Stage 2 - …-799cc Class - Report Sector 2
Sector 2 - Orta - Coma
The rough rounds nearly claim a victim as PMI Polloi Barudion Aero “Corso” borders on losing control. Though the car manages to stay on the paths, the front right wheel has come loose. The PMI loses some time here, certainly because the lack of navigator/engineer means the Godini must do all the work himself.
Surviving the dirt section more than alright, the Suzume Kaikyu San Ebi Kei suffers some overheating on the highways to Coma.
Getting bounced around on the dirt and pushing the small engine to the limit on the highway, the #89 Epoch Model 10C Modifica shows incredible durability this run.
Even at time of development, word got around that the KMC 800 Roadster may become a little unsettled through corners near its top speed. While, through tentative driving on the dirt that section was completed without issues, a massive spin (luckily again without hitting anything) brought the car to a halt just after a highway corner. No damage suffered, but restarting the stalled engine and regaining the lost speed has hurt the stage time of the #63 car.
Ninety. Ninety kilometers an hour where the highway to Coma has its steepest downhill section. That is the Marcello Tipo 300. But the little car made it once again within the allowed time, and it did so while using the least fuel of all cars in the Corso.
Right and left and right and left the CMW S946 Bergmann Special swerves on the dirt roads of the Timero valley; and as you would expect this ended in a complete loss of control, though luckily not before the driver could bleed off most of the speed. The #426 car is thrown with its rear first upon a rock, shredding the exhaust system and damaging the bumper and rear hood, but leaving the rest of the car intact – it’s just a bit louder now. Oh, my… Some spectators help the light car from the rock and it can continue towards the highway.
Whether its bad luck or bad reliability for the Juggernaut Automotive Runabout isn’t clear, but the highway stretch isn’t going well. Driver and co-driver have to stop 3 times to check the engine, but they cannot appear to find the issue that is plaguing them. Something most likely broke loose over the dirt roads, where the Runabout did not look comfortable. I hope this is an aftermarket suspension set, because if the city car is this hard sprung, you’re better off avoiding this for your daily commute.
Some nervous moments of the #54 Barato Motors 800 Sport Race but once on the open roads it can really open up the throttle and make us of all power hiding in those more than 9000 available rpms.
That crunch heard earlier off the Condo Sprint must have hit an oil line, as suddenly, while being bumped around on the dirt roads – the steering issues on this surface are stil very much there – the car starts smoking. A service stop and some repairs by Collins later, the little car can continue. Easy access to the engine means relatively little time has been lost.
The rough roads outside of Orta are less enjoyable for the Znopresk Z849 to navigate; that shaking we have already talked about makes driving difficult, and it is with much risk that the car keeps up speed on these roads. Once nearer to Coma and on the highway, the ride is smoother, but with a lack of top speed, it remains to be seen whether or not the first sector will have given the car a big enough advantage to challenge for a win here.
The dirt and the bumps stay the enemy of the Aeros Shrew (which might be seen as quite ironic considering the burrowing nature of the namesake animal). The bumps lift the front end of the #46 car of the ground and the car goes straight into an embankment and some rocks. The radiator and wheels look damaged and for a moment, the engine refused to return to life. But in time, the car, now crabbing and overheating, can continue, atmosphere inside again gone frigid.
A service stop for Martino and Rizzo in the modified Giusseppe G220 as that adapted motorcycle engine keeps showing signs for giving up any moment now. The road from Fienna went smooth though, without any issues. Some issues after Orta though as the #789 car understeers into a bush a the front right wheels clips a rock, damaging steering slightly.
The LSV Mark RS is yet again proving to be an extremely drivable car. Fast and stable through, the corners, even on the rocky decent along the valley of the Timero. However, as was the case on the Via Fruinia, once the little race spec car reaches the highway, it struggles badly to keep up speed beyond that of a small family car.
Reliability is an issues, and it’s not far outside of Orta, where the roads is rough, that the engine starts acting up. It appears to be a pushrod issue. Nevertheless, the WM RatonAereo 654 pushes forward, even if seemingly with reduced power.
It is going from bad to worse with the Cisalpina Superleggera 750 as the combination of loose surfaces, high-revs and an at times snappy rear turns the car round on braking, once almost sending it off a cliff, and once sending the car over a field of rocks that it could have done without. It redeems itself on the open road and highway, but even before arrival at Como, the drivers know too much time has been lost to be challenging those with cleaner runs.
Solid performance from a technical perspective, but in terms of speed the Merciel Modele 1949 Modele 49 Course '49 is lacking. The trip over the highway is a dreary, uneventful slug towards Coma, but without mishaps or breakdowns, that might just suffice.
Down into the Timero valley on unpaved roads strewn with boulders, the Birmingham Snake Van Custom seems to suffer a rougher run than expected. The drivers are being shaken about and at one point even lose control of the van, though luckily without any dire consequences.
The Penrose Customs 800 is attempting to continue towards Coma, but barely out of Orta, with a shredded tyre, a bent wheel and an almost complete loss of steering, it becomes clear this is impossible. Especially on these rocky roads there is no control of the car. It’s a choice between giving up or ending up upside down in the river after falling down a cliff.
The gearbox remains a cause of worry and loss of time for the Ceder Abeille 760. That is a pity, as for the rest, this little family car is almost unexpectedly nippy and fast.
Anyway glad to see the LMC finding its stride this stage.