Race against time for debut of exciting new car
Patrick Malley has been nervously watching the sailing schedule of a container ship on route to Auckland from Poland that is carrying precious cargo. On-board is Patrick’s new rallycar, and with just under two weeks until the first event in the 2014 Brian Green Property Group New Zealand Rally Championship driven by VINZ, the race against the clock is already underway for the Malley team.
Patrick is returning to the championship after a few seasons away to concentrate on business interests. His Auckland based team researched suitable car options for a return to the championship and settled on a Peugeot 208 Proto. The car is built to a similar specification to those in the WRC 2 support category by Dytko Sports in Poland and features Mitsubishi Evolution engine and drivetrain within a Peugeot 208 body. The cars are successfully campaigned in events throughout Europe.
“The car left Europe early in the New Year, and we’ve been watching the sailing schedule for weeks now. It finally arrived yesterday and we now have a couple of days to wait for processing and customs release. All going to plan, and with no delays we will get the car mid-week,” commented Malley.
“Choice, Bill and the team at Team Ralliart are waiting to get their hands on the car to check it right over for the rally. Those guys have been great in planning for the cars arrival and working to a tight schedule. The car is new so we are hoping it will be fairly straight forward, but until we actually get our hands on the car, it’s a nervous time waiting.”
The Peugeot will be an exciting addition to the 2014 NZRC and adds to the growing range of cars competing under new regulations for 4WD rallycars. The Malley team face an exciting challenge for the Peugeots debut, with the Whangarei event covering two legs and 240 kilometres of special stages on the fast and flowing Northland roads.
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