MELBOURNE: Hyundai Motorsport has increaded testing of its new five-door i20 rally car in preparation for the 2016 FIA World Rally Championship.
The current Hyundai i20 WRC will run throughout the rest of the 2015 season, however a recent four-day test in Spain saw the roll out of an upgraded version of the new i20 WRC. Taking the car for a spin in the Spanish region of Almeria were the team’s test driver Kevin Abbring and his co-driver Sebastian Marshall.
“We had hoped to introduce the new car later this season but unfortunately an issue with the homologation schedule—related to production of the three-door road version—will delay our program,” Hyundai WRC team principal Michel Nandan said. “We have therefore opted to continue focus on the five-door version of the new-generation i20 WRC which will compete at Rallye Monte-Carlo next year.”
Nandan explained that the revised schedule will give the team extra time to ensure the car is performing optimally, which will be crucial if Hyundai has any hope of dethroning Volkswagen from the top of the standings. VW and its reigning world champion driver Sebastian Ogier has won the three races run so far.
An initial four-day test of the new i20 WRC was recently carried out in Spain. Work focused on engine and chassis development, as well as altitude testing. Some of the knowledge gained from these tests will also allow a series of upgrades for the current, 2015-spec i20 WRC.
