The Independent American Magazine for all Mini Owners
Issue link: http://mc2.epubxp.com/i/33536
Kris Meeke and Paul 1DJOH Á\LQJ KLJK LQ the Number 52 car WKDW ODWHU GHYHORSHG a coolant leak and was withdrawn from WKH UDOOO\ T By Peter D. DuPre Dani Sordo and Carlos del Barrio had a trouble-free rally and the duo managed to get to 6th place by Day 2, holding that VSRW WR WKH ÀQLVK he MINI WRC twins put in their first official appearance on the World Rally circuit this past 5-8 of May on the island of Sardinia and ending with mixed results. Car Number 52, driven by Kris Meeke and Paul Nagle was plagued with mechanical issues and on Day 2 of the rally coolant leak forced their withdrawal from the field. It was hoped that the problem could be fixed over- night, but engineers decided that it would be better to ship the car back to ProDrive and engineer a lasting fix, rather than a patchwork repair at the race that may or may not hold up to the rigors of rally driving. Car Number 37, driven by Dani Sordo and Carlos del Bar- rio, finished the rally without in- cident. At the end of Day 2 the team had found themselves in sixth position overall and they were able to hold onto the pos- tion on the last day of the event, finishing out of the money but well within the top ten. For a first out- ing with a new car and new teams, this is very good news indeed. “I am happy with the car and happier than yesterday as I have more confidence in the car,” says Sordo. “We have learnt a lot because this is our first rally for the car, we have done a lot of kilometers and also have a lot of information, which is what we came here to do. The performance of the MINI is 24 www.mc2magazine.com good and we were really close to the car in front.” Meeke was philosophical about his problem. After all, on Day 1, his car ran very well indeed. However, the coolant leak on Stage 10 was a heartbreaker. “We tried to fix the leak but then in the stage it happened again,” says Meeke. “The engine temperature went up and we had to stop before we damaged the engine. We wanted to fix it to get going again the third day. It is a little bit unfortunate that I have not got into my stride yet, but that is part of the game. When you get to a rally you don’t have a second chance, you have to make it work for all three days and it just hasn’t.” As in Days of Old, rally fans along the course are cheering on the MINI. Team Principal, David Richards said that the support that they are getting from the fans is phenomenal. All in all, then, the MINI WRC effort is in full swing, with a partial season for the team currently underway. The shortened season gives MINI/ProDrive a chance to sort out the bugs, as it were, put some miles under the belts of the drivers, and build a solid foundation for a full season of rally racing next year. They just might win the championship if it all comes together. ZZZ ZUF FRP FRS\ULJKW 0F.OHLQ %0: 0,1, Rally On! T h e MI N I W R C T e a m T a k e s 6 t h I n S a r d i n i a