Q for the rally fans.....

[Flash In The Pan]

trying to remember which driver it was in what year that ended up with three wheels on a works Audi quattro and finished one of the stages of the RAC (I think) with the co-driver perched on the rear of the car.....anyone? :shrug:

 

[Yves Geza]

It was Arne Hertz sitting in the boot while Hannu Mikkola did the steering round Knowsley Safari Park

... and those ugly, boring, farty-noised four wheel drive rubbish cars from Audi directly caused the decline of rallying until it's been reduced to the artificial, emasculated 200 mile total/ 5 mile stage joke it is today! :razz:

 

[Rob_W]

 

[Yves Geza]

 

[Flash In The Pan]

I had the feeling it was Mikkola, couldn't for the life of me remember where though

 

[Yves Geza]

My rant was because the four wheel drive Audis were so boring to watch and their turbocharged engines so boring to listen to after what had gone before. And the four wheel drive traction and instant high speeds of the Group B cars exacerbated the safety problems that were already destroying the far greater adventure-sport of rallying as it had been before the late 70s.

When I was a kid, I aspired to do the RAC Rally. It was 1,600 competitive miles over five days and nights and no one stopped for a little bye byes and din dins in the local 5-star hotel!

Every Club road rally was an all nighter which gave every club rally driver 200 competitive miles for their entry fee.

Now, in large part because of the four wheel drive cars digging up the forests, and in part because they get to 100mph out of every hairpin and corner and standing start and frighten the spectators, the World Rally Championship is fought over a series of little Autocrosses – a Woirld Rally event is 16 or 17 five or ten or fifteen mile stages which adds up to … well not exactly a test of endurance or stamina or reliability or mechanical ingenuity and not exactly good value!

Rantover is a good name for a Rally driver though