Up close and personal with a flame-spitting tribute to the late, great Kiwi rally icon Possum Bourne.

I can still remember the words clearly. “You’re not going to puke in my car are you? Don’t you puke in my car.”
“No! no I won’t,” I sheepishly replied.

Of course, there was actually no way I could be sure that chunks wouldn’t blow. Less than 15 minutes earlier I had, in retrospect rather naively, shovelled two helpings of curry and rice down my gullet. And now there I was strapping up next to Kiwi rally legend Possum Bourne for a quick blast through a Maramarua forestry road.

What ensued was one of the wildest rides I’ve ever been on, with Possum carving up the narrow, deeply rutted, mud and stone-laced roads with the precision of a surgeon. The speedo was often wound right off its 180kph clock.

Fortunately, I did manage to keep my lunch down, but I’d be lying if I said that I didn’t re-taste the aforementioned curry at least a couple of times during the three-minute gravel assault. G-force was probably the only thing that kept it in!

It’s a fond memory of a few moments I got to spend alongside the late, great Poss, watching what he did best and loved so much.

Auckland’s Darryl Jhinku is someone who shares in the respect for New Zealand’s most celebrated rally driver. A Subaru man from way back and founding member of the long-running WRX STi (Subaru Tecnica International) Club, Darryl’s a true 'WR Blue’ bloke. He also owns and regularly drives what must be one of the finest rally car replicas anywhere in the world an anatomically correct rolling tribute to Bourne’s WRC98 machine.

Darryl’s 1995 Impreza WRX actually has a bit of history itself, albeit on a local scale. It was once owned by Crowley Racing Developments, and in 1999 featured in the first ever NZ Performance Car Yearbook. Its transformation from four-door WRX sedan to two-door WRC carbon copy came about after the Subaru spectacularly crashed out of the Targa Rally. The Crowleys rebuilt the car, adding some extra girth along the way via custom guards plugged from actual Subaru World Rally Car body panels. The rear doors were welded shut and smoothed over, and the track widened. The result is essentially a silhouette of the WRC machine campaigned by Prodrive and driven by the likes of Colin McRae and Richard Burns in the late 1990s.

When Possum got his shot at the big time and was offered a works drive, it was in one of these cars.

The Crowleys used the car in various events until about four years ago, when Darryl stepped in and took it off their hands, intent on making something special from it. He hasn’t stopped in his quest for perfection since.

“Although I’ve owned the ultimate Subaru the 22B STi I wanted to get closer to the actual World Rally Car driven by Possum Bourne,” Darryl says. “What better way to remember the greatest rally driver we have ever produced than recreating his favourite car, the WRC98?”

At the time Darryl acquired the car it had become rough around the edges and was running a pretty standard WRX engine setup. It didn’t really matter, because Darryl’s grand plans included a complete strip down and rebuild. That was never going to be a quick job. There was a clear vision of what needed to be achieved and it didn’t involve any corner cutting or making do with second best. After all, Darryl didn’t just want the Impreza to look the part; it needed to perform at a high level, too.

“I had worked with rally teams associated with STi and spent time with the Subaru World Rally Team [SWRT], so only the best performing and best looking car would ever be good enough,” says Darryl.

To achieve his goal Darryl enlisted the help of some top Kiwi talent. Subaru race specialists Kayne Barrie and Aaron Robinson of KBM Motorsport oversaw much of the build. KBM stripped the car down and rebuilt it all over again. One of the biggest tasks was a compete re-wire, which involved mating more than $8000 worth of MoTeC M800 engine management system to the Prodrive engine harness and its multitude of advanced sensors. As now tuned, MoTeC’s finest handles the boost, runs the engine maps and controls the aggressive anti-lag programs.

For the engine work Darryl looked to Dwight Scott, Possum’s former engineer and engine builder. Dwight’s company, Scottspeed Performance Engines, built the EJ207-based motor to race specification. One of the coolest aspects of the engine is that its bolt-on ancillaries are the genuine WRC articles.

Recognising Darryl’s vision, SWRT via Prodrive gifted an entire era-correct World Rally Car-spec engine for the cause. Of course, an engine of that pedigree is a little too valuable (not to mention expensive) to maintain. But the trick bits off it, like the Prodrive WRC reverse-mounted intake manifold and plenum, Prodrive WRC top-mount airbox and Prodrive WRC high-rise intercooler, all take pride of place in the engine bay, and no doubt contribute to the healthy 350 horsepower churned out at all four wheels.

Outside, Dr Bob and his Westside Panelbeaters crew have treated the body to some first-class work. Once all the fibreglass and metalwork was fettled back into original shape, Bob re-sprayed the car in the correct shade of Subaru WR (World Rally) Blue before the graphics were applied. The result is outstanding.

Although Darryl gets the car out to as many events as he can, he was recently invited to be part of something really special  Turtle Wax’s Blood, Sweat and Gears challenge in Australia. The show, currently screening on Prime, pitched a bunch of modified cars and their owners up against one other, and had them compete in a number of different motorsport disciplines. Darryl was the sole Kiwi flag flyer and the car got shipped across the Tasman especially to be part of it. Of course, he wouldn’t let slip how he got on ­ we’ll have to watch the box on Sunday afternoons to find that out.

Many enthusiasts build a car from the ground up then sell it as soon as they are finished. Darryl has no such intentions. The Impreza will continue to be shown whenever and wherever possible. For Darryl it’s been a labour of love and a tribute to a Kiwi icon and much more besides.

“I really like the way it makes you feel when you drive it,” he says. “If I close my eyes, I feel like I could be driving a tarmac stage in Spain. I also like the way it makes others feel, as everyone has some fond memories of Possum.” Me included.

1995 Subaru Impreza WRC98 Replica – Specifications

Engine: EJ207 2.0-litre boxer, STi forged pistons, STi/Prodrive rods, STi/Prodrive crankshaft, ported/flowed cylinder heads, STi/Prodrive cams. STi/Prodrive head gasket, WRC intake manifold reverse mounted, WRC reverse mounted, WRC top-mount air box, Bosch Motorsport 044 fuel pump, swirl pot, Bosch Motorsport fuel pressure regulator, custom fuel rails, STi high-flow injectors, STi Spec C exhaust manifold, IHI VF37 twin-scroll turbo, WRC high-rise intercooler, custom 3-inch exhaust, 12-inch electric fan, custom Scottspeed heat exchanger, MoTeC M800 engine management system, Prodrive harness, Prodrive quick loom connectors
Driveline: STi 5-speed close-ratio gearbox, twin-plate race clutch, STi tarmac spec differentials
Suspension: Tein custom race-valved shocks, Tein coil-over springs, Tein adjustable camber plates, STi sway bars, STi adjustable arms, Tein strut bars, Nolathane bushes, corner-weighted
Brakes: Front — Brembo 4-pot callipers, slotted/vented rotors, Ferodo Endurance tarmac pads, Rear — Brembo 2-pot callipers, slotted/vented rotors, Ferodo Endurance tarmac pads, brake booster removed
Wheels/Tyres: 17×8-inch Konig WRC alloys, 235/40R17 Bridgestone RE55S semi-slick tyres
Exterior: Subaru WRC98 replica wide body kit, WRC98 front bumper, WRC98 rear bumper, WRC98 boot spoiler, WR Blue Standox paint
Interior: MSNZ multi-point rollcage, Prodrive by Sparco FIA approved race seats, Klippan 5-point harness belts, Sparco suede dish steering wheel, Flocked dashboard, custom switch board
Performance: Dyno Power — 350hp @ wheels (pump gas), Pukekohe — 1.04

Daryl Jhinku – Owner Profile

Age: 40
Occupation: Chief financial officer
Thanks: Peggy, Taylor, Spencer, and Jazlin Bourne, Dwight Scott @ Scottspeed Performance Engines, Kayne Barrie & Aaron Robinson @ KBM Motorsport, Wayne Emmerson & Jason Pribicevich @ Autolign/Tein, Turtlewax, Prodrive (Subaru World Rally Team), Dr Bob, Standox from Ultra Paints, Bridgestone NZ, NAC Insurance, Winger Subaru

Words: Brad Lord Photos: Dan Wakelin

This article is from NZ Performance Car issue 158. Click here to check it out.