Prodrive opens its doors to motorsport fans

Prodrive, is opening up its motorsport headquarters at Banbury to the public on July 14 & 15 to raise money for charity. The business, which runs the Subaru World Rally Team and Aston Martin Racing, and which is entering Formula One in 2008, will give fans the chance to get behind the scenes of one of the world’s largest motorsport facilities.

Johnny Herbert and David Brabham will be driving the Aston Martin DBR9, while the team performs live Le Mans-style pit stops on the car. The Subaru World Rally Team will be setting up its World Rally Championship service park in the grounds and carrying out timed services on Petter Solberg’s Impreza World Rally Car.

Prodrive is opening up all its workshops with staff on hand to explain how the company designs and manufactures all the components and systems for the five different cars it assembles on the site: Subaru Impreza World Rally Car; Subaru Impreza Group N; Aston Martin DBR9; Aston Martin DBRS9 and the Aston Martin Rally GT.

The Aston Martin car display will include some of the famous Bond cars, including the DBS from Casino Royale, while the display of Subaru road cars will include artist Benedict Radcliffe’s wire-framed sculpture of the Impreza (pictured right). In Prodrive’s heritage centre, visitors can see fully restored race and rally cars, including a 1996 Colin McRae Impreza and Richard Burns Safari rally-winning World Rally Car.

A full scale simulator will give rally fans the chance to see how it feels to ride with Petter Solberg on his record breaking run through the Ouninpohja stage at the 2004 Rally Finland.

There will be driver signing sessions and the opportunity to buy team merchandise at specially-discounted prices, as well as an auction of motorsport memorabilia. There is food and entertainment for all ages, with special activities, including quad biking, for young children.

Each day starts at 10am and all proceeds go towards Oxford Children’s Hospital.