British rally specialists Prodrive (the people that made Subaru rally cars and currently make the Mini WRC car) say that they are increasingly being asked by car manufacturers to develop mainstream cars for major manufacturers. Speaking to industry website just-auto, Prodrive’s Managing Director Tony Butcher, said that car companies are so busy at present that they are outsourcing major parts of a new car’s development to Prodrive.

Apparently, prototypes are being delivered to them in a very raw form and Prodrive then develops the way the steering feels and how the suspension is tuned – or even replacing the suspension design altogether.