VIN: the works Peugeot 205 T16 Evolution 2 chassis C202
History of chassis C202
Although Bruno Saby had debuted the T16 Evolution 2 on the Tour de Corse back in May 1985, championship contenders Timo Salonen and Ari Vatanen stuck with the tried and tested Evolution 1 in Corsica and for the three World Rally Championship events that followed (Greece, New Zealand and Argentina).
The 1000 Lakes Rally which took place in Finland between August 23rd and 25th would be the first event that Salonen and Vatanen were expected to run the Evolution 2. However, Vatanen was ruled out of the event after a massive crash on Rally Argentina and although he went on to compete for Peugeot in the Paris-Dakar and at Pikes Peak, The Finn never completed another full WRC campaign. Vatanen’s navigator, Terry Harryman, miraculously escaped relatively unscathed, but was still out for several months.
Vatanen and Harryman were replaced by Kalle Grundel and Peter Diekmann who had achieved considerable success in Peugeot Talbot Sport Deutschland’s Evolution 1.
Two new cars were taken to Finland: chassis C202 for Salonen / Harjanne and C203 for Grundel / Diekmann. Both cars ran with 440bhp and weighed around 950kg. Attention to the Evolution 2 since its debut on the Tour de Corse had seen a significant improvement in its torque curve.
The 1000 Lakes was the Evolution 2’s first gravel event. It would be up against Audi’s latest Quattro Sport which had been introduced in Argentina.
Continuing their excellent 1985 form, Salonen / Harjanne had a relatively trouble free run in C202. They drove conservatively in the second half of the rally to maintain a healthy lead established early on. Salonen finished 48 seconds ahead of Blomqvist / Cederberg in the latest Quattro. Works Lancia 037s were third and fourth.
Grundel / Diekmann finished fifth in the sister car.
Chassis C202 did not appear for the works team again.
Notable History
Peugeot Talbot Sport
Registered 704 EXC 75
23/08/1985 WRC 1000 Lakes Rally (T. Salonen / S. Harjanne) 1st oa, 1st Gr.B class (#3)
Text copyright: Supercar Nostalgia
Photo copyright: Peugeot - http://www.peugeot.com
