Mara Irena GTC 2.5
World class in Archana
One of the rarest sights on Archanan public roads, the limited production run Mara Irena GTC 2.5 has been engineered to the tastes of the younger generation of apparatchiks pillars of the Archanan state and society. It is based on the much more mundane 4-door Irena LX 2.0 sedan - a staple of Archanan taxi fleets since the early 70s which also has been available for export (as EX and EXL in both 1.3 and 2.0 litre versions) since the late 60s.
The Irena GTC ready to leave Mara’s special projects workshop near its namesake lake
The GTC shares the LX’s car body up to the A-pillar but has only two - but larger - doors and a unique fastback rear end with double wishbones (unlike the LX’s more ‘traditional’ suspension). The LX’s venerable ‘Perspek’ 4-cylinder OHV engine has been enlarged to 2.5L and re-tuned for the GTC, almost doubling the power of the LX’s modest 47 kW. The GTC’s suspension has also been tuned for much better roadholding on the varying Archanan roads. The GTC also incorporates a number of firsts for Mara Motorni Fabryky such as hypereutectic pistons, a long tubular exhaust, a corrosion resistant steel chassis, a 4-speed automatic gearbox, 2 piston front disc brakes, a sporty yet luxurious interior and advanced safety features for the 1970s.
The GTC’s unique fastback rear-end
For the rally, the car and its engine have been carefully prepared, tuned and revised by Mara’s meticulous chief engineer, Rodin Gumprov, and he will drive the car himself together with one Archanan spy state representative as an espionage goodwill mission to improve relations with the Western countries.
Interior shot
The Irena’s state security police V8 version was also considered for the rally, but ultimately decided against since that V8 is built for short hot pursuits rather than endurance driving.
[OOC: Let’s see whether the car with the souped up taxi engine can beat the one with the detuned armoured car V12 for the best Archanan entry in the rally. And yes, the slogan is a pun. :D]