2021 Rallying Thread (WRC, ERC and national rally)

2021 Rallying Thread (WRC, ERC and national rally)

Author
Discussion

andy97

4,703 posts

222 months

Thursday 4th February 2021
quotequote all
Allyc85 said:
.........but on the positive Forestry England are allowing rallying to continue in their forests. This following on from Natural Resource Wales announcing a 3 year extension recently.
Before everyone get very excited, I think this is a very key phrase from FE, though:

“this is our chance to reduce the environmental footprint of motorsport and improve its financial support for the forests and local businesses. We’ll better understand what the right event in the right place looks like, the true costs and how we deal with them”

No time to be complacent and no time for bunting and celebration yet. There’s still work to be done.

Drumroll

3,757 posts

120 months

Thursday 4th February 2021
quotequote all
andy97 said:
Before everyone get very excited, I think this is a very key phrase from FE, though:

“this is our chance to reduce the environmental footprint of motorsport and improve its financial support for the forests and local businesses. We’ll better understand what the right event in the right place looks like, the true costs and how we deal with them”

No time to be complacent and no time for bunting and celebration yet. There’s still work to be done.
True, but at least it wasn't NO, which a lot of us feared.

Skylinecrazy

13,986 posts

194 months

Thursday 4th February 2021
quotequote all

LukeBrown66

4,479 posts

46 months

Thursday 4th February 2021
quotequote all
Have to be honest unless hybrid comes in to WRC manufacturers will leave, they are not relevant really otherwise for that level of budget.

Great for me, R5 and R5+ is more than enough, cheaper, allows national entries and would make a better more even show.

Manufacturers are not the be all and end all, ask WRX, ITC, DTM, WSPC, BTCC Super Touring.

Skylinecrazy

13,986 posts

194 months

Thursday 4th February 2021
quotequote all
LukeBrown66 said:
Have to be honest unless hybrid comes in to WRC manufacturers will leave, they are not relevant really otherwise for that level of budget.

Great for me, R5 and R5+ is more than enough, cheaper, allows national entries and would make a better more even show.

Manufacturers are not the be all and end all, ask WRX, ITC, DTM, WSPC, BTCC Super Touring.
I wholeheartedly agree. We do not need manufacturers.

Add F1 to the above...

Allyc85

Original Poster:

7,225 posts

186 months

Thursday 4th February 2021
quotequote all
Drumroll said:
True, but at least it wasn't NO, which a lot of us feared.
Exactly. Change is to be expected, when it comes to the environment etc.

I do fear about Hyundai though. But I will say that without the WRC I would never have considered buying one of their cars, just like Toyota with the Yaris. It's difficult to know which way to go with the next gen cars. The current beasts are brilliant, the stage side spectator numbers are obviously up, and viewing figures still blow Formula E out of the water, and that's still seen as the next big thing to some! But they are just too damn expensive..

ArnageWRC

2,066 posts

159 months

Thursday 4th February 2021
quotequote all
Skylinecrazy said:
LukeBrown66 said:
Have to be honest unless hybrid comes in to WRC manufacturers will leave, they are not relevant really otherwise for that level of budget.

Great for me, R5 and R5+ is more than enough, cheaper, allows national entries and would make a better more even show.

Manufacturers are not the be all and end all, ask WRX, ITC, DTM, WSPC, BTCC Super Touring.
I wholeheartedly agree. We do not need manufacturers.

Add F1 to the above...
Some series can, in theory get by without manufacturers - as they have constructors and engine builders. However, WRC currently does need them; who is going to pay for the WRC, without them?

Manufacturers will sign up to the WRC if they think there's something in it for them. Not enough obviously think it's worth it. It's a long time since we saw 5, 6, 7 manufacturers in the WRC. Since then, it tends to be about 3-4 if we're lucky.

greeny12

301 posts

219 months

Friday 5th February 2021
quotequote all
Skylinecrazy said:
Tanak's move to Hyundai is looking more disastrous by the week...

Skylinecrazy

13,986 posts

194 months

Friday 5th February 2021
quotequote all
Solberg JR confirmed to be driving a Rally 1 car in Lapland! Can’t wait to see that.

Skylinecrazy

13,986 posts

194 months

Friday 5th February 2021
quotequote all
ArnageWRC said:
Some series can, in theory get by without manufacturers - as they have constructors and engine builders. However, WRC currently does need them; who is going to pay for the WRC, without them?

Manufacturers will sign up to the WRC if they think there's something in it for them. Not enough obviously think it's worth it. It's a long time since we saw 5, 6, 7 manufacturers in the WRC. Since then, it tends to be about 3-4 if we're lucky.
Technically M-sport isn’t a manufacturer and they seem to manage it!

WRC could run the same way as Blancpain. Customer teams. Manufacturers will continue to develop R5 cars because there’s a solid business model. There’s no reason WRC can’t do the same if costs are reigned in.

ArnageWRC

2,066 posts

159 months

Friday 5th February 2021
quotequote all
Skylinecrazy said:
WRC could run the same way as Blancpain. Customer teams. Manufacturers will continue to develop R5 cars because there’s a solid business model. There’s no reason WRC can’t do the same if costs are reigned in.
That's true, and sounds good but I'm not sure WRC is big enough. GT3 racing is massive worldwide. However, Manufacturers are still needed. No current rallycar is designed, built & homologated without them. Doesn't matter who runs them. You can't turn up to an event with a 'home built' special....In fact the Mitsubishi Mirage ran on national events about 5-10 years ago; as they struggled to get it homologated as Mitsubishi originally weren't interested.

Unless there is a change in the rules/regs, Manufacturers will always be required for rallying,

Skylinecrazy

13,986 posts

194 months

Friday 5th February 2021
quotequote all
ArnageWRC said:
That's true, and sounds good but I'm not sure WRC is big enough. GT3 racing is massive worldwide. However, Manufacturers are still needed. No current rallycar is designed, built & homologated without them. Doesn't matter who runs them. You can't turn up to an event with a 'home built' special....In fact the Mitsubishi Mirage ran on national events about 5-10 years ago; as they struggled to get it homologated as Mitsubishi originally weren't interested.

Unless there is a change in the rules/regs, Manufacturers will always be required for rallying,
You’d be surprised how many Fabias have been made and sold. Can’t be far off some of the leading GT3 cars.

Rallying is relevant in other countries, just not in the UK anymore.

LukeBrown66

4,479 posts

46 months

Friday 5th February 2021
quotequote all
I think over 250 Fabias have been made, then you look at the S200 version, the 207 was very popular, the R5 Fiesta must be over 100, this is where they make money.

I should remind people again that Msport are not bullet proof they laid off a third of the workforce, and for anyone that has been up there, there is literally nothing else nearby, meaning a ton of them will likely have to move away and sell up.

Drumroll

3,757 posts

120 months

Sunday 7th February 2021
quotequote all
Well having read the Executive summary Forestry England has produced I am now a lot less hopeful of any significant rallying returning to the forests of England.

https://www.forestryengland.uk/sites/default/files...

df76

3,631 posts

278 months

Sunday 7th February 2021
quotequote all
Drumroll said:
Well having read the Executive summary Forestry England has produced I am now a lot less hopeful of any significant rallying returning to the forests of England.

https://www.forestryengland.uk/sites/default/files...
Yes, that suggests that it’s stopping.

Skylinecrazy

13,986 posts

194 months

Monday 8th February 2021
quotequote all
Lappi back in an R5 car for Lapland. Entry is shaping up really nicely now and I can’t wait for a proper snow rally!

How does everyone think Solberg JR will do? Top 5?

confucuis

1,303 posts

124 months

Monday 8th February 2021
quotequote all
Skylinecrazy said:
Lappi back in an R5 car for Lapland. Entry is shaping up really nicely now and I can’t wait for a proper snow rally!

How does everyone think Solberg JR will do? Top 5?
He'll show flashes of pace/brilliance before binning it or having some sort of issue. From the little I've seen of him, he seems to have some decent pace but a bit like Meeke, there is always an issue of some sort

GravelBen

15,693 posts

230 months

Monday 8th February 2021
quotequote all
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFMwLKqYtMU

Paddon's electric Hyundai project looking quick in gravel testing.

andy97

4,703 posts

222 months

Tuesday 9th February 2021
quotequote all
Skylinecrazy said:
WRC could run the same way as Blancpain. Customer teams. Manufacturers will continue to develop R5 cars because there’s a solid business model. There’s no reason WRC can’t do the same if costs are reigned in.
There would probably be an even better business model, and potential manufacturer involvement as well as privateers, if the WRC moved to a rally version of TCR.

PaulW100

112 posts

68 months

Wednesday 10th February 2021
quotequote all
confucuis said:
He'll show flashes of pace/brilliance before binning it or having some sort of issue. From the little I've seen of him, he seems to have some decent pace but a bit like Meeke, there is always an issue of some sort
Excellent analysis of a 19yr old ... jesus.

Always an issue, when he won the junior ERC, when he won countless RX rounds in a world RX supercar at 16yrs old.
When he sets top 5 overall times against WRC machines in Monte.