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This was the case
when the Institute met with the World Rally teams at the Rally
de France in Corsica
at the end
of October to discuss improvements that can be made to safety.
The
meeting was already lined up as a chance to introduce the
FIA Institute and its members to the World Rally teams.
But it became particularly pertinent following the tragic
death of Peugeot co-driver Michael Park at the Rally of Great
Britain. Park, co-driver for Markko Martin, was killed when
his Peugeot 307 crashed heavily into a tree on the passenger’s
side during stage 15 of the rally. Martin escaped unhurt.
The
top technical advisers of the Institute were present in Corsica
including advisors Peter Wright, Andy Mellor and
Hubert Gramling.
They met with the rally team principals and
their technical directors, first of all to introduce the
Institute and its
work. The Institute members then gave a presentation on the
work that had been done by the Closed Car Research Group,
one of its four working bodies.
The meeting was also an opportunity
to canvas opinion on the best way to improve side impact
protection in rally cars, following
the events at the Rally of Great Britain.
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Technical adviser
Peter Wright said: “We received a very positive response
from the teams. They were very interested in our research.
I think they realized that the FIA Institute was putting a
lot of resources into this and would do a huge amount of research
before making any suggestions.”
One of the unanimous agreements was the need to reduce speed in some of the corners
at certain events. This will be looked at in preparation for the 2006 season.
However, much of the discussion was on updating the rally teams on the progress
already made by the Institute. The Closed Car Research Group has been working
seriously on improving side impact protection for the last 12 months.
The Institute had already begun a programme, in conjunction with the Peugeot
rally team, looking at the problem of a car hitting a tree sideways. It had arranged
to conduct a pole test similar to that of Euro NCAP, where a rally car is shunted
sideways into a metal pole. Using the data from Park’s crash and through
further research and discussion the FIA Institute will make it a priority to
help ensure that the consequences of this tragic accident will not be as severe
again. |
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