Andrew Hebron said:
A Puma 1.7 would be a B11 which is 1601cc to 2000cc / 2WD / normally aspirated. I run a 1600 in B10.
The obvious problem with a 1.7 is it's up against 2 litre cars in its class. Nothing to stop you though. Single Venues (SVs) are the cheapest sort of Stage Rallies (entry fees ~£150) and don't have so much to hit although are normally tarmac / broken concrete and can put a fair amount of mechnical strain on cars. Good for learning the ropes, racing lines & your car.
Don't get put off by tales of anoraks; there's all sorts - just like life - but they tend to have one thing in common: they actually JFDI. If I had a pound for the number of speccies in Corsas with huge alloys and fartcans who tell me they're planning to start "when they get the money" I'd be driving an Evo by now...
Best way to start is a ready made car TBH. You can usually trace the history through the owner's results and take someone who knows what their doing from a rallying POV.
Flying Scotsman - happy to chat through in more detail: send me a PM. Coincidentally I am reshelling mine soon (after a tree jumped out in front of me) and am not a million miles away from you...
Didn't realise homologation was out already
, my anorak is out of date, haven't done any stage rallying in 10 years :lol:, Just as well Im only road rallying these days. That said it means there's less to be lost by going over to b11 with a duratec lump using the fiesta st gearbox. If you're in group B already...
Buying ready built cars certainly saves a lot of money, no way you can build a car as cheap as you can buy it. That said If I had a £1 for every Mk2 escort Ive seen that's supposed to have 200hp out of its pinto but feels more like 140hp, I'd at least be able to have a good meal out
. (probably a situation that's changed Escort prices have rocketed since I was last staging, and I suspect the ancient pinto has fallen out of favour). At a quick count I can recall 11 different Rally cars Ive had now, out of which 2 have been pre-owned, and one built from a bare previously rallied shell, Always happiest in stuff Ive built myself (with help from friends) But then I'm a beggar for replacing bits that don't need replacing as well. for example For my front brake upgrades, I couldn't just buy a pair of mondeo calipers and paint them up and slap them on, I got them blasted, plated, rebuilt with new seals and pistons then painted them up...
To me the planning, building and developing are one of the most fun parts of the hobby... If I had limitless funds I wouldn't be off to m-sport to buy an off the shelf wrc I would be buying up a workshop employing a few friends and buying machinery to build to my own designs Id love to see if some of my more off the wall designs actually worked... Ive spent quite a few hours working out how Im going to wide track the front end within the limits of the standard arches, I think I probably have more fun working out solutions and building than I do driving. I am one of those anoraks :lol:
I would recommend anyone to start with road rallying or 12 cars though, its cheap, easy, quick and a great intro to the sport. and you can do it in your standard road car. You can dip your toes in the water and see what you think for £40 in a car you know and trust already. But then it is horses for courses. Some people like to start navigating for an experienced driver, and then swapping to driving, Others Are either a driver or a navigator. I really couldn't sit next to someone else driving at competition pace. Without a doubt navigating is the cheapest way to do the sport.