep blue carpet runs through the cabin and brings a lovely pop of colour, it shows well and appears to be in fine condition

• Original black ‘RB320’ over mats are present and in good order

• Light grey headlining looks to be sound and secure, with no sagging, staining or damage we could see

• Black leather steering wheel and handbrake cover with red contrast stitching, black leather gear stick gaiter, all of which present very well with minimal wear and no damage apparent

• Factory fitted intercooler water spray controller

• A bank of factory fitted dials at the top of the centre console show boost pressure, oil temperature and oil pressure

• Air conditioning

• Electric windows and door mirrors

• Pioneer double DIN touchscreen head unit

• Focal speakers – the vendor reports that the river’s door speaker has just stopped working

• In the boot there is a Genesis GT Four Amplifier as well as a JL Audio subwoofer in an enclosure

• All of the internal trim and switchgear looks to be in fine fettle, with a few minor blemishes from use as you’d expect, but no damage or notable wear

• The boot is neatly trimmed with dark grey carpet and also contains a spacesaver spare wheel

• The vendor tells us that all of the controls and instruments in the cabin work as they should, with no faults or issues reported 

Exterior

• Obsidian Black paintwork looks excellent, and provides a fine juxtaposition to the day-glo orange ‘RB320’ branding

• There are a few minor stone chips and marks to the paintwork, as you’d expect from an 18 year old car, as well as a small polishing scuff caused by a previous owner on the offside rear door

• All of the bodywork looks to be straight, clean and undamaged – we didn;t see any dents, major scuffs or corrosion

• The body panels all appear to be well aligned, evenly gapped and in fine condition

• The orange ‘RB320’ branding is all present and correct and looks to be in great condition – the day-glo orange is a touching nod to Richard Burns’ race helmet design

• Rear privacy glass

• The RB320 features a large rear wing by Perrin, as well as a upper rear windscreen spoiler to smooth airflow

• RB320 branded mud flaps all round

• Huge bonnet intake and polished mesh grills give the front of the car real road presence and reflect the motorsport heritage

• All of the external trim looks to be in excellent condition, with nothing damaged or missing that we could discern

• The glass elements and light lenses all show very well, being clear and free from misting, cracking or notable UV damage

• Underneath, the car shows very well, with clean and straight floor pans and sills – there is some slight corrosion to the sill seams, but nothing that would concern us

• The car sits on the correct multi-spoke, 18-inch Anthracite Grey alloy wheels, which look subtle and menacing beside the black paintwork and really help the red AP Racing calipers stand out

• All of the alloys look to be in excellent condition, with no kerb damage or lacquer peel we could see

• A new matched set of 245/50 Michelin Pilot Sport 5 tyres has been fitted and all look to be in excellent condition

Mechanical

• 2,457cc flat-four, 16-valve, turbocharged engine

• Original factory performance figures: 316bhp, 332lb-ft, 0-62mph in 4.8 seconds, top speed of 155mph

• Very clean and tidy engine bay, with no obvious leaks or issues we could see

• 6-speed manual transmission driving all four wheels

• The engine was rebuilt and upgraded by Chevron Motorsport of Stafford in April 2022 (about 4K miles ago), which included a new turbo and intercooler, at a cost of almost £14,000

• Rebuilt engine details: HBeam steel rods, 0.5 oversize Mahle pistons, modified block, Mahle mains and big ends, Perrin 4bar map sensor, steel head gaskets, high flow oil pump, overhauled cylinder heads, 14mm Ultra head studs, Nitride coated 2.5 crankshaft, tumble generator delete, Chevron 6-axis ported spacers, Chevron Sprint top mount intercooler, Chevron Race dash-10 oil and water cooler, thermostat oil sandwich plate, full Chevron hose kit, Chevron 80mm big MAF pipe and induction kit, twin-port Turbo Smart dump valve

• Owen Developments full motorsport 71 B13 rally turbocharger with no restrictor

• RCM uprated fuel pump and 1,000cc Asnu injectors

• Full Milltek 3” stainless steel exhaust system with race cat

• Xtreme Performance HD cushioned clutch, rated to 870Nm

• Uprated front AP Racing AP355 brake kit at the front

• Eibach Pro springs

• Rebuilt Bilstein dampers

• High castor and camber Whiteline top mounts, high castor and anti-dive bushes

• Adjustable anti-roll bar drop links

• Remap by Bob Rawle (BRDevelopments - a renowned Subaru specialist)

• We’re told the car is mapped to run on 97RON with an output in the region of 470bhp / 500lb-ft

• The vendor reports a very slight oil weep from the sump plug, which they say results in a couple of oil spots a month

• Otherwise, no mechanical faults or issues are reported, and the car is said to drive just as it should

Summary

From the brilliantly baritone burble of the Milltek exhaust at idle to the beautifully preserved interior with its deeply sculpted race seats and simple, perfectly positioned race wheel and manual shifter – everything about this R320 makes you want to seek out the twistiest, gnarliest roads you know.

As a homage to Richard Burns’ talents and affiliation with the brand, the R320 is superb. As am all round driving machine, it’s as near to perfect as you’ll find. And this particular example has been so carefully maintained, improved and refined that we reckon it will be an incredibly rewarding car to own. Being so rare and collectible, it’s a potential wise investment too – which should neatly circumvent any objections from significant others about “yet another car”. 

Investment be damned though – we have the feeling that whoever buys this is going to fall deeply, madly, truly in love with its ability to go from point-to-point quicker than just about anything else on the road. We know we have…

To arrange a viewing, click the 'Book Viewing' button located under the 'Place Bid' button. Viewings can be booked up until the day before the auction ends, after which the option will change to 'Contact Seller' for further enquiries. This seller is located in Newry, Northern Ireland.