Skoda Rally Blog

Well, it’s been just under a week since the end of Rally GB, and this has been the first time I’ve had a chance to do anything on the car – after all, I got back at nearly midnight on the Sunday, and went to work on the Monday for about 8:30, and have been working since then!  Obviously there was housekeeping to take care of, such as getting Mark’s van back to him (which I didn’t manage until late yesterday), taking the trailer back, etc., but today I got a chance to actually look at the car and give it a clean-up.  And that took quite a while; despite the jetwash that was done at the end of Resolfen and Margam, there was still a LOT of mud and mess on the car, meaning it took about 2 hours of jetwashing to get it near clean.  Then the suspension needed to come off the car – the rears because they will need to go back to Proflex to be rebuilt, but also because they really need to be kept clean to look after them – the reason they were in such poor condition when I got them was because they hadn’t had simple maintenance done, post-event; when you’ve got £4000 worth of suspension (yes, really!) on a car, it makes sense to dedicate an hour or two to removing them and cleaning them up after they’ve done some work, really.  So the rears came off and apart easy enough, and they cleaned up perfectly; I hope that the 2 miles or so of driving without oil in them hasn’t damaged them…  The fronts came off and have been cleaned (although not dismantled yet because of a lack of space, that will have to wait until tomorrow at best), and then the task of cleaning up all the spares and tools started, and this is a BIG job – there was a LOT of water when we were in Wales, so everything needs drying and cleaning, and that’s still in progress, although the spares have mostly been done, there’s still a lot to do, plus all the tools.

So, what was the damage done to the car?

Rear suspension – that will need rebuilding, which will probably be about the £200 mark.  A fitting or setup fault – both hoses had problems, so there’s clearly something wrong, although I thought I’d got everything in the right place.

Front suspension – top mounting spherical bearings were both worn out, they will need replacing at about £50

Mountings – the gearbox mounting needs replacing, about £20

Tankguard – this took a LOT of damage on the Sunday, meaning it will need replacing.  As you can see from the pictures below, it’s had a hard time, mostly because of the low (and bouncy) rear suspension we had to fit on Saturday night to get us through Sunday.

A fair bit of damage taken here...

Long view from the front, see how low it's hanging...

This is about £100 or so for a new one, although there is a fuel leak, so I think the fuel tank has a split in it too, so that will need replacing if that is the case.

Brakes – the front brake pads had started to break up; unusual for Mintex pads, and not cheap at about £80 per set.

There are a few other bits and pieces as well, plus of course replacing the tyres – we wore out 8 tyres completely over the course of the event (at £80 per throw, new), so they will need to be replaced for the next event, which hopefully will be Rallye Sunseeker.  After that the car will need some engine work (again), as the bottom end still has some more improvements to make, which will hopefully allow a higher RPM limit and therefore more power.

It’s not all doom and gloom.  I was privileged to be featured in BBC Wales’ coverage of the event, with about a minute of coverage of us in the car and then a short bit of an interview with me.

Felicia on WRC! © North One Sport and BBC

Round the hairpin, second run; the first run was terrible here so I’m glad that wasn’t shown!

Felicia in the watersplash - © North One Sport and BBC

Through the watersplash in Margam – brilliant fun!

Me on the TV! © North One Sport and BBC

It was really great to see the car on such high-quality video (albeit slowly!), and to have my name on-screen with a Union Jack and a Skoda logo was something I won’t forget!  Huge thanks to Mark James and the team for their excellent coverage of the event (much better than the usual stuff we see), not just because of me being in it!

So, what’s next?

Monte Carlo 2012. It’s an iconic event that would be an immense challenge (both in terms of logistics and driving-wise), and is part of the IRC series, so the Felicia will be eligible for it.  It will require a LOT of saving up, some specialist parts (particularly the tyres, where I’m drawing a blank at the moment, as studded tyres will be necessary), and some real commitment, but I’m determined to do it.  Somehow.