Subaru unveil new car

The car, named the Impreza WRC2007, will make its debut on Rally Mexico next weekend, and has been designed with the specific aim of improving the fortunes of 2003 world champion Petter Solberg and his team-mate Chris Atkinson.

Although the machine appears to be almost identical to its predecessor, the team's director of engineering Steve Farrell said the WRC 2007 is significantly different under the skin.

Farrell said: "Externally, the differences are relatively subtle. The front bumper has been restyled to suit the new radiator pack and the bonnet vents are different - we have twin side exits on the bonnet this time rather than one central one."

"As well as the radiator, the intercooler is new too. We made an evolution in the middle of last season and, with the benefit of the new homologation, we've been able to make a further step on that.

"We have simplified the layout, which has improved the air flow, made the front end of the car easier to service and lost some weight."

Solberg and Atkinson have both complained of a lack of slow-speed traction from the 2006 car - a problem that has increased this year following a switch from Pirelli to BF Goodrich tyres.

The new machine though has been designed with the new rubber in mind, and it's new, lighter frame is expected to improve stability in high-speed corners.

Farrell added: "The targets were to produce a car that has a more responsive front end with better traction and more balanced tyre wear, particularly on longer stages.

"To achieve that, we have applied a different philosophy into areas such as weight distribution, suspension geometry and differential set-ups. We also have new dampers to improve road-holding and traction."