Prodrive steers into profits rally

Prodrive, the motor-sport and engineering business owned by former rally driver and Aston Martin chairman David Richards, drove into the black last year but is finding it hard to turn a profit in Europe.

While best known in sport as the owner of the Subaru rally team, Prodrive also makes high-performance, limited edition cars for manufacturers such as Alfa Romeo.

Last year it made a £279,000 pre-tax profit - a turnaround from the £5.8 million loss it made in 2006. Most of that came from the $11.7 million paid by BASF for its US emissions-testing equipment subsidiary - sold to help Prodrive focus on advanced engineering, its core business.

The Subaru team has won six world rally championships, taking its first title in 1995. However, it last won the drivers' championship in 2003.

Turnover in 2007 was down £1 million to £95 million as the company sought to concentrate on racing activities with a higher profile.