Description
History of the car.
Produced in 1997 to celebrate WRC victories in 1996 this was the first and original Impreza Type R ever made. Only 1371 V3’s were ever produced and was only in production for less than a year making it the rarest version Type R. I'd imagine only a few hundred are on the road today world wide. Being 25+ years old this car can now be imported to USA.
Build number 1129 of 1371 and 524 of 621 finished in Sonic Blue.
Benefiting from DCCD control / I/ C water spray / Red top STI engine / Close rack steering / Close ratio group N gearbox / No traction control / No stability control and No ABS. Blue Dials and 555 branded seats were limited to the V3 only.
I purchased this car as a fresh import back in 2009. With only 1 Japanese owner, I am the first UK owner. As you can imagen it’s a very reluctant sale for me, this car literally feels like part of the family after being my pride and joy for over 13 years. The car has been parked in a heated garage for the last 10 years so body wise it's solid. The car only gets driven on the occasional dry weekends.
The car comes with a crazy amount of history about 140 pages in total, all kept neatly in a big folder. All the JDM service history and 10 point inspection checks / all invoices / JDM Subaru service book full of stamps / Import documents / Subaru STI options paperwork / original Subaru wallet and handbooks etc. All UK history with MOT’s / Services / Loads of invoices for modifications and work carried out. To find a JDM Impreza of any sort with this amount of history is almost unheard of, especially a rare Type R. It also had 2 super rare factory fitted options, STI 6 point roll cage and a rear Subaru Power Concent adaptor. Both options are fully documented with STI headed paperwork from Japan. After years of research I believe this is the only car in the UK with these options.
Modifications.
As I’m sure you are aware one of the weak points of this age Impreza STI is the unreliably weak engine and gearbox from factory, both pushing the limits and maxing out at 350bhp. A few performance upgrade modifications have been fitted over the years to allow for more power and increased reliability. Mainly a brand new Forged semi closed block engine imported from Subaru Japan was fitted 3 years ago along with the newer JDM STI 6 speed DCCD gearbox with is much stronger and more drivable due to better suited gear ratios. Less than 4k miles since new engine / turbo / gearbox / clutch were fitted. Has been very reliable and never let me down, should be good for years to come.
· Brand new STI 9 Fully Forged Short block crate motor imported from Subaru Japan.
· Turbo Dynamics / Latral performance MD321T Billet ball bearing Turbo, good for 450+ bhp.
· New 750cc Injectors
· SPA oil temp and pressure Gauge
· K&N Induction with cold air feed custom P1 cover (original cover supplied)
· Apexi power FC ECU and handheld commander.
· RMC High pressure fuel pump
· RCM Extreme head studs
. RCM Head Gasket kit
· RCM Uprated oil pump
· RCM Baffled sump
· RCM Track attack oil catch can
· RCM Uprated gearbox mounts
· RCM Uprated Engine mounts
· RCM Exhaust Headers (wrapped)
· ‘Harvey’ Turbo Trick Up-pipe
· Hayward and Scott wide mouth Downpipe
· Hayward and Scott Full true 3” De-cat Exhaust
· Hayward and Scott custom rear silencer (original look)
. Fully professionally reconditioned heads
· Hawkeye JDM DCCD 6 Speed Conversion
· Stronger R180 Drive shafts
· RCM Light weight fly wheel
· Competition Kevlar stage 2 clutch
· Front brakes – Ksport 8 pot 356mm – New DC2500 Pads fitted
· Rear brakes – Hub / Brembo conversion
· BC BR Coilovers – Fully adjustable - with new springs fitted (raised 10mm since pics)
· Whiteline rear 24mm ARB - 3 way Adjustable
· Whiteline rear gold ARB Mounts
· CDF Racing front and rear Drop-links
· Under body front H-Brace
· Genuine Subaru STI 6-point dash dodger roll cage (wrapped)
· Sparco leather wheel – new
· Full facelift front end – using all Genuine parts
· STI custom High level bonnet scoop – Original design just higher. (Original scoop supplied)
· Genuine Prodrive P1 rear spoiler with carbon lip
· STI V6 painted front lip
· Genuine Prodrive P1 18” Alloys – immaculate condition, just powder coated
· STI fog covers / P1 air feed mod. (original cover supplied)
· 22b bonnet vents. (original vents supplied)
Included in the sale if agreed on price.
· Original 5 speed DCCD close ratio gearbox / prop shaft in good working order
· Original bonnet scoop / vents / fog covers / clear indicators and side repeaters
· Original A/ C system with radiator
· Original I/ C water spray system
More information about the car.
All work, maintenance and mapping carried out by a very reputable Subaru specialist Richard Cope at FB tuning. Running a safe 420 BHP on 99 ron. Potential for more but this is plenty fast enough for me. Considering it only weights 1240kg it Runs and Pulls very well as you could imagen. DCCD works as it should, 6 speed gearbox is spot on in every gear and the uprated clutch is very manageable. Brakes have just had DC2500 pads fitted and perform very well. A/ C and I/ C removed as never used plus weight saving perposes, original items removed will be included in sale if you wish to revert. Good condition PS4 tyres. New battery fitted 05/ 22 (5 year warrenty). Original full tool kit / Spair wheel and Jack present. Cat 1 Cobra alarm fitted. 2 x keys 2 x Alarm fobs.
Body work. is in excellent condition especially for age, just a couple of age related minor marks/ scufs that are hardly noticeable. The body is still on it's original paint, body / underneath are both in good condition and never undersealed. Only negative is that the N/ S rear window rubber needs replacing (new seal included with sale, just needs fitting) and a little spot of rust on rear arch, it's been there for years and has'nt changed so does'nt bother me as barely noticeable.
Interior. Also in excellent condition. Dash, door card, switches, dials, clocks and surrounds are all unmarked, no holes drilled, scratches or fading. SPA oil gauge is stuck on not drilled. Original 555 edition logo seats in very good shape no sagging or ware to bolsters. Rear seats also very good, don’t think anyone has sat in the back the past decade. STI Cage has a fresh fabric wrap in black. New Sparco Steering wheel, Genuine STI 6 speed gear knob, STI pink logo mats all recently fitted. Optional Rare STI pink dot full pedal set. Solid rattle free interior.
Genuine Low milage and proven by lots of history (unlike most imported Subarus of this age with dubious milage). For a 25 year old car it's only covered 104k miles, a mixture of kilometres and miles as clocks say 148k. Car is meticulously maintained, warmed up and cooled down on every drive without fail. Drives perfect no rattles or knocks.
Only able to upload 12 pictures, really does'nt do the car justice. More pictures avalible. Feel free to message me with any question.
Don’t miss out on your chance to own this very special Impreza Type R. Prices are only going one way. It’s surly a safe future investment for the next lucky owner to drive, enjoy and not to lose money on, win win situation. Please get in touch with any question. I’m in no major hurry to sell, sensible offers considered. Car located in Stokenchurch, 5 mins off the M40. Viewings avalible most evenings and weekends, can arrange viewings during working hours if giving enough notice.
