Alarm just gone off, having a brew. Just realised it's actually ****ing Saturday. Not the best idea deciding to work today, regretting it already.
The fact that Mk2 rally cars are still popular today tells the whole story, probably the most fun car to drive in rally history. So many times I’ve thought one was off in the ditch only for the back end to get traction and ****off down a country Lane powered by a Millington Diamond 2.8 coughing up about 350bhp, in a car that weighs about the same as a handful of screws. My top rally cars of all time: 1. Delta S4 Group B spec 2. Escort Mk2 RS 3. Polo WRC 4. Evo VI Makkinen edition 5. Focus Mk2 WRC
Yeah the Audi S1 was a ridiculous machine but the Delta S4 was rabid, killed Henri Toivonen and that was the beginning of the end.
Think that’s where the spectators were killed the round before Toivonen died at Corsica. It was instantly banned (Group B) after that iirc. Basically the cars moved faster than the human brain could compute reactions and that’s why they’ll never come back. It’s outrageous to think they were allowed in the first place to be honest. You still see a few diluted cars in competition like the Metro 6R4 and Pug T16’s but most will be confined to museums and collectors these days.
Stratos is a ****ing masterpiece of a car, but unfortunately those left in action these days rarely make it past the opening few stages.
Opel Manta was another one, Ari Vatenen on the Manx special stage sticks in the mind. Nearly stacks it going through a cattle grid at about 90mph. There is a theme among rally drivers like, those from Ireland and Finland seem to be absolute ****ing nutters. Irish also dominate The Manx TT if I’m not mistaken.
It was also incredibly dangerous having spectators lining the roads. I think the Portugal crash was caused by the driver initially trying to avoid spectators, he then lost control and ploughed into a load more. But yeah those cars were fuking animals, so much raw power. Incredible machines really, but throwing those beasts around street tracks at 150 mph with people literally feet away, was always going end up with tragic accidents.
My mate had an Opel Manta as his first car. We used to call it his Opel Banter. Obvs not rally spec, but it was way to hot to handle for a 17 year old lad. Remember him taking us for a spin on a Golf Course at night in it and stacking it in a bunker. Thought I was going to die that night.
Fast becoming a non-spectator sport mate, people still die watching these days. I think there was one or two up in Scotland recently. Trying to get the action shots on the phones as the cars whip past sideways at 70mph on gravel. I’ve seen Paul Bird’s Focus WRC roll about 20 metres away from me, that was more than close enough. All that’s left is a total wreckage and 2 bloke’s laughing away inside a roll cage.
