veryone loves a fast Ford, particularly us Brits. And that's why the company chose this week's Motor Show to unveil the new Ford RallyeConcept and also reveal its intention to have a Fiesta-based competition racer ready to go for the 2003 season.
And if rallying isn't your cup of tea, there's more to this prototype than meets the eye. It's the clearest hint yet of what fans hope will be the ultimate Fiesta in the line-up - the RS. The car hasn't been confirmed, and is still in the planning stages, but should make its public debut in 2004.
Adapting a road car for motorsport can alter its character and appearance, but blue oval bosses were adamant this wouldn't happen with the Rallye-Concept. So the engineers behind Colin McRae's Focus WRC and the designers who penned the three-door Fiesta worked closely on this project. The result is a motor which clearly shares the look of the new supermini.
The first thing about the newcomer which grabs your attention is those enormous front wheelarches. Not only do they give an aggressive stance, but their size is necessary for the huge black 18-inch magnesium alloys.
And having the arches practically level with the bonnet allows a much lower ride height than the normal Fiesta. The squat look is further enhanced by the deep front splitter, which sits only millimetres above the ground.
Other departures from the road car include the lights, which retain the standard motor's headlamp shape but now have new powerful twin-beam bulbs for rallying. Also, the bonnet's vents improve airflow to the engine, while a huge scoop on the roof helps keep the cabin cool during a race.
The sporty appearance is completed by a unique rear spoiler, which helps improve grip at high speed. Despite all these changes, though, you can still recognise the new three-door Fiesta.
Another area where rally vehicles depart from their showroom cousins is the cabin. But Ford has tried to keep a visible link between the two interiors. The inner door panels are similar, while the same instrument panel and dashboard are fitted. Their centre console is also shared, but it has been moved closer to the driver in the racer, and a hydraulic handbrake - for those all-important turns - has been fitted.
Although the instrument binnacles are the same, in the RallyeConcept the dials have been replaced by race-spec ones. The glovebox has been ditched in favour of co-driver gauges, which provide crucial time-keeping and engine data. Custom-built Sparco seats - located for optimum weight distribution - hold the occupants in position.
A roll cage has been added, and moulded footwells keep competitors in place during hard cornering. Under the skin, the alterations to the normal Fiesta are even more exciting. Power comes from a high-revving version of the road car's 1.6-litre Duratec 16v unit. Replacing the sump, head and block with special aluminium ones and upgrading the exhaust has increased output to more than 200bhp. Power is fed to the front wheels via a six-speed close-ratio sequential gearbox. Mean-while, 355mm ventilated brake discs with four-piston calipers at the front and 265mm discs at the rear bring the car to a halt. The RallyeConcept's suspension is equally impressive, and has been designed with aluminium components. MacPherson struts at the front feature a fabricated cross member and rocker-arm anti-roll bar to improve cornering stability. Added to this, the rear shock absorbers use external reservoirs to enhance damping.
The Ford RallyeConcept is the successor to the Puma Super 1600 rally machine, which led to the road-going Racing Puma. So could this car lead to a hot RS Fiesta? Let's hope so... Mat Watson
from autoexpress: http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/news/ae_news_story.php?id=30929
high res photos on my site: http://www.dieselstation.com/archive/Misc/index.html
And if rallying isn't your cup of tea, there's more to this prototype than meets the eye. It's the clearest hint yet of what fans hope will be the ultimate Fiesta in the line-up - the RS. The car hasn't been confirmed, and is still in the planning stages, but should make its public debut in 2004.
Adapting a road car for motorsport can alter its character and appearance, but blue oval bosses were adamant this wouldn't happen with the Rallye-Concept. So the engineers behind Colin McRae's Focus WRC and the designers who penned the three-door Fiesta worked closely on this project. The result is a motor which clearly shares the look of the new supermini.
The first thing about the newcomer which grabs your attention is those enormous front wheelarches. Not only do they give an aggressive stance, but their size is necessary for the huge black 18-inch magnesium alloys.
And having the arches practically level with the bonnet allows a much lower ride height than the normal Fiesta. The squat look is further enhanced by the deep front splitter, which sits only millimetres above the ground.
Other departures from the road car include the lights, which retain the standard motor's headlamp shape but now have new powerful twin-beam bulbs for rallying. Also, the bonnet's vents improve airflow to the engine, while a huge scoop on the roof helps keep the cabin cool during a race.
The sporty appearance is completed by a unique rear spoiler, which helps improve grip at high speed. Despite all these changes, though, you can still recognise the new three-door Fiesta.
Another area where rally vehicles depart from their showroom cousins is the cabin. But Ford has tried to keep a visible link between the two interiors. The inner door panels are similar, while the same instrument panel and dashboard are fitted. Their centre console is also shared, but it has been moved closer to the driver in the racer, and a hydraulic handbrake - for those all-important turns - has been fitted.
Although the instrument binnacles are the same, in the RallyeConcept the dials have been replaced by race-spec ones. The glovebox has been ditched in favour of co-driver gauges, which provide crucial time-keeping and engine data. Custom-built Sparco seats - located for optimum weight distribution - hold the occupants in position.
A roll cage has been added, and moulded footwells keep competitors in place during hard cornering. Under the skin, the alterations to the normal Fiesta are even more exciting. Power comes from a high-revving version of the road car's 1.6-litre Duratec 16v unit. Replacing the sump, head and block with special aluminium ones and upgrading the exhaust has increased output to more than 200bhp. Power is fed to the front wheels via a six-speed close-ratio sequential gearbox. Mean-while, 355mm ventilated brake discs with four-piston calipers at the front and 265mm discs at the rear bring the car to a halt. The RallyeConcept's suspension is equally impressive, and has been designed with aluminium components. MacPherson struts at the front feature a fabricated cross member and rocker-arm anti-roll bar to improve cornering stability. Added to this, the rear shock absorbers use external reservoirs to enhance damping.
The Ford RallyeConcept is the successor to the Puma Super 1600 rally machine, which led to the road-going Racing Puma. So could this car lead to a hot RS Fiesta? Let's hope so... Mat Watson
from autoexpress: http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/news/ae_news_story.php?id=30929
high res photos on my site: http://www.dieselstation.com/archive/Misc/index.html
Facebook
Twitter