Getting into rallying is by no means a cheap venture. But it doesn’t have to be eye-wateringly expensive either.
Most of us at DirtFish have an itch to get behind the wheel. Lots of us do exactly that, as often as possible. But some of us are between cars right now – or are trying to scrape together some money to go out there and rally something. But that won’t stop us from dreaming in the meantime.
Thanks to ewrc-market.com, we can happily browse through the best rally cars on sale globally and imagine ourselves behind the wheel of some of our favorite machines.
So, as an excuse to indulge in fantasy – and hopefully show that rallying can still be within reach for the masses – we set ourselves a challenge: find a car that you would buy for under €25,000 ($27,000), and tell us why you want it.
The results were a little unexpected, to say the least…
George Donaldson: Renault Clio RS
Price: €10,500 ($11,400)
This is an absolute peach of a rally car.
It packs 172 bhp, is as light as a feather and is a steal at only €10,000.
I’ll have plenty of spare money to spend doing some classic Belgian rallies in the Ardennes, and maybe even in France too. Nice slippery winter events are best when the weight advantage can be leveraged…
I am going for fun but I want to be competitive. Only one thing is guaranteed: it will be spectacular.
And of course I’ll have Colin Clark as my co-driver, because, in a rally car, no-one can hear you scream! (sorry Col…)
Alasdair Lindsay: Daewoo Lanos
Price: €11,000 ($12,000)
I could’ve been boring and gone with a Citroen Saxo, a Renault Clio, Opel Astra, or any other manner of standard European compact hatchback. With a budget of €25,000 to work with, four-wheel-drive cars are a bit out of reach, so a sensible head would pick a solid front-wheel-drive hatchback where spare parts are a dime a dozen.
I’m not going to do that. That’s boring. I want something that with one quick browse of the entry list, people are going to stop scanning and think ‘what on earth is that doing here?’
That’s a hard ask on a small budget. But I reckon I’ve done it: all hail the glorious Daewoo Lanos.
Daewoo was once a South Korean manufacturer of cars so boring and uninspiring that when it finally ventured into the European market, its main claim to fame was its little Matiz city car. How that fame came about is a bit awkward: Autocar rolled it by reversing at 15 miles per hour and then applying some steering. Ouch.
This isn’t really a Daewoo at all, though: it’s built by ZAZ and was once Ukraine’s most popular road car.
Handily, this one’s had a transplant, so hopefully you won’t be making trips to Zaporizhzhia to find spare parts. A 1.6-liter Opel engine – presumably the same one from the Corsa B GSI – lives under the hood now and the gearbox is from Slovakian manufacturer Beckert.
The clincher for me though is the engine, gearbox and suspension being freshly rebuilt. I remember a story from Didier Auriol of how, in his excitement to drive a rally car he’d newly purchased, he didn’t rebuild anything and just went off to the event. It lasted one stage and then, bang. Hopefully less chance of that happening here.
OK, so the Lanos is Ukraine’s answer to the Saxo and Clio in France. Or a Fiesta in the UK. But take it out of its habitat and migrate it westward and you’ll at least have something which stands out from the crowd. And half the budget is still left over! Perhaps on the long journey across Europe, there’s enough money to divert to Finland and see how well the newly rebuilt suspension works…
Brenten Kelly: Ford Fiesta Rally3 (hire)
Price: Negotiable
Finland, here I come. I’ve taken my €25,000 and I’m going to negotiate with the owner of this lovely Ford Fiesta Rally3 to hire it for the fastest round of the World Rally Championship this season.
I’ve watched Javi Olivares and Jason Bailey using their Fiestas to have a whole heap of fun in America across the last couple of years and now it’s my turn. And I’m going to the spiritual home of rallying to do it.
I know this wasn’t the original plan with this story, but I’m fortunate enough to already own a Subaru Impreza rally car which I still have plans to use in America, so this is the chance to break Europe and take a shot at one of the world’s most famous rallies.
Colin Clark: Lada 2107
Price: €18,000 ($19,500)
I grew up in an era where Ladas and the Soviet Union were shrouded in mystery. I was fascinated by them and they looked like a whole load of fun.
Rear wheel drive and enough power from a 1600cc engine on twin-45s enjoy myself without getting into too much trouble would absolutely do me.
And you’re right, absolutely right, I have got some cash left over. I’ll use some of that to go and do some events, but my bigger picture plan is to set up a coffee shop on the coast somewhere. I’ll sell nothing but tea, coffee and toast.
Naturally, this is going to be a huge success, so I’ll then use that money to bolt some twin-48s on the Lada, ship it across the Atlantic and tackle a full season of American rallying with Brenten Kelly co-driving (and maybe driving).
David Evans: Ford Focus RX
Price: €25,000 ($27,000)
Rallycross here I come. I’ll admit, this might be something of a virtual impulse purchase based on Martini stripes, but I’m also sure I’ve bagged an absolute winner here.
It’s a Ford Focus with one of the world’s most famous liveries – what’s not to love? What’s that… is it four-wheel drive? Details, my friend. Don’t get bogged down in the details. Fact is, it’s got the word ‘Cosworth’ alongside the word ‘engine’ and there’s some Hewland kit in there as well. It’s recently rebuilt and ready to race, so the fact that price doesn’t include any spares doesn’t worry me in the slightest. If I’m completely honest, I’m not sure I’d know what to do with the spare parts anyway.
The one evolution I might make to my new car is the addition of a second seat up front, so I can then take on – and probably dominate (the livery’s worth a second a mile) – the single venue scene.
This is a lovely looking car with hues of an absolutely iconic man and machine combination that helped shape a generation of fans.
Dan Piling: DirtFish Rally School classes
Price(s): Book here
Much as I love eWRC-market.com I’ve decided to go in another direction.
Instead of spending my €25,000 (which equates to US$27,000), I’m going to spend my cash on a selection of courses at DirtFish, the world’s best rally school.
The combination of a bunch of days drifting a Subaru BRZ and powersliding an STi under the instruction of the world’s finest instructors will have Toyota Gazoo Racing knocking on the door in no time.
See? I’m all about the investment. And, let’s face it, what better way to spend it than having the time of your life in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains.
James Bowen: Subaru Impreza STI GC8
Price: €20,000 ($22,000)
Am I really the only one who’s actually going to buy a Subaru?
That’s OK, because it’s obviously the correct choice. If you get one shot at owning a rally car, it’s got to be an Impreza, especially if you’re a ’90s kid like myself. This one will do nicely.
Four-wheel-drive? Check.
Within budget? Check.
Classic Subaru livery? Er..negative. But that doesn’t matter.
I’ll happily confess that I don’t know the details of which specs of STIs and WRXs were the best to have down the years. All I know is, this one is from the best generation of Imprezas, before the far uglier “new age” model was introduced in 2000, and I can take it to some classic Welsh stages and pretend I’m Richard Burns sailing to another Rally GB win in 1999.
Oh, and the remaining €5,000 left over from my budget? I’ll be spending that on some lovely catering and hospitality, as that’s where I’ll be spending most of my weekend after my inevitable stage one accident.
