Mini To Enter 2011 World Rally Championship With Countryman WRC

By OR Staff, Photography courtesy of BMW

Just when we thought all hope was lost for professional rally racing, Mini steps up to the plate. Somebody, anybody – thank you.

At a time when automakers are just barely reeling back in from an economic meltdown, it’s good to see that performance still matters to Mini. Mitsubishi, Peugeot, and Subaru, among others, all pulled their factory WRC teams after years of tough racing against each other.

We’ve always missed the glory years of full factory teams and drivers like Burns, Makinen, Sainz, and McRae all going full blast through forests, icy hills, and desert sand dunes. The privateer ranks currently found in the WRC are great to watch and are the backbone of the sport but nobody can fund innovation, competition, and marketing like a car manufacturer.

Mini seems committed to the FIA World Rally Championship, contesting select events in 2011 and promising a full season from 2012 on. They claim “this involvement is planned for several years.”

Instead of using their iconic Cooper S model, Mini will be using the longer Countryman model to build the Mini Countryman WRC. Famed racing engineering house Prodrive will handle the program, now left twiddling their thumbs with no factory Subaru WRC program to manage.

The heart of the rally car is a 1.6-liter, four-cylinder turbocharged engine from BMW Motorsport. There is no mention of the modifications, if any, to the production 1.6-liter engine block casting or head design, assuming the factory engine is used at all. The Mini Countryman WRC will also surely see a conversion to a stronger all-wheel drive system and extensive widebody work.

The car complies with the new Super2000 regulations put in place by the FIA, which stipulate the use of turbo engines with 1,600 cc displacement and four-wheel drive combined with an increased emphasis on road relevant technologies. The result is a significant 25 per cent reduction in overall costs. The first test drive for the Mini Countryman WRC, which will also be available to customer teams, is planned for autumn 2010. The driver line-up for the Mini program has not been announced.

From BMW:

This decision sees MINI continue its success story in the world of rallying. In the 1960s, the MINI Cooper S caused a sensation with victories at the legendary Monte Carlo Rally. The company also tasted success on many occasions in the European Rally Championship. Having already demonstrated the sporty character of its models in many countries in the Mini Challenge, the brand is now taking its presence in motorsport to a new level with the commitment to the WRC.

“This is a very exciting new motorsport programme,” said Prodrive Chairman, David Richards. “During the 1960s, Mini captured the imagination of the world when the tiny car took on the might of V8 powered Fords and won what was then one of the toughest motorsport events, the 4000km Monte Carlo rally. I believe our new Mini will become a firm favourite of the latest generation of rally fans, just as it is adored by its millions of owners across the world. We already have a significant number of confirmed customer orders for the new Mini rally car with the first deliveries scheduled for the start of the 2011 season.”

Prodrive has been working on developing the Mini Countryman WRC since early 2009. The company was formed in 1984 by Richards, who won the World Rally Championship as co-driver to Ari Vatanen (FI) three years earlier. Based in Banbury (GB), Prodrive has developed into a leading independent company in the motorsport and automobile sector under Richards’ guidance, and today employs over 500 staff. Prodrive’s many successes currently include six overall victories in the World Rally Championship, five titles in the British Touring Car Championship and three class victories at the Le Mans 24 Hours (FR).

BMW was present when the World Rally Championship made its debut back in 1973. Achim Warmbold (DE) and Jean Todt (FR) tasted victory in their BMW 2002 at the Alpenfahrt Rally in Austria. However, Mini’s tradition in this discipline stretches back even further: Pat Moss (GB) clinched the first victory with the Mini 850 at the 1959 Mini Miglia National Rally.

Mini ultimately enjoyed its finest hours at the Monte Carlo Rally in 1964, 1965 and 1967: the Mini Cooper S celebrated three overall victories at the most iconic rallying event in the world. Paddy Hopkirk (IR, 1964), Timo Mäkinen (FI, 1965) and Rauno Aaltonen (FI, 1967) joined the list of winners at this prestigious event. In 1965, “Rally Professor” Aaltonen also won the European Rally Championship. Tony Ambrose (GB) and Mäkinen finished second and third to round off an excellent overall result for the Mini Cooper S.

In addition, Mini drivers also enjoyed many individual wins at renowned rallies throughout Europe. The last BMW World Rally Championship victory was achieved in 1987 in Corsica by Bernard Béguin (FR) driving a BMW M3 which was built and run by Prodrive.