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Petter In A Proton!


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Posted
Protons are ****.

Does not matter if Ari Vatanen was signed up for them, they would still be kack.

PMSL :P Well I'll upset more people by saying that yes it's not a bad S2000 Rally car, still it's no Peugeot or Fiat... And with Petter driving i'm sorry but that won't do them any favours in developing it into a decent car... Ari would do a better job in developing the car into something that maybe half decent as a rally car...

but as a road car... Yes Protons are still ****!!!

Posted
Ah, yes Grant but look what people said when Volvo joined the BTCC??

You never know.............................. :P

True you may never know.. But Volvo had TWR on board to develop the 850 and a massive budget that would have put SWRT to shame...

It's all very new for the MEM team and they'll have a big mountain to climb! They need good support from Proton and a deccent budget to even get close to the Fiat's, Peugeots or even Skoda.

Posted
True you may never know.. But Volvo had TWR on board to develop the 850 and a massive budget that would have put SWRT to shame...

It's all very new for the MEM team and they'll have a big mountain to climb! They need good support from Proton and a deccent budget to even get close to the Fiat's, Peugeots or even Skoda.

But to be fair to them Gav, a 2000cc DOHC can be tuned very similar to anyone else's (look at the BTCC), the car has good dimensions and stance, the gearbox and final drive is the same for all cars, and has McPherson struts all round, so Ohlins should get it right if given the job.

It's just who actually tries to set it up that will decide how quick it goes. I still don't want a Proton road car though. A bit perversely, I did always say I would have bought a Hyundai Accent WRC car as a 4wd Turbo road car if they had ever built one cheap enough though.

Here's a pic of the MEM Proton at the Autosport that I took

Autosport2009014.jpg

Posted
Ah, yes Grant but look what people said when Volvo joined the BTCC??

You never know.............................. :P

I know what i said when i saw that Volvo were enterin the BTCC

I said "theres a Volvo without a horsebox/caravan"

Posted
I know what i said when i saw that Volvo were enterin the BTCC

I said "theres a Volvo without a horsebox/caravan"

So what did you say when Subaru first started rallying the Legacy - "There's a Subaru, but farmer Giles isn't driving it!?!?!?"

It must have been a relief when Colin came along, as at least he stayed close to Lanark Market.

Posted

Bugger!! I'd just written a rant to go on this and lost the lot!!

Well here goes again..

Yes the Proton is a nice car, and could be a contender given the rules.. Sadly unless Proton spend big on the project then it won't be as competitive as it could... Prime example is the MG, Corsa and Toyota Corolla S2000 cars, good drivers and teams behind each of these projects.. but lack of real money from manufacturers will always leave them lagging behind the works entries... Skoda may have learnt it's lesson the hard way in the WRC, it's now put some decent money behind the S2000 project and well the early results are looking good.

Niall McShea will give a good idea of where the car will be in terms of pace in Rally Ireland... I don't think Petter will do the car any favours, well unless he's got his head screwed on properly this time!! He was one of the biggest issues with SWRT along with lack of cash from Subaru and sponsors... Sadly motorsport at IRC or WRC level is very difficult without manufacturer budgets... Again where is the first Group N Mitsubishi or Subaru (S2000 was developed to be on par with these cars) the rules maybe there to keep it a level playing field but without the money to develop the car to the best of the rules the Proton I feel will be left behind like the others i've mentioned... Developing horsepower from a 2L N/A production engine is very difficult and expensive... I'll use the MG as an example, the K series isn't a bad engine it's got all the right parts to produce decent horsepower and it does go very well, however it's weak and as seen with Stuart it fails with regular occurence.. Again this comes down to lack of development and money to do so... A lot of factors will come into if the Proton is to become any good, over the next few months, team, drivers money, testing, development...

I'd like to see a plucky underdog prove me wrong!

Posted
I'm sure Proton owned Lotus at one stage... Not sure if they still do?

I think they still have a share in them at least.

Gav, I know you are right about the whole investment thing, but one of the side benefits of the S2000 class is that you don't need to be throwing at least £20million at a season (what Ford pay for it's 2 works cars alone I believe). The cars are far easier to develop due to the class restrictions

with the drivetrain etc. Building a good engine from 2 litre N/A is not that big a thing, with plenty of private tuners getting credible results from everyday engines. Incidentally, the K series engine is not that good a basis to build an engine from, especially when compared to the Vauxhall/Toyota/PSA Group/VAG Engines that are produced. But yes I do agree that money will alweays do the best talking, as it does in any motorsport (well, with the exclusion of Norris Designs).

The big thing this class provides is the a more level playing (not flat - just more level compared to the WRC at the moment), and without the enormous outlay that is currently required. This in turn is producing cars, that more of the fast drivers that who can't get a seat because of budget restraints are now using to showcase talent such as Kris Meeke, Mark Higgins and Guy Wilks to name but a few from these shores alone.

The greatest thing that the class will bring for all us enthusiasts though is cars that have to scream to work and have to been thrown through corners - just like the good 'ole days.

Posted

Didnt Protons used to be mitubushi's with different badges ? i mean you had the persona that was identical to a lancer and then you had the little hatch that was identical to the colt or has this all changed or am i just plain wrong :P

Posted

I have to agree the cars sound fantastic... I hope it does bring about a new dawn of rallying where by money doesn't buy world championships... (i'll step out of my bubble now) Still i'd like to know what Peugeot and Fiat have spent... It would be in the region of what the top WRC boys have spent.. The S2000 rules yes were created to bring a levelish playing field to the game. I've a build sheet somewhere for a FIAT and it's 2 yo WRC money to even start playing then there's engines... Well that's another story. Ok the K series isn't a good engine! Again the price of a 'works' spec engine from Sodemo or Abarth is horrific money.. FIAT last year were having to subsidise engine's and gearboxes to make it attractive to people to compete. A Sadev gearbox every event and an engine every other. If they sort it out similar to WRC where by you have to run an engine and box for multiple events then yes it will help bring in more people. An ex customer of mine was a good case, he had both a group N and WRC Subaru as well as a FIAT.. and the FIAT was costing him nearly as much as his WRC car.. The idea of S2000 was to bring in more manufacturers to compete with Group N Subaru's and Mitsubishi's and keep the costs down.. Can't see any of them being in the top 10 in Monte Carlo. The FIA for once was on the right track they just didn't go far enough.. the WRC should impliment S2000 rules and restric development more than what already exists, that way the underfunded, talented privateer has at least a fighting chance... Who know's I'd love to see a few 'locals' such as Meeke, Wilks, Jones, McShea etc competeing against the regulars on a level playing field..

Posted (edited)
I have to agree the cars sound fantastic... I hope it does bring about a new dawn of rallying where by money doesn't buy world championships... (i'll step out of my bubble now) Still i'd like to know what Peugeot and Fiat have spent... It would be in the region of what the top WRC boys have spent.. The S2000 rules yes were created to bring a levelish playing field to the game. I've a build sheet somewhere for a FIAT and it's 2 yo WRC money to even start playing then there's engines... Well that's another story. Ok the K series isn't a good engine! Again the price of a 'works' spec engine from Sodemo or Abarth is horrific money.. FIAT last year were having to subsidise engine's and gearboxes to make it attractive to people to compete. A Sadev gearbox every event and an engine every other. If they sort it out similar to WRC where by you have to run an engine and box for multiple events then yes it will help bring in more people. An ex customer of mine was a good case, he had both a group N and WRC Subaru as well as a FIAT.. and the FIAT was costing him nearly as much as his WRC car.. The idea of S2000 was to bring in more manufacturers to compete with Group N Subaru's and Mitsubishi's and keep the costs down.. Can't see any of them being in the top 10 in Monte Carlo. The FIA for once was on the right track they just didn't go far enough.. the WRC should impliment S2000 rules and restric development more than what already exists, that way the underfunded, talented privateer has at least a fighting chance... Who know's I'd love to see a few 'locals' such as Meeke, Wilks, Jones, McShea etc competeing against the regulars on a level playing field..

Proton? is that nae some p*sh they tried tae teach ye in physics at school or something on Star Trek? :P

Edited by hosstheboss
Posted

Guys!!

When Our boss came to us after loosing the GM vauxhall Vectra cup car contract, telling us that we had a new contract with Hyundai to make the rally cars, id say that 99% of us laughed!! We thought he had lost his marbles!!

Renault had just pulled the plug on the Touring cars we built, and then vauxhall pulling, he took on the VECTRA GSI rebuilds for vauxhall to make ends meet. Then to have this come along was perposterous!!

BUT, i have to say the early days of build were a bit iffy. The original coupe we built it on wasnt anywhere near good enough to adapt. However when Alistair McRae walked in (we honestly did not know at that time he was being signed) and said he would be driving one of these cars, again there were looks of horror!!

But it did play out ok. I wont say they were the best cars but noone could say they didnt stand a chance.

I think that Proton deserve a go.

If race teams and the industry reveolved around high performance high status cars like Mitsibushi, subaru, porche, BMW, Audi, etc then where is the potential for lesser companies to break into an opening? Also having a little bit of competition, even if it is from a much lesser capable company always injects a decent amount of Forward momentum in the industry.

Having said that, The company i worked for when we did the Hyundai fell flat on its face after a while!! but i cant put that down to the car!!! :P

Posted
Guys!!

When Our boss came to us after loosing the GM vauxhall Vectra cup car contract, telling us that we had a new contract with Hyundai to make the rally cars, id say that 99% of us laughed!! We thought he had lost his marbles!!

Renault had just pulled the plug on the Touring cars we built, and then vauxhall pulling, he took on the VECTRA GSI rebuilds for vauxhall to make ends meet. Then to have this come along was perposterous!!

BUT, i have to say the early days of build were a bit iffy. The original coupe we built it on wasnt anywhere near good enough to adapt. However when Alistair McRae walked in (we honestly did not know at that time he was being signed) and said he would be driving one of these cars, again there were looks of horror!!

But it did play out ok. I wont say they were the best cars but noone could say they didnt stand a chance.

I think that Proton deserve a go.

If race teams and the industry reveolved around high performance high status cars like Mitsibushi, subaru, porche, BMW, Audi, etc then where is the potential for lesser companies to break into an opening? Also having a little bit of competition, even if it is from a much lesser capable company always injects a decent amount of Forward momentum in the industry.

Having said that, The company i worked for when we did the Hyundai fell flat on its face after a while!! but i cant put that down to the car!!! :P

Any chance that you worked for MSD?

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