H&H-09

Handbrakes and Hairpins Issue 09

All content copyrighted property of Handbrakes and Hairpins, 2007 To receive your FREE weekly Handbrakes and Hairpins newsletter, or if you would like to share this with a friend, please send me your e-mail address to handhnews@gmail.com. Mobile: 083 452 6892.

www.motorpics.co.za

Down To The Wire The final round of the Sasol South African National Rally Championship is upon us this weekend, and one thing is guaranteed: the rally action will be fast and furious!

This Friday and Saturday, the best rally drivers, navigator and crews head to Gauteng for the Toyota Dealer Rally. After seven events, the BP Volkswagen Rally Team has three cars in the top four positions on the National Championship standings, and looks to once more dominate the rally this weekend.

Castrol Toyota’s Serge Damseaux and Robert Paisley are still leading the championship standings, albeit it with only four points seperating the S2000 Castrol Toyota RunX from Jan Habig and Douglas Judd (S2000 BP Volkswagen Polo).

The fourteen stages to run this weekend, the last time South African rallying fans will get a chance to hear the angry screaming of these top-flight machines this year, will be run at a hot pace.

Looking at Serge Damseaux and Robert Paisley, these two veterans of rallying will be sharlply focused on winning the important championships. This weekend could very well be Damseaux’s eleventh Drivers’ Championship and Paisley’s third. It is also important to bear in mind that this event will be Toyota Rally’s swangsong for the highly successful Toyota RunX, as it

will be replaced by the new Toyota Auris for 2008.

“I need to stay glued to Jannie (Habig), whatever happens at the front. I can afford to finish behind him, although I would like to win the Toyota Rally for the team’s sake. I expect Enzo (Kuun) and Hergen (Fekken) to help Jannie so the leader board will be very crowded on this one”, said Serge Damseaux.

He continued: “It’s going to be a very hard fight for the championship. I really need Johnny (Gemmell) to be right up there with me to add extra pressure to the VW team. I’ve been in this situation before and will take it as it comes. We’ll know after the first couple of stages who’s in the running. The main plan is to drive a clean rally – keep it on the road. If it rains, it will become a lottery. We haven’t competed in Gauteng for seven years, so it will be a relatively new experience for all of us.”

“We drive at 11 tenths the whole time. One wrong slot or overshoot can make or break your event. It is too close to call and the best formula since I’ve been in the sport. On a number of events this year, first or second place has been tied after half a rally. It’s incredibly exciting and I hope the Gauteng fans will turn out I their droves to come and see it first hand.”

Jan Habig and Douglas Judd, multiple national rally champions, are both used to the pressures of intense competitions and

www.motorpics.co.za can be guaranteed to keep their cool.

Team-mates Enzo Kuun and Guy Hodgson, the defending S2000 rally champions, are hoping to pull off a magnificent win to win back-to-back championship titles.

And Hergen Fekken and Pierre Arries, in the third of the S2000 BP Volkswagen Polos, have driven superbly this season to win two events, and will surely be looking to add the national championships tho their collection.

The second S2000 Castrol Toyota RunX pairing of Johnny Gemmel and Peter Marsh will hold the key to Damseaux’s success this weekend, as only Gemmel can apply the needed pressure to the charging S2000 BP Volkswagen Polos at bay.

All eyes will be on Mark Cronje and Chris Birkin at this event, as the crew make their debut in an S2000 Castrol Toyota RunX. “Nervous” is how Cronje describes his S2000 debut. “It doesn’t help that it is Toyota’s rally either”, he laughed. “It’s a big step for us but I’m looking forward to it. I’ll see where we fall in after the first two stages and slowly build on my pace from

www.motorpics.co.za

there. We will aim to bring it home to maximise our seat time.

It’s a brand new car so we need to ensure everything is bolted together properly”.

“S2000 is super competitive but so is karting”, says the former world karting champion. “Time will tell how we adapt. Once I find my feet, I’ll be able to push harder. Running in Gauteng makes no difference to me. Last year, every rally was new – even some this year. I have done so few rallies that I don’t have a big database yet”.

Toyota, celebrating 50 years in worldwide motorsport competition, has already secured their record extending 16th Manufacturer’s Championship, adding further to Toyota’s reputation as the most successful marque in the sport. Toyota has amassed a total of 1206 points against rival Volkswagen’s tally of 732.

The 474 points gap is insurmountable as only 328 points are available for every points paying position in a single event.

Missing from the action will be the leading S2000 Team Total pair of Etienne Lourens/Andre Vermeulen who destroyed their Toyota RunX is a high-speed end-over-end roll on their last

www.motorpics.co.za

www.motorpics.co.za

www.motorpics.co.za outing.

KwaZulu Natalians Chris de Wit/Dean Redelinghuys will push their class A7 Team Total Toyota RunX to the limit as they attempt to retain 2nd place in the class championship which will ensure a 1-2 finish for Toyota in the top two-wheel drive class.

Moving from the high pressure to the team’s low pressure cell, Gugu Zulu and navigator Carl Peskin will compete in their second event behind the wheel of their BP Volkswagen Polo in the A7 class. While Zulu did not complete the last event, he was on track to make life very difficult for the class’s other competitors.

For Zulu the Toyota Dealer Rally in Gauteng will be another opportunity to hone his skills in a new class since moving from the A5 Citi Golf he won the championship in this year. With an early win for 2007 Zulu now has the opportunity to concentrate on getting comfortable in a new car and class for the coming season.

The final one of the five BP Volkswagen rally entries is the BP Volkswagen Citi Golf of André Cleenwerck and Des de Fortier.

This is a relatively new pairing within the team but, with Zulu already having claimed the class championship, the duo are concentrating on teamwork, rally skills and preparing for a serious challenge on the title for 2008.

The Toyota Yaris makes it’s Gauteng competition debut fresh from its maiden class A5 win in the Swartland Rally. Running with Sasol support, Claudio Piazza Musso/Greg Gericke demonstrated the Yaris’ pace from the first rally, setting fastest class A5 stage times on tar on the Sasol Rally and gravel stage wins on the Zulu Rally. A steep development year has brought the Yaris into the winner’s circle after just six events.

Team Total’s Vusi Mabanga/Danie Strydom have done well with their Toyota Tazz, now faster and more powerful with the addition of newly homologated fuel injection. They will chase their first class win in Gauteng.

Class N3, for production based machinery, sees a trio of Team Total Toyota RunXs fighting for one championship. Toyota is assured of a 1-2-3-4 clean sweep in this class but the destiny of the championship is far from resolved. One point separates Rodney Visagie/Arno Lagrange (a double winner) from Mohammed Moosa/Henry Dearlove (three times the class winner).

Michael Houghton/Hennie Botes have a single class win and need to push hard to close down their five-point deficit. Kosta Koumantarakis/Barry White (Toyota RunX) are out of the title running in spite of winning twice this season. They will drive hard to attract much needed sponsorship for next season.

The class N2 championship is in the bag after Etienne du Toit/ Patrick Vermaak scored an unbroken run of six class wins in their McCarthy Toyota/Castrol backed Toyota Corolla.

The Toyota Dealer Rally Gauteng officially gets underway with documentation at East Rand Toyota, North Rand Road, Boksburg on Thursday 25 October from 17h00. The rally starts from the same venue on Friday morning at 09h00 and heads to Bredell for stage 1. Most of the stages are within five kilometers of the Bapsfontein R25/Delmas R50/Benoni R51 crossroads.

A highlight on Friday is a tarmac stage in the car park at the K90 Shopping Centre in Boksburg. Saturday kicks off at 07h30 with five repeated stages from Friday’s route. The place to be on Saturday is the Kurhula Rallystar academy at 09h30 for the Imperial Toyota SuperSpecial. Two evenly matched cars tackle a purpose made track side by side with a flyover as the competitors swap lanes.

The academy premises is also the finish of the 35km long 10th stage and the venue (at 15h21) for the final stage over the Imperial Toyota SuperSpecial. The podium ceremony takes place at 16h00.

The Handbrakes and Hairpins Team wishes all competitors every success on this the final National Rally of 2007. Good luck!

www.motorpics.co.za

www.motorpics.co.za www.motorpics.co.za

www.motorpics.co.za

4

Fuel Stop: News Briefs OMV CNG Team Makes Rally History

The OMV CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) Team has made rally history: for the first time worldwide at an international Championship, Beppo Harrach and Andreas Schindlbacher won in a natural gas driven car. That this happened at the Ostarrichi-Rallye makes it a seminal victory since it was at this very event that a natural gas Mitsubishi had first been employed about a year and a half ago. It is also remarkable that this win wasn’t achieved with the new CNG Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX but rather with its precursor, the Evo VI! When 18 months ago a CNG Mitsubishi Lancer first entered the international rally stage, top ten results had been the professed goal. After all, there had been no experience with natural gas driven 4x4 vehicles. But Günther Aschacher and the Stohl Racing Team did their homework with enormous commitment, and at the Ostarrichi-Rallye 2007 they finally could reap the fruits of their labour.

A world premiere that naturally also overjoys OMV driver Beppo Harrach: “It is incredible. One, of course, dreams at times of a sensation. But one almost can’t believe it when it actually happens. This victory has a lot of fathers and was made possible by the cooperation of a whole team that has never stopped believing in this project.”

After day one Beppo Harrach had still been in second place. But following the retirement of Franz Wittmann Jun he took the lead from the first special stage of the second day on and constantly extended it. At the finish line he was 47.7 seconds ahead of Mario Saibel in the petrol-driven Group A Mitsubishi.

European transport policy has set itself the goal to reach a quota of 10 percent of natural gas-cars in the fuel market by 2020. The specific advantage of natural gas is its clean combustion: it burns up residue-free and causes considerably less CO2 than other fuels. Natural gas furthermore reduces pollutant emissions and generates practically no fine particulate matter. Natural gas and biogas as fuel can therefore contribute considerably to reducing greenhouse gas, nitric oxide and fine particulate matter-emissions, thereby serving air pollution control.

Rossi To Compete In WRC Rally Wales?

Valentino Rossi is virtually certain to compete on the final round of this year’s World Rally Championship in Britain. The fivetime MotoGP world champion is a huge fan of rallying and looks set to complete a deal to drive a Subaru Impreza WRC prepared and run by Prodrive.

“It is 95 per cent certain I will participate on the Wales Rally GB,” Valentino told German publication Rallye Magazin. The 28year-old Italian said that the reason that he could not yet confirm the deal is that he wants to run Michelin tyres, like he does in MotoGP, but with the brand’s sister company BF Goodrich currently prevalent in the WRC, this would take some sorting.

“We do not have the budget completely together yet. We would like to drive with Michelin tyres. We hope to do some tests beforehand too.”

Rossi has twice competed on the WRC before. His first outing in a Grifone-run Peugeot 206 ended in a ditch on Rally GB in 2002, and his most recent event, last year’s New Zealand Rally, saw him finish 11th in a Subaru.

With his current Yamaha MotoGP deal expiring at the end of next year, speculation is rife that Rossi, who has always spoken of his desire to compete full-time on the loose surfaces, could switch to the WRC with current team sponsors Fiat.

Rossi though, poured water on such suggestions. “I know that Fiat wants to return to the WRC with the Punto S2000 turbo, but I am not part of that programme,” he added.

S2000 Toyota Auris Ready For Shakedown On Toyota Dealer Rally

5

Technicians at the Toyota Motorsport workshop are burning the midnight oil in an effort to prepare the new Auris S2000 rally car for its first public appearance in this weekend’s Toyota Dealer Rally.

The new Auris S2000 will run as a pre-runner with the zero cars at the head of the field as a pre-homologation shakedown. It will be driven by production car racer, Anthony Taylor – on loan from BMW for the occasion. Andre Vermeulen will assist Anthony as navigator.

“By running ahead of the field in the Toyota Dealer Rally we have an opportunity to put the new Auris S2000 car through a realistic test in a true rally environment as we prepare the prototype for homologation,” says Toyota Motorsport Manager, Wammy Haddad. “The homologation process is intense and we have to have everything just right when we submit the documents. To make changes afterwards is difficult and costly.

“It is quite common for dispensation to be given to run cars in the pre-homologation phase of development as zero cars in Europe.

We have asked for this dispensation here and it has been granted for the first time. We will take advantage of this to build up our knowledge base on the new car.

“There is an added bonus for rally enthusiasts as they will have a chance to see the new car in action for the first time. While the Auris will not be competing in the event, Anthony has been briefed to work the car as hard as possible without breaking it. That way we will have a pretty good idea of the potential of the car before we finalise the homologation specification.

“Anthony’s rally experience is limited – he has done just one regional event – but we have worked with him in the past and he provides very good feedback and that will be very important for us.”

Tiribassi Announces 2008 IRC Campaign

Former Junior World Rally Champion Brice Tirabassi will contest all of next year´s Intercontinental Rally Challenge in a Peugeot 207 Super 2000 run by well-known French team BSA. ...

The 30 year-old Frenchman has already had a taste of the IRC this year, having competed on the Sanremo Rally last month with the same car (pictured), but now he will come back to the IRC on a full-time basis next year.

“I am really looking forward to my deal for 2008,” he said. “I was very impressed by my experience of the IRC in Sanremo, and it will be good to get back into regular competition again. There are some exciting rallies ahead on the IRC and I am very happy with the level of support from Eurosport. The television coverage is excellent, which is a vital element for the promotion of any rally driver.”

Tirabassi, who comes from the town of St Maxime in the south of France, won the French Super 1600 Championship in 2002 and the Junior World Championship in 2003. He has also accumulated four-wheel drive experience in a variety of Group N cars and most recently in the Super 2000 Peugeot.

“These cars are really fun to drive, and I think there will be a very good level of competition in the IRC,” he said. “To win it would be really difficult, but if I could be in the top three at the end of the year then that would be a really good result.”

Tirabassi will contest the Rallye du Vaucluse and the Rallye du Var in France later this year in the Peugeot as a warm-up for his IRC campaign. Please visit Tirabassi’s website - www.bricetirabassi.com – for more information.

6

WRC Past Master: Walter Rohrl

Walter Rohrl was born on 7 March 1947 in Regensburg, in Germany and went on to become the World Ralyl Champion. This German rally and racing driver became famous for winning with various teams in different formula, such as rallying with Fiat, Opel, Lancia and Audi, and racing cars for Porsche, Ford and BMW. At the young age of 16, Rohrl began working for the Bishop of Regensburg, and he soon clocked up in excess of 120 000km a year as the bishop’s driver. It is difficult to find out the early days of Rohrl’s impressive motorsport career, but it is understood that he was invited to compete in his first rally in 1968.

Rohrl was a World Rally Championship favorite during the 1970s and 1980s, winning the Monte Carlo Rally four times with four different brands. It was only in 1980 that his Fiat 131 Abarth carried him to the 1980 title. It was, however, his equivalent success in the 1982 WRC season that impressed most, for Rohrl fended off the audacious four-wheel drive opposition to take the title in his outmoded and slow Opel Ascona 400.

In 1983, he almost won again with a 2WD Lancia Rallye, before finally moving to the awesome Audi Quattro S1. He did compete only in selected events though, and scored “only” 14 WRC victories in his career. Besides winning the World Rally Championship, he also won the tough African Rally Championship in 1982.

Rohrl also proved successful in road racing events, and was called a “Genius on Wheels” by Niki Lauda. In an early 1990s 24 Hours Nürburgring race, which saw fog and heavy rain in the night, Rohrl hardly slowed down, anticipating the corners by timing.

The race was nevertheless interrupted for hours, and saw him clawing to victory in fine style.

In recent years, he has been retained as the senior test driver for Porsche road cars, and has famously set quick laptimes for them testing at the famous Nürburgring Nordschleife with the Porsche Carrera GT. Nationality: German Active years: 1973 - 1987 Teams: Fiat, Opel, Lancia, Audi World rallies: 75 \Championships: 2 (1980, 1982) Wins: 14 Podium finishes: 31 Stage wins: 420 Points: 494 First world rally: 1973 Monte Carlo Rally First win: 1975 Acropolis Rally Last win: 1985 San Remo Rally Last world rally: 1987 Acropolis Rally

This Week’s Favourite Rally Car: 2003 Hyundai Accent WRC3

7

The Hyundai Accent WRC3 was an evolution of the WRC2 (the factory’s 2002 WRC project car), with major developments focused on improving the engine’s specification, suspension, steering and cooling for the 2003 rally machine. The engine’s electronic mapping was revised and all components were made lighter with the aim of improving response and driveability. A new dmaper design was introduced to improve traction and overall grip levels, and revised geometry was further fine-tuned. The steering was also revised for better feel and consistency and focused on a modification of the internal valve design of the steering pump.

A new-look front bumper and bonnet aimed at improving cooling efficiency by allowing more airflow via reshaped exit ducts.

The interior of the car also saw some cosmetic changes with a redesign of the driver display. It could be configured to suit driver requirements and provide more data for both the drivers and engineers.

General specifications of the 2003 Hyundai Accent WRC: Engine: Straight 4 Engine Location: Front, transversely mounted.

Displacement: 1 998cc Bore/Stroke: 84.0 mm/90.0 mm Valvetrain: 4 valves/cylinder, DOHC. Fuel feed: Electronic Aspiration: Garrett Turbo Front suspension: McPherson Struts Rear suspension: McPherson Struts Brakes: vented discs, all-round.

Gearbox: Xtrac 6-speed Sequential Drive: All-wheel drive.

Performance figures: Power: 224 KW

Torque: 580 Nm

Aqua Bodyworks

Swimming

and Fitness Centre

*Full Weights and Fitness Gym *Full Beauty Salon and Massage Therapy *Personal Training and Power Plate *Water Aerobics and Swimming Lessons

*Slimming Treatment and Steam Cabin *Swimming Training

*131a Villiers Drive, Clarendon, Pietermaritzburg, KwaZulu-Natal

*033 342 7507

8

IRC Rally du Valais (Switzerland) Preview: (25 October 2007 - 27 October 2007) WHAT IS THE IRC? The Intercontinental Rally Challenge (IRC) is a rallying series organised by the FIA, aiming to “give new opportunities to young or amateur rally drivers competing in recognized regional and international rallies, while offering organisers an innovative TV format concept, created by Eurosport.”

And why is this series of interest to you? This series focuses on Group N and Super 2000 spec cars!

The 2007 season consists of 9 rallies: Safari Rally of Kenya, Rally Turkey, Belgium Ypres Westhoek Rally, Rally Russia, Rally of Madeira, Barum Rally Zlin of the Czech Republic, Sanremo Rally of Italy, Rallye du Valais of Switzerland and China Rally.

From 2008, Handbrakes and Hairpins will officially be reporting on the IRC series!

The Rally du Valais in Switzerland, an event whcih can trace its roots back to 1960, is the first “winter” rally of the Intercontinental Rally Championship (IRC). This is where crews are likely to encounter sub-zero temperatures on the all-asphalt mountain roads.

Run in conditions similar to those of the famous WRC Rally Monte Carlo, competitors will have to deal with quick and narrow roads, ice and even the possibility of snow. Although the rally is run entirely on asphalt, many of the frost-damaged roads are quite abrasive, meaning that tyre choice will be a crucial factor.

Every corner is a stunning challenge, which makes the Rally du Valais a favourite amongst photographers and journalists, as well as amongst the competitors themselves. The rally will get underway on Thursday 25 October 2007 and run until the afternoon of Saturday 27 October.

The Rally du Valais features the usual wide range of competitors and machinery, but most of the attention will be focused on the three title protagonists: Enrique Garcia Ojeda (S2000 Peugeot), Andrea Navarra (S2000 Fiat Abarth) and Nicolas Vouilloz (S2000 Peugeot). Ojeda currently leads the IRC series championship by seven points from Navarra and Vouilloz, who

are currently tied for second place on 32 points each.

In the manufacturers’ standings, Peugeot has a 17-point lead over Abarth, with the title race drawing to a close. However, Abarth can rely on a number of strong drivers to help claw back the difference: asphalt specialist Umberto Scandola will be Navarra’s team-mate in Spain, with Freddy Loix also driving a Grande Punto as usual.

There will also be a healthy contingent of local drivers, headed

by Philippe Roux (S2000 Abarth Grande Punto) and Christian Jaquillard (S2000 Peugeot 207).

“There is a lot at stake on this rally: obviously there are the titles to play for and that will mean that everybody is going to be pushing hard. The biggest difficulty I think will be in adapting to the weather conditions and these very specialised roads: I think there will be a lot to get used to in quite a short space of time. But this is going to be the same for everyone, so it should be no problem,” said Andrea Navarra, Abarth driver.

“With the Rallye du Valais, yet another dimension is brought to the IRC. The roads will demand complete commitment: it is the sort of rally where we could see quite a few surprises,” said Jean-Pierre Nicolas, IRC motorsport development manager.

WRC Rally Japan Preview 25 October 2007 - 28 October

9

WRC Rally Japan is the third FIA World Rally Championship event in just four weekends, but there will be no opportunity for fatigue to kick in, as there are still two Championship titles on the line. After two asphalt events in the Mediterranean on consecutive weekends earlier this month, World Rally Championship makes its final long-haul journey for an arduous campaign in Japan.

With just three rounds remaining of the 16-rally season, the BP-Ford World Rally Team heads to the Land of the Rising Sun with a 32-point lead in the manufacturers’ championship in its bid for a second consecutive crown with the Focus RS World Rally Car. A maximum 54 points remain. In the drivers’ series Marcus Grönholm and Timo Rautiainen lead by four points as they challenge for a third world crown, with a maximum 30 points still available.

The rally is again based in Obihiro, 900km north of Tokyo on Japan’s northernmost island of Hokkaido. It is likely to be the final visit here as plans are under way to switch the event to Sapporo next year.

The gravel speed tests are located in natural forests in the hills north of the city. However, many of the roads are man-made and don’t always follow the contours of the hillsides. They are fast, but frequently narrow and deep ditches are often hidden by dense vegetation right on the edge of the roads. The special stages are often shaded by a heavy canopy, which rarely allows sunlight to penetrate and keeps the tracks damp.

The rally is later in the season than usual and this could affect road conditions. Temperatures are likely to drop below freezing at night and with early morning starts to each leg, ice could be an unwanted visitor. Drivers will also face long days with Saturday’s middle leg demanding 14 hours behind the wheel after a 05h05 start.

Grönholm has a good record in Japan, having won in 2005 and taken second last year. This is his fourth start. “The drivers’ championship is at an exciting point,” said the 39-year-old Finn. “There are just four points between myself and Sébastien Loeb and that is not a comfortable margin. It is too close to call. A win in Japan would obviously help but I think this could go all the way down to the final round in Wales.

“The roads are very narrow in places, but quite quick. They remind me of the stages in Great Britain, and even Finland in places.

They require great care because there are deep ditches by the side of the road. It’s hard to pick them out because of the thick vegetation and it’s tricky to see the exit of corners anyway because overhanging trees block the view,” he added.

Hirvonen’s best result was third last year and the 27-year-old has no fears about the possibility of wintry weather. “I’ve heard temperatures might drop to -5ºC at night, with the possibility of snow and ice,” he said. “If that’s the case, being a Finn, those conditions would suit me. There are places that are good for cutting corners but it’s important to be careful of stones in the grass and the ditches. I’ve heard that at this time of the year there isn’t so much tall vegetation so it may be possible to see more of what is at the side of the road. The ditches can be right on the edge and even if you are just 10cm off line the car can slide into them.

They are steep and there is no way out.

“Cutting belongs to rallying and if the corners are checked properly during the recce, a driver can put the car right off the road and save vital tenths of a second. I try to drive the recce to the maximum speed limits, but to understand where cuts can be made and where they can’t, it’s necessary to slow down and take a really good look at the edge of the road through the side window,” he

added. * BP-Ford will use BFGoodrich’s g-Force gravel tyre for the low-wear loose surface roads. The pattern is relatively compact to ensure a maximum amount of rubber is in contact with the ground for the best possible grip and traction. The grooves can be hand cut to open them if there is a lot of loose gravel on the road surface or if the tracks become muddy. The tyres will be available in soft and medium compounds. * The team has scheduled an additional test next month in the build-up to the championship’s first visit to Rally Ireland. Grönholm will drive on 7 - 8 November with Hirvonen completing the test the following day. Both drivers have already tackled two-day preparation events in Ireland this season. * The trip to Japan offers Ford the opportunity make the most of the team’s visit to Asia. Following the rally Grönholm will visit Taiwan to launch the Focus WRC limited edition road car in Taipei. Hirvonen and Lehtinen will visit China for a media driving event in Beijing before Hirvonen moves onto Thailand for more media work in Bangkok.

Rally Route: There are few changes to the route, with the rally again based in Obihiro and a central service park at Kita Aikoku, a few kilometres south. After a city centre start ceremony on Thursday evening, the main changes have been introduced to Friday’s opening leg to the north-east of the city. The opening stage of the two anti-clockwise loops is run in the opposite direction to previous years and the next two stages comprise roads not used since the rally’s WRC debut in 2004. The second leg is the longest of the rally and runs slightly further west. Both days include two passes over a short spectator test at Rikubetsu and end with two runs at a super special stage next to the service park. The final day heads north of Obihiro and ends with a fifth pass over the super special stage. Some of the most northerly stages have been dropped, to reduce the distance of liaison sections and to avoid the prospect of bad weather. Drivers face 27 stages covering 350.19km in a route of 1575.79km.