2017 World Rally ChampionshipRally 

  • Thread starter Accro2008
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He got it back in the end, but the car was undrivable without it and he had to withdraw from the day.

I also got to see a replay of the opening stage, and there were a few interesting observations:
  • Martin Prokop will definitely be running alongside Østberg in a Fiesta, but he probably won't be seen until Sardegna.
  • Lorenzo Bertelli put in an order for a 2017 Fiesta, and will get one in the next few rounds, but had to wait because Østberg got priority. Which seems weird because when the FIA introduced the restrictions on the cars, it seemed like Bertelli was exactly who they had in mind in restricting.
  • Teemu Suninen will get three rounds in a WRC car later in the year, but there is no word as to whether it will be a 2016 or 2017 car.
 
Make that fourth - he just breezed past Meeke on the opening stage of the day. The C3 is looking a bit like a white elephant.
 
In that case, please, please, let it be anyone but Oger.
I know that he can be a bit of a pain in the neck, but to be fair, he did have cause to complain last year - the running order rules appeared to be designed to make it as difficult as possible for him to win the title, and were pretty unfair that way. Full credit to him for pulling it off, and to Jarmo Mahonen for admitting that the FIA took things too far and correcting both the running order and rearranging the calendar for a bit of variety between events. I doubt we'll see too much of Ogier complaining this year because of it.

It's a safety thing. The FIA mandate a maximum average stage speed of 130km/h - they had to place man-made chicanes into Ouninpohja a couple of years ago because it was simply too fast.
 
I know but if they're cancelling stages now they may as well cancel the whole of Rally Finland.
 
I know but if they're cancelling stages now they may as well cancel the whole of Rally Finland.
1) Finland's route hasn't been finalised yet.
2) There are things that can be done to lower the average speed.
3) The stage that got cancelled, Knon, is brand-new - which probably explains the FIA's hesitation. Even the top drivers were intimidated by it.
 
Don't the FIA have to approve the route before the rally starts?
They do, but the speed of the cars this year was largely unknown. They were evidently willing to let it pass - Michele Mouton doesn't like interfering when she can avoid it - but the concerns of the drivers would have carried a lot of weight. And the surface would have played a part; in the right conditions, drivers can achieve some of the highest individual top speeds of the year. The tungsten studs bite into the icy upper layers and provide phenomenal amounts of grip, even more so than what they get on tarmac or gravel.

Whats the point to have more powerful cars if they are gonna cancel stages because of "too high speed"?
It wasn't cancelled because the speeds were too high. It was cancelled because the average speed was too high.
 


Jesus christ! Didn't anyone learn from Monte Carlo!?

Edit:
Apparently the Historic is cancelled on SS9 due to someone having an accident there on a snowmobile. The Rally Sweden crowd not exactly impressing me atm.

 
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It's happened again!

Neuville's crashed out of the lead on the superspecial.

Latvala leads into the final day but Tanak is only 4s behind and on great form, looks like he will take his first WRC win.
 
It's happened again!

Neuville's crashed out of the lead on the superspecial.
I can't help but feel really disappointed for him. From the sounds of things, his crash was the result of light contact, just as his incident in Monte Carlo was. I wonder if there is something fragile in the i20 Coupe, since things break so easily.
 
So the Hyundai i20 is probably the fastest car in the field, and also the most fragile. It's like Peugeot in 2001/2003 all over again.
 
what I don't agree with is why the regulations would increase the amount of aerodynamics. More power and less grip is what makes the spectacle.
When you're dealing with a loose-surface event, you can't just pile on the power and expect results. Eventually you hit a point of diminishing returns with the traction where it doesn't matter how much power you put on, it just bleeds away. Ironically, you'll get slower top speeds and stage times because driving the car will require much more throttle modulation. You need to increase the aerodynamics to keep the car planted so that you can get the most out of the extra power.
 
When you're dealing with a loose-surface event, you can't just pile on the power and expect results. Eventually you hit a point of diminishing returns with the traction where it doesn't matter how much power you put on, it just bleeds away. Ironically, you'll get slower top speeds and stage times because driving the car will require much more throttle modulation. You need to increase the aerodynamics to keep the car planted so that you can get the most out of the extra power.

My point exactly.
 
When you're dealing with a loose-surface event, you can't just pile on the power and expect results. Eventually you hit a point of diminishing returns with the traction where it doesn't matter how much power you put on, it just bleeds away. Ironically, you'll get slower top speeds and stage times because driving the car will require much more throttle modulation. You need to increase the aerodynamics to keep the car planted so that you can get the most out of the extra power.
And watching highlights, seeing the driver's reactions after the stages, and watching fan footage, the cars seem pretty damn spectacular.
 
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