Mazda in WRC???
 

Wouldn't that be nice? I guess Protege would be the obvious to enter and not the 626 or the Mazda 6 right?

What are the restrictions of the WRC when it comes to the cars?

Hell yeah- that would be sweet if mazda did a WRC car. I thought they were working on one- a 4wd 626- but I think that just ended up as a show concept car. Those WRC cars are sooooo bad ass, I'm not sure what the rules are. Seems like you just have to build a car that can survive- and that's not cheap. I think the really fast ones cost like $250K.

But the way Mazda keeps coming out with cool new models- you never know what they're going to do!

http://www.galimoto.co.za/wwmazdamps.htm

thats the one ur tlaking about

Try $750,000!:doh:

Those would sell like hotcakes:D

Damnnnn, why SO expensive? Do they come with a set of 7 replacement engines just in case or what?

I was going to guess around $250k for one simply because of Gran Tourismo 3 hehe

That does not include the replacement engines! Basically a top WRC car has more technology than a F1 car. the main expense is the transmissions and differentials. In WRC they are allowed to use active gearboxes and diffs, which means computer chips monitor wheelspin and send the power to the wheels with grip, this is all very complicated electronics. It also takes about 400 hours to prepare the bodyshell, they have to strip it down and seam weld it and inseart a special cage that connects to ove 14 points in the chassis. there is alot more to it but it would take me all day to describe it so check out these sights:
http://www.rallycars.com/Cars/FastCars.html -describes the cars and their dynamics but it is out dated
http://rally.racing-live.com/ great for results and photos

yep yep yep....its HIGH DOLLAR!! that is the way of racing....all professional racing....the companies that sponsor racing have DEEP pockets....and LOTS of technology to make them #1....now all the real competitors have it.....so the price tag climbs and climbs to get you ahead of the rest......we only see the car on the road/track.....usually YEARS of research goes into those things....as mopho described...what we see is usually only a shell of the car we see on the street.

it would be bad ass to see a P-5 or regular Pro in the WRC....one thing that incourages auto makers to get into that sort of thing is the fact that all they have to do is plaster their name all over the thing....and its ADVERTISING!! and totally tax deductable. if it weren't.....Professional Auto Racing in the US would be a dead sport.....well not dead....it would be like it was in the 40's and 50's where anyone with the guts to get on a track could compete and be competitive....as long as they could afford the parts that the rest of the racers were using.....then once again...MONEY comes into the picture. And either the rich guys that like to race win everything....or you can win and EARN more than you spend. THEN its a business again. and a damn fun one at that!

check out www.wrc.com for all your wrc needs

Sooner than you may think
 

WRC cars can easily top the million dollar mark. FIA is working on a new spec called WRC2 that takes a lot of the electronically controlled stuff out of the cars (Technology Caps) to allow these cars to be more affordable for (extremely rich) independent teams.

The struts alone on the Martini Focus WRC are 30,000 per CORNER! You've got over 100K just in suspension! (titanium)
The other main expense is in the active diffs. Traction control like nothing you have seen before!

The cars are amazing. Mark Lovell was running one in our series last year for 4 rallies. They decided to build a cheaper car that didn't outclass everyone else technology wise, cuz they really didn't need it over here. They can use a larger restrictor in the US so the higher hp made up for it.

The next gen. Pro and Focus will share the same platform/engine. If Mazda doesn't get involved at the WRC level, expect privateer teams to scavenge Focus WRCar tricks and apply them to Gen 4 Proteges. In the US, that would equate to a lower technology, higher horsepower car than the WRC cars. Expect 350hp, 4wd, and some pretty fancy tricks...just no active diffs.

For now, we are involved in Group2, the 2L/2wd N/A class here in the states. Similar in premise to Super1600 in Europe, but with a bit bigger displacement.

Lurch
Burmeister Rallysport
#42 01 Protete Rally Car
http://www.frozenmotionphotos.com/ZZ.02.SD.132..WP.JPG

Mark Lovell in the WRC Subaru in California

http://morgansegalphotography.com/ra...ubaru_wrc1.jpg

Lurch, thanks for the education hehe

Sweet picture by the way, how's the car doing?

Here's a short list summary of the current WRC car specs.... haven't found the official FIA specs yet though.
http://www.rallycodriver.co.uk/prepc...echspecwrc.htm

I would love to see Mazda enter a Protege in WRC. And maybe a Group N level car in the North American races, in addition to the lovely Group 2 model. :)

Lurch: are you goign to be at any events in Canada this season?

Probably not in Canada. I would really like to do the Charlevoix rally, but it either coincides with Lake Superior or is one weekend off.

I have been toying with the idea of running a ClubRally or a Canadian event with a rented supercar (Lancer/WRX) later on in the year to try 4wd/turbo. It all depends on the money. Work has been pretty slow lately and my racing budget took a huge hit. Mazda have been very gracious to help me keep running the Protege, though. I love this car. We will be doing an RX7 brake swap on it this weekend (hopefully) and then more motor work.

Great photo Lurch!!!!

I always love to see your Protege wrestle with the dirt, well in this case dirt and snow.

Keep up the great driving.