RE: The Metro 6R4 story: Time For Tea?
Discussion
Drive Blind said:
not sure if my mind/memory is playing tricks with me but was there not a tv series shown that followed a fictional family rallying a 6R4?
Can't remember that but there was a program (no limits?) which had one in the opening credits when one presenter pulls the other (Jenny Powell ?) out of the way.Drive Blind said:
not sure if my mind/memory is playing tricks with me but was there not a tv series shown that followed a fictional family rallying a 6R4?
Remember that too, called 'The Winning Streak', car was blue and yellow with a fictional sponsor, I even had the scalextric version!I seem to remember the late , great Tony Pond did a lot of the driving for the filming.
absolutely class.....
Brings back memories of being in hamsterley forest freezing my nuts off in the middle of november in the dead of night. The dark and silence shattered by bewinged fire breathing monsters - brilliant and awe inspiring especially to a rusty mini driving 17 yr old!
Then being at croft watching Will Gollop in his turboed 6R4 battle with a Rs200 driven by Mark Rennison - they both seemed to accelerate like they'd been fired out of a cannon.
The cars were so fast, too fast it turned out to be, but it was a fantastic time for rallying (then rallycross) - its never been the same since. its too sanitised now, the cars are too mainstream, and too few manufacturers are involved to make it really interesting. Shame.
I'm sure a couple of years later new 6r4's being advertised for around £14k as ARG couldn't get rid of them........
Brings back memories of being in hamsterley forest freezing my nuts off in the middle of november in the dead of night. The dark and silence shattered by bewinged fire breathing monsters - brilliant and awe inspiring especially to a rusty mini driving 17 yr old!
Then being at croft watching Will Gollop in his turboed 6R4 battle with a Rs200 driven by Mark Rennison - they both seemed to accelerate like they'd been fired out of a cannon.
The cars were so fast, too fast it turned out to be, but it was a fantastic time for rallying (then rallycross) - its never been the same since. its too sanitised now, the cars are too mainstream, and too few manufacturers are involved to make it really interesting. Shame.
I'm sure a couple of years later new 6r4's being advertised for around £14k as ARG couldn't get rid of them........
I feel this is the right place to share this. 45s of heaven 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C8bO7OfUgqg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C8bO7OfUgqg
Great story, and could have been a great car, in terms of results. Awesome sound.
In fact, there were 2 out last weekend on the Nicky Grist stages in mid Wales; one driven by Peter Smith of Swift leisure (and father of Le Mans winner Guy).
As for the question of whether Rallying will ever be influential,again. I seriously doubt it. Chronic mismanagement is wanting it to be a form of extended Rally X. What other Motorsport has repeatedly shot itself in the foot.
The cars aren't bad, but they're not jaw dropping..... Which a WRCar should be.
In fact, there were 2 out last weekend on the Nicky Grist stages in mid Wales; one driven by Peter Smith of Swift leisure (and father of Le Mans winner Guy).
As for the question of whether Rallying will ever be influential,again. I seriously doubt it. Chronic mismanagement is wanting it to be a form of extended Rally X. What other Motorsport has repeatedly shot itself in the foot.
The cars aren't bad, but they're not jaw dropping..... Which a WRCar should be.
[quote=Gary C]
What really gets me is the price AR sold the 6r4's off at. 15k!. Ok missing a few bits, but within the skills of a spanner man. Ford sold the rs200's for £50k. For reference a RS cosworth was £15,950 at the time.
That must have been for a few left over parts ,there was a evo road car for sale at a garage in Boothtown, Halifax, around 1987 a all white car it was up at £60k
What really gets me is the price AR sold the 6r4's off at. 15k!. Ok missing a few bits, but within the skills of a spanner man. Ford sold the rs200's for £50k. For reference a RS cosworth was £15,950 at the time.
That must have been for a few left over parts ,there was a evo road car for sale at a garage in Boothtown, Halifax, around 1987 a all white car it was up at £60k
RyanTank said:
sideways man said:
Why did they ban group B? All they had to do was move the spectators back to a safer place. Easy.
spectators outnumbered marshals by close to 100-1 on some events. so not exactly easy as you put it.The cars became too powerful. it wasn't called F1 on gravel for no reason, ironically the cars are faster now than they were in grpB days, but no one watches it and automatically labels it boring as the cars are based on Fiesta's & DS3's
off top but a must watch ,Tony pond of the 6R4 works drivers, trying to drive the isle of man tt circuit in a average of 100 mph , the in car footage showing a standard (apart from tyres ) Rover Vitese doing 150 mph
is squeaky bum time
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5NEskpWsMkI
is squeaky bum time
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5NEskpWsMkI
Dave Hedgehog said:
The best motor sport I have ever watched was Will Gollop battling the RS200's
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ogu9rtCJmOc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ogu9rtCJmOc
Murray Walker said:
Watch his hands, no you can't because he's going into Druids
leedsutd1 said:
Gary C said:
What really gets me is the price AR sold the 6r4's off at. 15k!. Ok missing a few bits, but within the skills of a spanner man. Ford sold the rs200's for £50k. For reference a RS cosworth was £15,950 at the time.
That must have been for a few left over parts ,there was a evo road car for sale at a garage in Boothtown, Halifax, around 1987 a all white car it was up at £60kThey had lots of them, missing proper competition wheels and dash, seats etc, but full shell, suspension and v64v engines. Ford trimmed and specced rs200's but had trouble selling them for 50k, AR tried at ~40k but failed to sell them so reduced it to ~15k as they just wanted them gone.
Just found this article http://www.evo.co.uk/features/features/260041/birt...
I was there for the 1985 rac when it came third.
Edited by Gary C on Saturday 19th July 19:27
heightswitch said:
I first saw and heard this car at the Lightwater valley special stage on the Lombard..Once heard NEVER forgotten. A true underdog story and a worldbeater had it not been for the demise of group B
N.
Think the t16 and s4's would have kept the upper hand. Not choosing a turbo seemed like the correct choice at the start, but forced induction technology advanced so fast that the v64v would have struggled to keep up.N.
The rs200 on the other hand....
Gary C said:
Think the t16 and s4's would have kept the upper hand. Not choosing a turbo seemed like the correct choice at the start, but forced induction technology advanced so fast that the v64v would have struggled to keep up.
They would have just sleeved it down and added a pair of turbos as per the Jag XJ220 and a few of the rallycross drivers did.aeropilot said:
Gary C said:
Think the t16 and s4's would have kept the upper hand. Not choosing a turbo seemed like the correct choice at the start, but forced induction technology advanced so fast that the v64v would have struggled to keep up.
They would have just sleeved it down and added a pair of turbos as per the Jag XJ220 and a few of the rallycross drivers did.Even so, they would have been playing catchup with the s4 and t16's.
Group S though would have shook things up, but again Lancia was already well on with their car, would have been a tough act to beat.
Was an apprentice with a lad who worked for rover, telling us tales of this mid engined metro they were working on with a rover v8. Pity the central purchasing dept stopped the Motorsport division from buying an engine dyno, wanting to do it through standard company purchasing procedures to get the best price. Dyno was late and over budget and lost too much development time.
A mate of mine had one as a "Sunday" car, I went out in it a couple of times for a pint, you had to use the intercom to talk to each other it was sooo loud, engine and box gnashing away, it was ludicrously low geared, flat stick was 110mph, he later fitted some higher ratio transfer box gears, it broke down a lot!!!! Mad car though 
A mate of mine had one as a "Sunday" car, I went out in it a couple of times for a pint, you had to use the intercom to talk to each other it was sooo loud, engine and box gnashing away, it was ludicrously low geared, flat stick was 110mph, he later fitted some higher ratio transfer box gears, it broke down a lot!!!! Mad car though
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