McRae convoy to total more than 1000.

Over 1000 Subarus are to come together in a gathering to celebrate the life of the late Colin McRae.

The 1995 WRC champion, regarded as one of the finest drivers ever to take to rally stages all over the world, was one of four people killed in a helicopter accident near McRae's family home in Scotland last September - with his son Johnny and two family friends also losing their lives.

As a tribute to McRae, the McRae gathering was set up which will see a convoy of Subarus travel from Lanark down to the Prodrive base in Banbury.

The convoy of Subarus will depart Lanark at 10am next Saturday [30 August], led by Colin's father Jimmy McRae in one of Colin's original cars, before travelling south along the M74 and M6. By the time it reaches Birmingham and heads down the M40, it will have grown to more than 700 cars and stretch over ten miles, creating the memorable note of the flat four boxer engine for ten minutes as the cars pass by.

On Sunday 31 August, 1300 cars will gather at Prodrive before being led up the M40 by McRae's 1996 Impreza 555 rally car in a convoy 20 miles long. On arrival at Prodrive's test track in Warwickshire, they aim to break two official Guinness World Records.

Firstly, the cars will write out 'COLIN MCRAE' in a sign nearly half a mile long and visible to passengers landing at Birmingham airport and then create a parade of 1300 Subarus.

While entry to the McRae Gathering is now closed, organisers are hoping fans will show their support along the route.

"It would be great to see people cheering us along," Grant Hendry, one of the organisers of the McRae Gathering, said. "When the idea of the convoy to commemorate the life of Colin was born, we never dreamt 1300 Subarus would be taking part.

"We even have Subarus joining us from all over Europe, from Poland and the Ukraine to France and Spain, while some fans are flying in especially from Australia and Argentina to be part of this memorable occasion."

The McRae Gathering has already raised more than ?25,000 for the McRae family's officially nominated charities and is hoping to raise more money along the route.