RallyOne Project’s first chassis is in build and is expected to be testing at the start of September – with a Monte Carlo Rally debut still firmly in sight.
After an initial roll out in France – with a French driver – the team has planned six asphalt tests before the end of October. A decision on whether the season opener remains a realistic option for the car’s World Rally Championship debut will be taken on November 1.
Lionel Hansen, the man behind the first constructor team to enter under WRC27 regulations, talked DirtFish through his plans for RallyOne Project.
“Of course, this is an exciting time for us,” Hansen said, “but it’s still a massive challenge for us and it’s also a massive work and a massive expectation about all the work we did the last seven months. The target is for homologation on January 1 and to have two cars in Monte Carlo. We have the suppliers and the production [process] ready for this.
“For Monte Carlo, first of all, the target is to be there. That’s for sure. And be homologated. If we have no reliability problem at the end of October, I think we can be confident to have minimum one car and maximum two in Monte Carlo. That’s realistic.
“The crossing point to decide on Monte is the end of October. Then we would plan to build a second chassis in November and one in December. The process we have for homologation is, of course, the same for a constructor – a tuner – like is as it is for a manufacturer. But, for us, we have much less people. Even if we are very motivated, it’s not so easy.”
The team is targeting 2,000 kilometers (1,242 miles) of testing before the end of October – with scope for more running if needed.
Hansen wouldn’t be drawn on who would drive the car or cars in the French Alps. The initial roll-out of chassis number one will be handled by one of the team’s own drivers, before a more recognizable French driver takes over testing duties.
“We have talked to many drivers already,” he said. “I would say more than 20 P1 and P2 drivers – including some in the service park.”
In terms of customer interest, he added: “There has been plenty of interest, but I don’t think we can have a customer car until the middle of the year.”
The priority initially sits with the Tarmac-specification car. If Monte Carlo is missed, the car will break competitive WRC cover at the next asphalt round rather than in Sweden at round two.
“Definitely, for next year, it will be only a few rounds, not the whole season, it’s not possible,” Hansen said. “But a few rounds, like five, for example. We must do 15 rounds in two years. That’s the main goal in two years.
“The main target is to go to, before June [2027], I would say two, three rounds on Tarmac and develop the gravel car from October [this year] until March or April, something like this. But it’s not the target to go to Sweden at the moment.”
Talking about the potential performance for the car, Hansen is guarded but optimistic.
“My personal feeling is, in December, if we have a car, we can be there. I think the potential can be there [to win] as well.”
What’s under the skin?
There remains a degree of mystery regarding the precise componentry running the RallyOne Project cars. Hansen has retained independence from specific suppliers or partners in an effort to find the best fit for chassis one.
The engine is largely a Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 unit, but that could change by the middle of next season.
“We don’t know exactly the engine yet,” he said. “At the moment, it comes from a Škoda component, but we have another option also for the engine which we own, our own homologation. Our own engine is a massive job if it’s something we need to do quickly, but it’s something we do easy for the middle of next year.”
Asked about the thinking behind a bespoke 1600cc turbocharged engine, Hansen added: “It’s maybe for technical reasons and also for delivery reasons, also for parts. If we have 100% our own homologation it’s safer that we have our own decision you know for production.
“For the transmission, it’s already done that we produce this ourselves with our own supplier and the Tarmac suspension is already defined, but for gravel this is still a work in progress.”
