Gronhom is BACK
Discussion
Pity in one of those SH8tbox Scoobies that was never going to win a round.
http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/73403
http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/73403
stephen300o said:
Nicol@ said:
I will be impressed if he gets in the top three.
I'd be surprised if not. He's the only one who has got near interrupting the Loeb road show.Pity they did not get rigd of Wilson - he is never going to amount to anything (god you see him in the car and he look scared to go fast!).
jellison said:
stephen300o said:
Nicol@ said:
I will be impressed if he gets in the top three.
I'd be surprised if not. He's the only one who has got near interrupting the Loeb road show.Pity they did not get rigd of Wilson - he is never going to amount to anything (god you see him in the car and he look scared to go fast!).

jellison said:
stephen300o said:
Nicol@ said:
I will be impressed if he gets in the top three.
I'd be surprised if not. He's the only one who has got near interrupting the Loeb road show.Pity they did not get rigd of Wilson - he is never going to amount to anything (god you see him in the car and he look scared to go fast!).
jellison said:
Yep but the point is if Petter could not get the results out of it (engine layout all wrong - workd 10 years ago but things have moved on). I recon top 4 possible, top 3 maybe if other fall out.
Not sure where you get your delusions from sometimes... 
Atkinson got fairly frequent podiums from it and 5th in the drivers championship in the '08 season, Solberg was just too inconsistent but still finished 6th in DC.
Subaru finished 3rd in the 08 manufacturers championship.
For sure its not right at the top where they used to be but thats still pretty competitive in anyone elses terms.
Any less than 3rd would have been a disaster, there were only 3 serious works teams.
Petter lost his bottle years ago, that big shunt in Germany where Phil nearly lost his head was the final mental end for him being a top driver. It's such a huge shame Burnsie became so ill, he had signed for Subaru and would have turned the team around. Getting rid of Hirvonen and replacing him with Atkinson was the final straw.
The layout of the Subaru is fine, it's better than most, but to me the investment in the program has been poor compared to the opposition and the earlier years of the Prodrive/Subaru partnership.
Petter lost his bottle years ago, that big shunt in Germany where Phil nearly lost his head was the final mental end for him being a top driver. It's such a huge shame Burnsie became so ill, he had signed for Subaru and would have turned the team around. Getting rid of Hirvonen and replacing him with Atkinson was the final straw.
The layout of the Subaru is fine, it's better than most, but to me the investment in the program has been poor compared to the opposition and the earlier years of the Prodrive/Subaru partnership.
GravelBen said:
jellison said:
Yep but the point is if Petter could not get the results out of it (engine layout all wrong - workd 10 years ago but things have moved on). I recon top 4 possible, top 3 maybe if other fall out.
Not sure where you get your delusions from sometimes... 
Atkinson got fairly frequent podiums from it and 5th in the drivers championship in the '08 season, Solberg was just too inconsistent but still finished 6th in DC.
Subaru finished 3rd in the 08 manufacturers championship.
For sure its not right at the top where they used to be but thats still pretty competitive in anyone elses terms.
(have not checked my spelling above!).
John who's 717 is it you work on?
Good good the Gron is back! Been missing the brilliant interviews. Be interesting to see how he goes, I always got the impression with Petter that he knew the car wasn't brilliant and didn't want to put his neck on the line too much trying to force a car that didn't have the ultimate pace. Atko on the otherhand I think just drove 100% regardless. What Gronholm will do remains to be seen but according to motorsports news prodrive are hoping the car he will be using is a slight evolution of last years car.
edwardsje said:
jellison said:
stephen300o said:
Nicol@ said:
I will be impressed if he gets in the top three.
I'd be surprised if not. He's the only one who has got near interrupting the Loeb road show.quote]
What constraints does the layout impose?
From my vague bits of research, Subaru can't really take advantage of the regulations that allow the engine to be tilted because it would screw up their drivetrain alignment. The gearbox design, with the diff forwards of the gearbox itself but behind the engine pushes the block forwards outside of the wheelbase. If they had a gearbox like a Skyline GTR with a forward shaft from the gearbox I suppose they would need to push the engine upwards to fit the diff beneath it. Another compromise.
Small little things like the turbo placed vertically behind the block was desperate attempt to move weight backwards.
Here's a pic of a recentish Impreza WRC engine bay:
http://www.ultimatecarpage.com/images/large/3195/S...
Typically I can't find one of the Focus or C4!
Of course it could just have been related to funding from Subaru..
Small little things like the turbo placed vertically behind the block was desperate attempt to move weight backwards.
Here's a pic of a recentish Impreza WRC engine bay:
http://www.ultimatecarpage.com/images/large/3195/S...
Typically I can't find one of the Focus or C4!
Of course it could just have been related to funding from Subaru..
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