WRC: Subaru: Development of Impreza WRC2007 on course.

[Rory Phoulorie]

The Subaru World Rally Team has confirmed that it is 'on schedule' with the development of the Impreza WRC2007, which will make its third appearance in the FIA World Rally Championship this coming weekend in Argentina.

Speaking in the countdown to the event in South America, Subaru's director of engineering, Steve Farrell noted that their five-day pre-event test in Sardinia went very well and that a number of things have been improved, some of which have already been sorted for this event.

�We go into this rally off the back of five days of testing in Sardinia. I am happy that the development of the current Impreza is on schedule: each test is giving us improvements in several areas,� he explained. �Some of these are immediately available and will be introduced in Argentina, but some need more time before they are ready.

�We are confident that at each rally we will continue to bridge the gap to the front. In Argentina last year we fought hard and long but had to be content with second place. It's very tough at the head of the WRC field at the moment, but we are excited by the challenge.�

Asked about the Rally Argentina itself, Farrell added that it can be very difficult, as the conditions on the stages can vary dramatically from one test to the next, especially if the weather plays a role too

�We all look forward to Rally Argentina because it presents its own unique challenges,� he continued. �Unpredictable weather means we have to be on the ball though and find a tyre choice and car set-up that can best cope with the different conditions.

�Frankly, even when the weather is stable, the contrast between stages is as much as any rally, and the fastest cars will be ones that are consistent and balanced on a wide range of surfaces.�

Subaru's operations director, Paul Howarth agrees with his colleague that this can be a really difficult event and that stages are all quite different: �This is traditionally a very tough event and includes some fast stages, particularly on the second leg on Saturday,� he added. �Those roads are quite rocky in places with a hard base.

�Leg one's stages have a more sandy base and tyre choice will be particularly crucial there. Stages two and three on Friday morning are very technical � a lot happens on those tests.

�On leg two, particularly stages ten and eleven, you tend to get fog up in the hills and it can also get very wet. A driver can lose a lot of time if conditions are horrible. Also on leg two, the stages to the south of Cordoba are very fast. The stages on leg three, meanwhile, wouldn't look out of place on the moon, the terrain is unique in that area.�


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