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RALLYING AGAIN by Niaz Ali from Downunder |
In the past three years, I have
been to India a few times to compete in a couple of rallies, and the
noticeable change to the sport is the lack of entries.
 It
seems that with the entry of the semi factory teams,ie..Team JK (the
yellows) and Team MRF (the reds), the privateer is a non entity. There
is absolutely no point in putting together a rally car because the chance
of a podium finish is non existant. The other factor is the phenominal
cost of building a rally car that can run at the top end of the field.
Service is another factor with the major teams rebuilding cars after
each stage. If your a motoring enthusiast you have probably just given
up, its a lot of money to put in and then run a car for a day or two,
beeing a no hoper at the end of the field.
If your an x rallyist, and you have given it a thought , and then said
"Naah these guys are too fast".
WELL have I got some news for you.
 Those
of you who know the sport in India will know I competed in the 'Raid-deHimalaya'
2000, and to all of you who thought you needed Viagra for a podium finish,
this is the event for you.
You dont need to be a Hari sing or a Narin kumar to win this event ,
It can be won by an older generation driver or a new kid having his
first season in the sport. speed is not the criteria, but reliability,
you dont need to have a GRp A esteem to win.
You have to be a good and sensible driver to do this event your choice
of car is immeterial.
This may come as a shock to most of you but my bet would be a good old
Ambassador, Yes yes I know all of you are shaking your heads, here he
goes again talking about ambis.
 OK
so lets take a 2lt Isuzu engine Ambi and give it some DRUGS, I know
they are banned in Sport, but hey this is an AMBI and we need DRUGS
to make it go, What kind of drugs?... Performancing -enhancing ones
of course, the type that contain force-inducing components which help
alleviate the symptoms of sluggish performance. The type that give side
effects such as -- strong induction noises from the bonnet, uncontrollable
wheelspin, increased fuel consumption, firmer ride. The ingredients
for this drug would be...One Hilift cam, one straight cut close ratio
gearbox, bilstein suspension all around, bluprinted and balanced 2lt
Isuzu engine, Hi Compression motor, Avgas, stick them inside a oxford
shell.
 This
drug should be kept away from children, Grannies, and bad drivers. On
a serious note (gee I almost got carried away then). The Old Ambi is
probably the cheapest car avaliable in India, but for the purposes of
the Raid it could be a top five or three contender, it is strong, the
2lt motor is not a slouch, you can put spares or whatever in it and
it wont make a diffrence to the performance. I have rallied an Ambi
myself and if there is a sponsor out there I certainly dont mind giving
it a crack again. I will build the car myself here in Australia. He
who laughs last laughs longest. and ive laughed a lot in an Ambi (among
other things) ive also cried, but we wont get into that.
 Ok
so if you've got an old girl sitting in the shed, get her out and start
building her. The organisers of the raid, are a friendly lot, and if
you can get five cars together then a special class can be formed, for
the Ambi, maby I can get CK Birla to offer a special Ambassador cup.
Get the old dog out and take her for a run.
Some where elce on the host page is a Raid2000 logo , click on that
to get in and have a look at event , or if your having problems getting
your Mom, Dad, wife, girlfriend, mistress, agreeing to you rallying
the AMBI, then call the Ambi guru 'me' for help.
till
next time HASTALLAVISTABABYILLBEBAAK
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