Difficult Times For Honda At Rally Victoria

TULLAMARINE, AUSTRALIA – Nov 14, 2011: The final round of the Bosch Australian Rally Championship proved tough for the Honda Civic Type R of Eli Evans and Glen Weston, with the team experiencing technical issues that left them towards the back of the field in Heat Two.

“We had a pretty rough weekend with a couple of unforeseen issues putting us a fair way behind on Saturday. We made the decision before the event to try and have a steady run to net a few more championship points and maybe sneak up a place in the overall standings but sadly this didn’t pan out,” Evans said.

The team finished first two wheel drive and sixth outright in Heat One on Friday night, after two Super Special Stages raced at Lardner Park. This was around two minutes from leaders Simon and Sue Evans, who had entered the Victorian round as a one-off.

Heat Two proved challenging for the team. After Stage Nine, a power steering hose was damaged and Evans was forced to drive 40 kilometres with no power assistance.

“I always thought that being light and built like a greyhound was the best for driving a rally car, but I think I need to go to the gym and get stronger now! That was one of the hardest things I have ever had to do in a rally car in my career,” Evans aid.

The team was able to fashion a new hose in order to continue the rally, however left service with a time penalty that put them further behind.

“We had another mishap off the start line of Stage 14 when a driveshaft snapped,” Evans said. “We continued on for about three kilometers before we had to stop because we lost all drive to the front wheels. Glen and I were able to relocate the shaft and get going again, but we were sitting on the side of the road for about ten minutes, so that put an end to any chance of a good finish in the heat.”

The team finished the rally in eleventh place however placed second overall in the two wheel-drive championship, a stellar effort considering the points tally.

“It was a disappointing end to the year, there’s no doubt about that. The team persevered to the end and I’m really proud of everyone’s efforts. Despite the problems today we still managed to be the first placed two-wheel drive car at Rally Victoria.

“It’s been a long year and we’ve learnt a lot and I’m happy that we ended in second place in the two-wheel drive category,” Evans said.