best rally car ever

s.m

exactly what it says on the tin
my favourites
1 ford sierra rs cosworth
2 bmw m3 e30
3 ford escort cosworth wrc
4 mg metro 6r4
5 ford escort mk2
6 ford sapphire 4x4

finnharpsboy

for me its
1 lancia stratos HF
2 mg metro 6r4
3 opel manta 400
4 sierra rs cosworth
5 subaru legacy
6 focus wrc

Schwiiing

No love for the Audi Quattro or any of Loebs 3 WRC winning Citroens?

The Falcon

For me #1 has got to be the Audi Quattro Sport S1 (see YouTube link below - The sight and sound of these machines gives me goosebumps :eek:)

My faves after that are:
2. Lancia Stratos (purpose built rally car - check out YouTube - Sound!!!)
3. Mk1 Escort (Timo Makkinen on the RAC )
4. Mk2 Escort (Ari Vatanen's black example)

Loved watching Billy Coleman in his Renault Alpine all those years ago :-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7AQmgeMoM0A

Schwiiing

Is this going to be a thread about peoples favourite rally cars or the best rally cars. There is a distinction to be drawn.

Fat Nav

Best rally car ever has to be the mark 2 escort by a country mile.

The Falcon

I see what you mean Schwiiing. Must say my first take was which car you like best - which would cover rally cars over the years. If the list is confined to the best performing car then you would have to exclude many of the older generation machines.

A modern 'production class' rally car would blow away the likes of the Audi Quattro I raved about earlier - I remember Top Gear pitted one against a bog standard Evo 6 and I was horrified to see the Quattro completely outclassed!
But which one would I rather watch? - not a difficult decision .

s.m

Schwiiing wrote: »

Is this going to be a thread about peoples favourite rally cars or the best rally cars. There is a distinction to be drawn.[/QUO

peoples favourites it can be anything really from a mini cooper to a peugeot 205 t16

wobbles

My top five may not be my favorite, but id consider them the best because of what they contributed to rallying through technical advances

Number one for me has to be the Audi Quattro A1. Up to then rear wheel drive was the best car, with 4 wheel drive considered too heavy and unreliable. The quattro came along and blew the competition away. It revolutionised rallying at the time and took a few years for the 205 to catch up.

Number 2 is the Toyota Corolla WRC. Toyota had been competitive with the 165, the 185 and the 205 celicas. The WRC regulations came along and they took everything good about the Celicas and created the Corolla WRC. It was pretty advanced at the time and seemed to have a lot of electronic gizmos the other WRCs didnt have. It was a well rounded car and was very competitive even 10 years later in Ireland.

Number 3 is the Lancia Delta Integrale. Many would consider the Delta S4 to be the best Lancia but for me the Integrale comes out on top. Lancia had always produced quick cars that built upon the last model. But with Group B being outlawed, the Lancia team had to essentially start from scratch with the new Group A regulations. Its a credit to Lancia that they could create a car to be so far beyond the competition that they won 6 manufacturers in a row. Granted the competition may not always have been top class, but they were the only Group B front runner to produce a good group A car until the Seirra/Escort Cosworth came along.

4 is the Xsara Kit Car. It was the ultimate f2 car that was so fast on tarmac that it won 2 WRC rounds on tarmac. It lead Citroen entering a full WRC team after the F2 catagory ended when WRC teams complained that they were being beaten by what should have been a slower car. Personally I loved the F2 Kit cars. The 306 maxi, the xsara, VW Golfs and Astra were class, even if ive only seen them on dvd but the Xsara tops them all.

5 is the mark 2 escort. Ill admit im not a huge fan of them, but you cant deny that nearly 40 years after they left the factory that they are even more popular today. Huge engines, stiffer chassis, lightweight panels and proper rollcages mean they are still on the pace of even modern WRCs. I would love to see M3s, Chevettes/ Starlets and Corollas get the same kind of treatment to add some variety to the stages. I think the Mk2s are nearly at the end of there development. Engines cant get bigger due to regulations, parts cant get much lighter unless they find a new stronger/lighter material so i think suspension is the only way to get quicker.

Drummerboy08

For me, when it comes to looks, the Mk1 McCrae Focus was the dogs. Its still to my mind what describes a rally car.

In terms of sucess (although arguably the driver helped it!) The Citroën Xzara has to be up there, it was a devastating combination with Loeb.

Schwiiing

If we're going by looks: http://s2.blomedia.pl/autokult.pl/images/2011/06/Subaru-Impreza-WRC.jpg

The Falcon

Schwiiing wrote: »

If we're going by looks: http://s2.blomedia.pl/autokult.pl/images/2011/06/Subaru-Impreza-WRC.jpg

An absolute beuat! Will always remember Richard Burns (RIP) in 2001 - only seems like yesterday :-(

If its a beauty contest though, this 1970 Renault Alpine A110 is a winner by a mile!

http://www.flickriver.com/photos/rexgray/4609876457/

s.m

no way lads if its a beauty contest the sierra cosworth wins hands down

Alfa Quadrifoglio

Lancia Delta Integrale, no contest, won World Championship after World Championship and looked the business.

Mike Litoris

Cool thread. I'm sitting here thinking and the list is getting way out of hand so for now I'll go with just 2.

On sound alone, the Audi Quatro - The sound of that thing makes the hair on the back of my neck stand on end.

For looks, the later model Opel Manta.

There were just so many sexy looking cars pre 90's it is nearly impossible to chose just 1.

rizzodun

For me it has to be the Peugeot 205 T16, dominated the last two seasons of the Group B era in the WRC, had Group B not have been outlawed it probably would have had more world titles, and was also successful in the Dakar and Pikes Peak competitions.

hmmm

rizzodun wrote: »

For me it has to be the Peugeot 205 T16, dominated the last two seasons of the Group B era in the WRC, had Group B not have been outlawed it probably would have had more world titles, and was also successful in the Dakar and Pikes Peak competitions.

I loved that car and Group B in general. The RS200, Metro 6r4, Quattro S1. Insane.

Red Kev

For me it's a three way tie at the top:

1= Porsche 959
1= Lancia Delta
1= Audi Quattro


4= Ford Escort Mk 1
5= RS 200

Homourable mentions to the Celica WRC, Opel Manta and Escort Mk II.

bigroad

Mini cooper
mk 1/2 escort
lancia/all
Audi Quattro
mazda 323 turbo 4wd
Sierra cosworth
Ford rs 200
Opel Manta
Toyota celica

guyfo

Red Kev wrote: »

For me it's a three way tie at the top:

1= Porsche 959
1= Lancia Delta
1= Audi Quattro

Which delta? Which Quattro?


The best rally car ever is the Polo R WRC, there really is no competition on that front. No car through the WRC's history could challenge it so it by definition it is the best.

I think the title should be changed to whats your favorite rally car!

Mine would be

1: Audi Sport Quattro S1 E2
2: Lancia Stratos
3: Lancia Delta S4
4: Subaru Impreza S6 WRC
5: 2003 Ford Focus WRC (that thing looked awesome when it was released)

Dont see how the MK2 could be considered the best, it only won 1 world title and the 131 was a superior machine at the time.