PERSPECTIVE> Rally Spectators Risk Their Lives!
VIDEO> The Amazing Cars of The Olympus Rally
The Olympus Rally is a legendary event that people used to hear about in the advertising campaigns of big car manufacturers. In the 1980s, big car companies like Toyota, Nissan, Audi and Lancia had factory backed rally teams racing through the backroads surrounding Seattle Washington. It even used to be a leg of the World Rally Championship! That’s right – WRC on US soil!
If you love the glory days of WRC like I do, watch this video, which features cars like the Lancia Delta Integrale, Audi Quattro, Nismo S12 200SX, Toyota Team Europe‘s MA70 Supra and a privateer AE82 Corolla FX-16 GT-S! There’s even a few short clips of Rod Millen driving a Mazda 323 GTX (Mazda Familia) all wheel drive rally car! (more…)
COVERAGE> Historic Rallycars at RMS in N. Ireland
The site and its members have been very good to me in the last few years. I have made many great friends and have had very special times going to car shows and meet-ups. Now, in its tenth year, Graham Curry, who is the RMS resident photographer and a good friend of mine, decided that the milestone should be marked with a Birthday show. So, after months of planning, we found ourselves at Junction 1 in Antrim - where all sorts of fun ensued! Read more...
VIDEO> Sights and Sounds of Group B Rally
Keeping with my current obsession with Group B rally and looking to keep a pattern going, I present to you a compilation video of various Group B cars, and more importantly, the glorious sounds they make. While there are always going to be cars that make wonderful noises that make you feel all tingly inside, you’ll be hard pressed to find anything that is as aurally pleasing as the likes of an Audi Quattro hammering on the rev-limiter. Everything about Group B was absolutely mythic. The speed, the power, the sound, the driving conditions (whether that be the weather itself or the audacity of the crowds). One might even think that the Gods themselves took on the sport, which would explain the talent behind the wheel. But that’s enough rambling from me. Sit back, turn up the volume, and enjoy! (more…)
VIDEO> Audi Quattro Sport S1 Rally Gr.B
Like I mentioned in my first post on MotorMavens, I am somewhat of a Euro car nut and I pretty much live for motorsports – from the sound to the tire-flavored scent…ahhh. So while I was racking my brain figuring out what I should post next on MotorMavens, inspiration struck. What better way to do this than to pay tribute to the granddaddy of four wheel drive – the Audi Quattro?
Back in the day (the early 80s), the Quattro had a huge advantage over its front and rear wheel competitors – so much so that it completely changed the face of racing; particularly in rally. The Subaru Impreza, the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution, the Cosworth Ford Escort, and the Lancia Delta Integrale are all brilliant four wheel drive road cars, but I think none of them would’ve existed without the introduction of the Quattro. Not only did it spawn the template for what we now think of as a “proper” four wheel drive car, but it revolutionized motorsport and changed the way we think of performance cars forever. For those familiar with 80’s Hip Hop – the Quattro is the Rakim of four wheel drive. If you disagree, read the first three words of the previous sentence – carefully.
To think that such an important car was created when a dozen Audi engineers decided to hook up unofficially and solve a problem that was considered a pipedream before the 1970s – how does one get power to all four wheels on a road car? The results of their efforts blew the hinges off of the world of motorsport with the Quattro winning on its first rally outing. It won the Austrian round of the European championship and then went on to win the World Rally Championship (WRC) in 1982, 1983, and 1984. Needless to say, the four-wheel-drive experiment was an instant success. (more…)
