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from Uncrate

End of Day 1: Ogier – Mister 100 percent! / Etape 1 : Ogier, Monsieur 100 %

A score of two fastest stage times from two has taken Sébastien Ogier (VW/Michelin) into an early lead in Germany. His closest threats aren’t far behind, however, since he is joined on tonight’s provisional podium by Jari-Matti Latvala (+5.7s) and Thierry Neuville (+12.7s).

Deux spéciales, deux meilleurs temps : Sébastien Ogier (VW/Michelin) est en tête de l’ADAC Rallye Deutschland, mais ses deux adversaires directs au championnat s’accrochent. Jari-Matti Latvala est deuxième à 5s7 et Thierry Neuville est troisième à 12s7.

On dirt, snow and asphalt, Sébastien Ogier is clearly in his element whatever the type of rally.

With his Volkswagen Polo R WRC running on hard-compound Michelin Pilot Sport ‘H2’ tyres, the Frenchman was in dominating form on the first two stages of the 2013 season’s first pure asphalt round. “My objective was to be in the lead this evening in order to have a good road order on Friday. SS1 was difficult and I honestly didn’t think my time would be so competitive. There was more grip on the second stage.”

Despite the fact that this is Volkswagen Motorsport’s first sealed-surface rally, the German make sits in overnight first and second positions thanks to Jari-Matti Latvala who is just 5.7 seconds behind his team-mate. As expected, Belgium’s Thierry Neuville (Qatar WRT Ford Fiesta RS WRC) is up there with the leaders, too, in third place (+12.7s). “We all suffered from understeer today and the stages were very dirty for us. My driving wasn’t perfect and I don’t think I could have been faster than Ogier.”

The Michelin-equipped factory Citroën DS3 WRCs are just shy of this evening’s top three in the hands of Spain’s Dani Sordo (+20.5s) and Finn Mikko Hirvonen (+25.7s). “I think I will feel more comfortable on tomorrow’s stages which I know better,” predicted Sordo. Mads Ostberg (6^th, +30.6s) is the only Qatar M-Sport WRT driver still in the running after team-mate Evgeny Novikov went off on SS1, like last year.

Poland’s Robert Kubica (Citroën DS3 RRC/Michelin) is dominating the WRC-2 class and is 10^thoverall on tonight’s leaderboard. He is 14.9s clear of Elfyn Evans (Ford Fiesta R5), while Sepp Wiegand is a further 8.3s adrift in his Skoda Fabia S2000. Robert Barrable (Fiesta R5) was stopped by a radiator problem and Kruuda (Fiesta R5) went little further than the start ramp in Cologne. Frenchman Sébastien Chardonnet and Germany’s Christian Riedemann Gilbert were today’s WRC-3 pace-setters.

Everybody is saying that ‘real’ rally will begin on Friday when crews face six classic stages through the Mosel valley vineyards. There is a chance the weather could deteriorate, which means the rain expected on Saturday could arrive early and make tyre choices an added complexity for the teams.

Que ce soit sur terre, neige ou asphalte, Sébastien Ogier est à l’aise sur tous les terrains. Certes, on le savait déjà…

Au volant de sa Volkswagen Polo R WRC chaussée de pneumatiques Michelin Pilot Sport H2 (hard), le Français a dominé les deux premières spéciales du premier rallye asphalte 2013. « L’objectif était de terminer devant pour avoir une bonne position sur la route demain. L’ES1 était compliquée, je ne pensais pas être le plus rapide. Il y avait plus de grip dans la suivante. »

Pour leurs débuts sur cette surface, les deux Volkswagen sont leaders puisque Jari-Matti est deuxième à 5.7 secondes de son équipier. Comme prévu, le Belge Thierry Neuville (Ford Fiesta RS WRC) est au rendez-vous. Le pilote du Qatar WRT est troisième à seulement 12s7. « On s’est tous plaint de sous-virage aujourd’hui, les routes étaient sales. Je n’ai pas bien roulé, je n’aurais pas pu rivaliser avec Seb. »

Les Citroën DS3 WRC/Michelin officielles sont au pied du podium. L’Espagnol Dani Sordo est à 20s5 et Mikko Hirvonen à 25s7 du leader. « Je pense que je serais mieux demain sur les spéciales que je connais », confiait Sordo. Mads Ostberg (6^e à 30s6) est l’unique représentant du team Qatar M-Sport WRT depuis la sortie de route d’Evgeny Novikov dans la première spéciale du rallye (comme l’an passé).

Le Polonais Robert Kubica (Citroën DS3 RRC/Michelin) a dominé la catégorie WRC-2. Il pointe ce soir à la 10^e place du classement général et compte 14s9 d’avance sur Elfyn Evans (Ford Fiesta R5) et 23s2 sur Sepp Wiegand (Skoda Fabia S2000). Robert Barrable (Fiesta R5) a connu un problème de radiateur et Kruuda (Fiesta R5) n’est pas allé plus loin que le podium de départ de Cologne. Le Français Sébastien Chardonnet est leader WRC-3 devant Christian Riedemann et Quentin Gilbert.

Tout le monde s’accorde à dire que le rallye commence « vraiment » demain avec six spéciales tracées dans le vignoble mosellan. La météo ne s’annonce peut-être pas si belle que ça à en croire le ciel bien gris ce soir sur Trèves. La pluie, prévue samedi, viendra peut-être compliquer les choix de pneumatiques dès demain.

JAGUAR PROJECT 7 CONCEPT

• POSTED BY MOTO VERSO
 

“When you look at this car, it has got an enormous amount of appeal. It’s just full of desire – you can see that its sole purpose is to be enjoyed. Project 7 is a very special car – not just because it’s a one-off, but because of its purity of purpose. It’s pure Jaguar.”
Ian Callum, Director of Design, Jaguar

Project 7 – based on the acclaimed F-TYPE and produced to showcase the creativity of Jaguar’s design and engineering teams – made its dynamic debut at the 2013 Goodwood Festival of Speed on 12th July. The name acknowledges Jaguar’s seven victories at Le Mans between 1951and 1990; its striking blue paintwork is reminiscent of the victorious Jaguar D-types of 1956 and1957.

Although it is not intended for production, Project 7 is not merely a static concept, but a fully-functional, high-performance sports car. F-TYPE’s rigid all-aluminium architecture is the perfect starting point, with power provided by the 550PS version of Jaguar’s 5.0 Litre V8 Supercharged engine – an increase of 55PS over the F-TYPE V8 S.

In addition to the increase in power – delivered through Jaguar’s 8-speed Quickshift automatic transmission and Electronic Active Differential – Project 7 also features a free-flow exhaust system with a ceramic finish, 10mm lower ride height and a unique spring/damper tune.

The unique exterior celebrates Jaguar’s sporting bloodline. F-TYPE’s two key ‘heartlines’ remain, with the most prominent change being the D-type-inspired rear fairing section that incorporates a rollover hoop and swoops down from behind the driver’s head. The roof system has been completely removed.

Aerodynamic modifications include a carbon fibre front splitter, side skirts, large rear diffuser and a fixed rear spoiler with a 14-degree angle of attack, giving Project 7 a low, unified, muscular stance. The side louvres and bonnet vents are also carbon fibre, while the carbon fibre and aluminium wing mirrors draw inspiration from those on Jaguar’s C-X16 sports car concept, from which F-TYPE is derived.

The windshield has been lowered, while a new nose design incorporates revised air intakes and headlights with gloss black surrounds instead of chrome. The car sits on 20 inch Blade forged-alloy wheels with carbon fibre inserts.

The cockpit of Project 7 is no less impressive than its exterior. The driver sits in a composite bucket seat, lowered by 30mm, and is gripped by a four-point racing harness. The passenger seat is replaced by a unique helmet holder, which carries a custom-designed Project 7 helmet in matching blue paint and graphics, secured by its own harness.

The seat and the insides of the doors are finished in a quilted racing-style diamond pattern. There are carbon fibre inserts on the console and SportShift selector, the start-stop button is gloss black and the steering wheel is equipped with machined aluminium paddles.

Saleen Mustang George Follmer Edition

Saleen used the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion at Laguna Seca Raceway to unveil the first model in their Heritage Collection. This mean looking machine is named afterGeorge Follmer, a racing driver from the 1970s who competed in a wide variety of cars including NASCAR stock cars, Formula One machinery with the Shadow team, sports car in Can-Am and IndyCars at the Indianapolis 500.

The styling for this machine takes its cue from the Boss 302 race car that Follmer drove in 1969. The 1960s racing car was displayed right next to the Saleen so visitors to the Motorsports Reunion in Monterey could see for themselves the three-tone livery, air scoops and 302 badges that distinguish this limited edition from other Saleen modified Ford Mustangs. The new 19-inch wheels have been included to reflect the 1960s era that the car draws its inspiration from, but they aren’t newly designed as we’ve been them before on other Saleen machines.

Under the bonnet there’s a V-8 that boosts power to 470bhp thanks to a cold air intake, a remapped ECU and a new throttle body. With race-tuned suspension this Mustang gets over the problems that standard Mustangs have of developing too little mechanical grip for the horsepower. This GF Edition Mustang is scheduled to arrive in the first quarter of 2014.

Saleen Mustang George Follmer Edition

Saleen Heritage Collection will eventually include machines honouring Swede Savage and Mark Donohue, although neither cars will be based on the Ford Mustang. Saleen used the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion to announce the Swede Savage Edition Barracuda and the Mark Donohue Edition Camaro.

from EUROCARBLOG