Skip to main content

Back in Gravel Mode – Shakedown Completed: Volkswagen All Set for Australian Round of the WRC



  • Latvala, Ogier and Mikkelsen fourth, fifth and eighth fastest

  • WRC event down under boasts unique conditions on this year’s calendar


A rollercoaster ride through the forests of New South Wales, with the added difficulty of having to switch from asphalt back into gravel mode – Volkswagen used the shakedown ahead of the Rally Australia to prepare for the tenth round of the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC). Jari-Matti Latvala/Miikka Anttila (FIN/FIN) was the fastest Volkswagen duo on the 4.98-kilometre practice route, which the teams will tackle in the opposite direction on Friday as part of the opening “Hydes Creek” special stage. They ended the “free practice” session fourth fastest in the Polo R WRC, just ahead of team-mates Sébastien Ogier/Julien Ingrassia (F/F) in fifth place. Andreas Mikkelsen/Ola Fløene (N/N) clocked the eighth fastest time of the shakedown. First and second place went to Kris Meeke and Mads Østberg (Citroën), with Thierry Neuville (Hyundai) third fastest. Interestingly, just 4.4 seconds separated the top ten.



Despite the route becoming ever faster, the Volkswagen drivers each completed just three back-to-back runs of the shakedown, choosing to save their tyres – unlike the opposition. Only a limited number of Michelin competition tyres may be used per rally, including the shakedown.



Quotes after the shakedown at the Rally Australia


Sébastien Ogier, Volkswagen Polo R WRC #1

“The stages at the Rally Australia are spectacular and the scenery is uniquely beautiful. Julien and I had a fantastic rally here last year, winning 19 of the 22 special stages. The car felt very good during the shakedown. Although the opposition is, in general, a lot closer in general this year, I still have a lead of 44 points over Jari-Matti in the World Drivers’ Championship. As a team, we are also in a position to secure the title for Volkswagen in the Manufacturers’ Championship here. I am looking forward to what will hopefully be a good weekend for us.”


Jari-Matti Latvala, Volkswagen Polo R WRC #2

“To be honest, I come into the Rally Australia feeling very positive. The shakedown went very well for us. I like the routes and the scenery around Coffs Harbour. After driving on asphalt at the most recent rally in Germany, it was important to adapt quickly to the road conditions on gravel again. My Polo felt very good and I am determined to challenge for the win again here. I have not forgotten our retirement in Germany, but I have put it behind us. When you make a mistake, but learn from that mistake, it can only make you stronger.”


Andreas Mikkelsen, Volkswagen Polo R WRC #9

“Good pace notes are essential at the Rally Australia. There are a lot of undulations, blind corners and unforgiving trees nearly everywhere along the narrow special stages. On top of that, we must adjust from driving on asphalt to gravel. For me, the shakedown was all about getting used to these specific conditions and getting a good feeling for the Polo. That is all I was focussing on for the first two of the three shakedown runs. Now the rhythm is back, I feel good, and I can’t wait to get started tomorrow.”


Jost Capito, Volkswagen Motorsport Director

“The shakedown always provides the perfect opportunity to stock up on confidence ahead of the rally and to get the right feeling for the conditions at that particular event. We come to Australia with high hopes and would ideally like to wrap up the Manufacturers’ Championship with rallies to spare. Today’s five kilometres showed that all the systems are running perfectly and that our drivers are in good shape and fully focussed. We are ready.”














































































FIA World Rally Championship (WRC),

Rally Australia – TV broadcast
Western Europe
Andorra (Canal +); Austria (LAOLA1.tv, ORF, RTL, ServusTV, Sport 1); Belgium (Canal +, RTBF); Denmark (TV3 Sport, VIASAT); Finland (MTV3, YLE Sport); France (Canal +, France TV, Léquipe 21, TF1); Germany (Sport1, RTL, n-tv, LAOLA1.tv, ServusTV); Greece (OTE); Ireland (Setanta); Italy (RAI, Canale Italia, Sportitalia); Liechtenstein (RTL, ServusTV, Sport 1); Luxembourg (Canal +, RTL, ServusTV, Sport 1); Monaco (Canal +, France TV, Léquipe 21, TF1); Netherlands (RTL 7); Norway (VIASAT, Viasat Sport); Portugal (Sport TV, RTP); Spain (Canal +); Sweden (SVT); Switzerland (Canal +, RTL, ServusTV, Sport 1); United Kingdom (ITV 4); Wales (S4C)
Eastern Europe
Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Estonia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan (Auto Plus); Croatia (SPTV); Czech Republic, Slovakia (Czech TV, Sport 5); Poland (TV 4, TVP); Romania (Dolce Sport); Ukraine (First Automotive Channel, Auto Plus)
Middle East and Africa
Angola, Mozambique (Canal +, Sport TV, SuperSport); Benin, Botswana, Burkina, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, São Tomé, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe (Canal +, SuperSport); Lesotho, Liberia, Mayotte, Reunion, Socotra, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, St Helena & Ascension, Sudan, Swaziland (SuperSport)
Asia Pacific
Malaysia (Astro); Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brunei, Cambodia, East Timor, Guam, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Laos, Macao, Malaysia, Maldives, Micronesia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, New Caledonia, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam (ESPN Star); Japan (J Sports); New Zealand (Sky Sports); Australia (Speed TV); Thailand (Truevision)
North and Latin America
Argentina (Channel 12, Fox Sports); Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Haiti, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Trinidad & Tobago, USA (MAV TV); Bolivia, Chile, Columbia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Latin America, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela (Fox Sports); Brazil (ESPN); Paraguay (Fox Sports, Telefuturo)
International
Worldwide (Reuters, SNTV)

The post Back in Gravel Mode – Shakedown Completed: Volkswagen All Set for Australian Round of the WRC appeared first on VWVortex.






from VWVortex http://ift.tt/1ss3cn1

via IFTTT
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

2018 Lamborghini Aventador S Roadster Review

“Supercars just don’t excite me anymore.” These words, spoken to me over a month ago by another journalist, friend, and (so-called) enthusiast were echoing in my head for far too long, but they’ve finally been drowned out. Drowned out by the wail of a naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12 engine mounted in the middle of the new Lamborghini Aventador S Roadster. My friend’s point is that back in the good old days, there was a crop of supercars that captured the imagination with amazing style, sounds, performance, and more. Today, it seems like everything is capable of supercar performance, with large luxury sedans outdoing some of the best and most dedicated teams of car nuts, while former pillars of automotive excellence are suddenly pumping out family-friendly SUVs. Beyond that, another league of supercars, dubbed hypercars have cropped up with hybrid gas-electric powertrains that make magical things happen quickly, but at the cost of the acoustic drama, visual flair, and engag...
Post a Comment
Read more

Project SportWagen: Going Stage 2 with APR

    When we last left you, the humble little SportWagen was fresh from the development process with our friends at AWE Tuning, sporting a new downpipe, exhaust and intake, allowing things to breathe a bit easier.  The car sounded great, but there was no getting around the fact that our wagon was still quite, well, slow.   While we realize that nothing we do to the Golf SportWagen at this point will make it a race car, we still felt compelled to do something .  To put it bluntly, we had a fever, and the only cure was more power. Flash forward a few hours, and we found ourselves at Waterfest, staring down APR’s palatial spread and the numerous tuned vehicles surrounding it.  Earlier in the year, APR had hinted to us that their 1.8 TSI files would be quite impressive, and based on what they were able to do with the 2.0 TSI found in the new GTI and our time in their Golf R, we knew it’d be worth the wait.  So with this in mind, we lined our G...
Post a Comment
Read more

Project Golf SportWagen- Intro

I’ve never really been one for SUVs and crossovers.  The current offerings aren’t the body-on-frame, go-anywhere specialty tools I remember from my youth, and what they lack in capability, they also lack in on-road performance. The current crop isn’t terribly good at handling or being efficient, which in my opinion are major components of our ideal driving experience.  So when it comes to space or utility, I usually look for something of the wagon variety- and it seems that I’m not alone. We hit quite a few shows around the east coast each summer, and we see modified Jetta SportWagens at nearly every event. Even amongst common consumers, these cars are highly sought-after. They don’t depreciate much, making even early Mk 5 2.5 versions expensive in comparison to other Jettas or Golfs of the same vintage. This year, Volkswagen launched their latest SportWagen, which is now billed as a Golf.  In many ways, this latest SportWagen is the best yet and it has certai...
Post a Comment
Read more