A blog looking at current WRC event formats
http://echocentrix.blogspot.co.nz/20...at-flawed.html
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A blog looking at current WRC event formats
http://echocentrix.blogspot.co.nz/20...at-flawed.html
I'm very glad NZRC didn't go to R5 anyway, or there would probably only be about 2 entrants!Quote:
Originally Posted by sollitt
R5 was never on the radar.
Noooooooo waaaaaaaaaaay? Actual usable advice and a vision of how things should be from N. O. T instead of endless silly complaints. This can not be!Quote:
Originally Posted by N.O.T
Too expensive for Australian's and NZers.Quote:
Originally Posted by sollitt
Not entirely. Rumor has it that there is at least one R5 destined for NZ and a number of competitors have certainly considered them. But expensive enough to rule out ever basing a domestic series on them.Quote:
Originally Posted by GigiGalliNo1
R5 cars eligible for ACT regional rally series, also World Rally Cars are eligible. There is prizemoney as well. 1st round this weekend in Canberra. We have some ARC entrants competing as similar roads will be used for the National round in May.
Ray
I have also heard this and it will be interesting to see what happens. In my opinion R5 cars are way to costly to run in NZ, so I'm doubting that this will even happen or whether it is a good idea at all. They better have deep pockets.Quote:
Originally Posted by sollitt
Either way this year's championship will be interesting. I think with everyone having new cars, Phil Campbell could be a surprise dark horse for the championship this year.
Looking forward to being at Round 1 in Otago and seeing your pics from the event GravelBen
http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/123253 like Citroen, Toyota will only start testing next month, I don't see how they or even Citroen stand a chance when VW already started testing six months beforehand...
Fourth Hyundai for Abbring in Portugal, Sardinia and one round later in the year.
In Paddon Monte car.
I'm afraid he won't be able to do much with the 2015 car.
i like Abbring a lot, showed immense speed in ERC but hasnt impressed me so far in his wrc outings...i think he has had a lot of problems also and if you have just 2-3 outings in year then it doesnt help.
Why change a winning game, VW did the same on Fabia's, both S2000 and R5. German Thoroughness for you!Quote:
Originally Posted by Eli
Toyota had the chance and the budget to do the same as VW but opted not to.
Fabias are Czech ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by Sulland
But i get your point. Difference with Toyota vs. Citroen is that Citroen are already experienced at building a competitive World Rally Car.
So why haven't they? And what kind of budget have they got?Quote:
Originally Posted by Simmi
I don't think the confusion/ meddling/ switch to Makinen Racing has helped. The previous months/ kms of testing seems to have been a waste - not good.
I'll wait until the start line of Monte 2017 before I'm convinced this programme is on track.
It seems like Tommi convinced Toyoda-san this his team could do the work - and that a smaller, focused 'family' operation like Mitsubishi was the best way forward. All we can do now is wait and see if he'll be proven correct.Quote:
Originally Posted by AndyRAC
There is even a harder task ahead for Tommi than just building a fast car. He needs fast drivers who would show the speed of their new car. Malcolm's way of just talking about the greatness of his car won't work, because people (be it Toyoda, any interested drivers and fans) look for good stage times and results, not just words. So the biggest challenge Tommi may have is how to convince at least one top, fast driver that it's worth to drive Toyota in 2017.
Fair enough - but that was 20 years ago. If you want to beat VW, I think you need more than that. Personally, you have to be like VW. Time will tell. I'm not overly optimistic.Quote:
Originally Posted by Simmi
My first post on this august forum, so introduction seems in order - Name's Andy and like a few others here, I live in the shaky isles known as New Zealand. For those unfamiliar with this antipodean paradise, the country is assembled from two main islands, one parked above the other, the top one known inventively as North Island and the lower one equally cunningly named South Island. Hanging off the bottom is the Scots-themed Stewart Island with another group of large rocks off the right-hand coast of the mainland called the Chatham Islands. There are numerous other islands hanging about - for example, to my left about 1300 miles (or roughly 2,000km) is the West Island, sometimes known as Australia. What else should I add? Oh yeah, we have the best rally roads on the planet.
Cheers,
Andy
G'day Fred..Yep there are some nice roads down there...Nice countryside and awfully pretty backdrops..reminds me of round here.. You drive? Co-driver? twirl wrenches? Plan to?Quote:
Originally Posted by ArtooDetoo
Fan? Got any pretty piccies of nice cars? Nice like Escorts? RX7s? ya know cars human beings might have or had or have a chance of having?
Late, gotta sleep..
Welcome aboard..Most of the guys here are good guys, have good humor...One or two are NOT..but nobody pays any attention to troglodytes, so don't be shy..
Ta for the welcome wagon.
Once upon a time, a long long time ago, I was (in no particular order) a co-driver, a driver, service crew member, car club route crew member, car builder and marshall as well as serving on car club committees for three different clubs in as many cities. Hmmm... sounds like a CV...
Over the years I've competed in various cars - Datsun (Nissan) 1200, Mk1 Escort, Datsun 120Y, Mazda RX3s, RX7 and 323. Plus I dabbled in motoX - CR125s. So my competition life centred around tearing up loose surfaces. :D
Although I enjoyed being involved a lot, the sad truth is that my enthusiasm always exceeded my ability. And being a family dude, the budgets were lean, to say the least. No regrets though... well maybe that I never drove a BDA Mk2. Maybe some day.
These days though, I mostly follow the local rally championship and the WRC, re-live the rally world vicariously through the efforts of Hayden Paddon, and blog about stuff.
But that's probably enough off-topic stuff for one day, yeah?
Cheers,
Andy
Off topic ---arf-topic.. The real topic on the whole forum is US..The rally is just a prop sorta for getting a buncha guys together and blabbering about this sport we are all obviously infected with and conversation and discussion is always better if you know a bit and respect "the other side" so knowing who "the other side is" is actually a big thing.Quote:
Originally Posted by ArtooDetoo
Sounds like the background of a fair number of folks here.. and I'd love to lure you over to our local American forum where your background and experiences could be a useful and probably fun addition cause god knows we need more voices who have done the sort of stuff you've done....and where we have some long term affection for what we know you guys do..and have done...down there in Nyoo Zilund over the decades which is.....considering your population and geographic uniqueness---is pretty damn remarkable..
You mentioned Paddon's adventures and I gotta say he's a bright spot in the Dubya Arsey... And in reference to our little piddly US rally scene I've posted and talked a lot about not so much his WRC shenanigans but his truly amazing---and hilarious win last year at Rally Otago how it casts a light on the whole fan-boi like adulation of the modern cars....1st overall OVERALL in a Historic Class MkII Escort says there is a lot to ponder about the whole fixation with new tricky Whirled rally cars "amazingness"...and the belief that turbo awd car is so coooooooooooooooooooool..Yeah they're cool but 99% would never ever be allowed to even sit in one, but we can identify with an Escort mainly because we've owned or could own something vaguely like it---and bringing it back to "On Topic" that seems to me anyway to be a central critical element in the now decades old crisis in the WRC: fan drift and disengagement:
Pretty hard for me to "identify with" a Whirled Rally Car Fiesta or VW..Haven't seen anything even vaguely looking like that down at the grocery store, eh? I look at back and there's my trusty old Saab V4 (Last Saab 96 ever in the history of the WRC) and a Sierra with a cage in it I built and they don't look anything like the modern little cars.
Any idea if Haddon has any further evil plans to go out and have any more fun in that Escort?
It'd be fun to hear about your local scene---but there's really nowhere that that seems to fit in here so maybe if you have any energy left in your fingertips you could drift over and say Hi on our clubbie build oriented forum? I'll buy you a beer if you do.
Assuming of course you like a frosty one...If not share a cuppa tea wif ya, and we can get all nostalgic about those Dattos and Maz-dogs (I've helped build and done engines and suspension and axles for PILES:eek: of those even currently)
See ya!
Welcome Andy. John here made the speech for all others of us (not US) here on the forum.Quote:
Originally Posted by ArtooDetoo
Guess your age is about mine or Johns´.
What you should do is to visit one or two European rounds of WRC. Rally Finland I´ll recommend. Just think how nice it would be meeting up in Jyväskylä some more friends including John and Paavo and Teemu and Dimitris and why not NOT??
Thanks for the welcoming words.
Sadly my age is such that I clearly remember Andrew Cowan throwing a Mini Clubman GT about over the "Paekak Hill" stage of the Heatway Rally in nineteen-mumble-mumble. That day was the beginning of my passion for rallying. :D
I'd dearly love to spectate on the Finnish WRC round although I don't see it happening in the near future. But you never know...
If you can still remember you can't be doing that bad! I spent from about '67 thru early 80s pounding my head hard into dirt in USA, Canada, years in Sweden--and that Old-pile maniac Pelle just ^ up there has even been to some of the races I was in in the 70s in Sweden....we almost met---'except he was maybe 10 and i was fighting for my life ---then a couple of years down on the Continent in France and once in Begium (OI! dinged me gord there a good 'un) and even South Africa..Good times, good pay. Even did a couple of 24 Hour so called "enduros" which were really 24 hour full gas moto-crosses with lights. Can you say :eek: Fawk meeeeeeeee! 120-130 km/hr on a bike between the trees and the lights work off the magneto....lotsa revs=lotsa light..Chop throttle = WHA! EEEEEEK! (BRAAAP!). Myself it was watching on the Swedish TV WRC Sweden 1976...Stig Blomqvist and Perra Eklund from Arvika both in works Saab 96s....3 days of seriously crazy---Hey Pelle va fan heter "sekund strid" p[ Engleski?---fight for seconds ? Doesn't sound as good..Quote:
Originally Posted by ArtooDetoo
But it was Eklunds first--and only WRC win, and it was the mighty Saab V4s last WRC win...
Hey the invite--its not just for you. I reckon Pelle would be a welcome and useful addition to since he knows a thing or two about pounding cars for normal fols..
Its called rallyanarchy.com...there's a lt of good guys there, a few jerks, a few Rah! Rah boys but the focus is the local scene--and I think locals should talk to locals, especially you bastids that have good domestic series and guys that can gas it and not just putter in a endless procession of clone like Blue Subies...
r
ADAC rally to leave Trier and be based in Saarland according to report in German magazine
https://translate.google.co.nz/trans...%2F&edit-text=
I've heard a rumour about Hayden and Rally Otago this year. If it's true then it will bring the crowds!Quote:
Originally Posted by janvanvurpa
...and it's not an Escort.
Watch this space.
Interesting move. I had a soft spot for Trier I must admit having been there last year. Glad to see the event remain anyway it's always been one of my favourites.Quote:
Originally Posted by KiwiWRCfan
Finally a chance to see more new stages?
Quote:
Originally Posted by KiwiWRCfan
I think this good. While the event based in Trier was a success - it's hardly changed since 2002. Personally, more events need to change their base; as most events are the same year after year.
There is a DRM event in Saarland. Does anybody have any experience with local stages? If I remember they used mixed stages with some gravel roads there. Is it true?
Quote:
Originally Posted by AndyRAC
I'm not sure how events changing their character is positive(applicable only to events that have nice character! I'd love to see GB move out of Wales for example) But then I really like Rally Germany and Trier and together they have great memories for me and I love going to it.
At least they used some stages/roads in DRM that have been used in Rally Germany, so Saarland isn't that new all in all for Rally Germany spectators. I'm always interested in new stages, but fully moving to Saarland could narrow down what Rally Germany has had to offer. It've remained quite much the same, albeit some changes, throughout the year, but I've always liked the diversity of the event. Last years on Friday you coud've swapped between forest roads, field roads or the spectacular vineyards. Saturday is fully different with Panzerplatte and Saarland stages - yet there've been some parts in vineyards too. Sunday (Dhrontal) is combination of forest parts and vineyards, run very early in the morning it's challenging with grip and weather. It's rally for spectators who like to move around easily, see a lot of action and know what to expect organisation-wise. My flights are booked for the 5th year running.Quote:
Originally Posted by Mirek
Hanninen confirmed as test driver Toyota + option official driver in 2017 http://goo.gl/cZ7p7Y
There have been many "Saarland" stages in the past, every now and then. I bet they'll just use more of those stages again. Thinking of Bosenberg, Birkenfeld, Peterberg, Freisen and Hermeskeil. It's possible to have a day in the vineyards, a day with Panzerplatte and 2 "normal" Saarland stages, and another last sunday consisting of some other Saarland stages. There's plenty of roads there. They could make it a very compact event but I doubt it would be interesting for spectators... Also, in general, the Saarland stages are not the most entertaining to watch...Quote:
Originally Posted by Mirek
cereer oportunities at vw motorsport
http://www.volkswagen-motorsport.com...php?id=132&L=1
Great news. He hasn't been given a 'proper' chance by anyone, mostly because he is old I suppose.Quote:
Originally Posted by jbmarcus21
If you compare him to the other IRC graduates (Meeke, Mikelssen, Neuville) he was probably more impressive than any of them at that time, although he did have a better car than two of them.
Today Sebastien Loeb testing in France C4Wrc + DS3Wrc for French Rally driver Pereira
Full story with video + photos ➡ http://goo.gl/Mur585