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From speedarena.com Car Features For seventy years Peugeot has been winning rally competitions, starting with the 1932 Monte Carlo Rally and continuing to this day. The high point of Peugeot rallying came in the mid eighties with the 205 T16 Group B car when, in only three years of competition, it won two championships. Peugeot is now looking to reclaim that domination with its current 206 WRC car.
But, after nearly ten years away from rallying, Peugeot began planning its return to the WRC. In 1995 they started to develop the 306, front-wheel drive, 2.0 litre class car. This car successfully competed in the European championships and took two French titles in 1996 and 1997. They then moved onto the 306 Maxi Kit Car. This car, also front-wheel drive, was an improved version of the regular 306 and built to kit car specifications which allowed for additional modifications from the original design. More development was made using this car and much of what was learned eventually made its way into the 206 WRC car yet to come. For instance, they used the 306 Maxi to develop electronic wheel-spin controls that provided great information for the development of the 206 WRC car. This car was very capable and actually competed in several WRC tarmac events, threatening to beat many of the full-blown WRC cars in the process.
The first year was a tough one, filled with mechanical problems and reliability issues while competing in six events. This, however, was the building and preparation year for the 206, and prepare they did. Taking their first WRC win at the Swedish Rally in 2000 and taking, both, the manufacturers and drivers championship that same year. They then followed their 2000 success by winning the manufacturers championship again in 2001. The 206 WRC car that has taken them to these championships is a car that, in many ways, is very similar to the 205 T16 that dominated the scene in the ‘80s. The engine block is the same as that used in the 205 and it shares similar designs on many of the other engine components. The engine measures 1997.5 cc and produces the FIA limited 300 bhp @ 5250 rpm. The engine is mounted transversely in the engine bay due to the very limited space there. Due to this space limitation and the limited horsepower output, there is not a lot of engine development that can take place. Several small changes have been made over the years including a revised inlet and exhaust system on the current model with a new wastegate as well. The wastegate combined with “post combustion” in the exhaust work together to keep the turbo spinning when the driver lets off the throttle, insuring boost will be there when needed again. A single electronic control unit (ECU), co-developed with Magneti Marelli, controls all the electronic functions on the car. This is different than most WRC cars which use three ECUs. This has proved to be a very reliable and potent design over the last couple of years as the results show.
While the engine is mounted transversely in the engine bay, the transmission is mounted longitudinally behind it and in the center of the chassis. This may sound like an engineering nightmare, and in fact, it is. It is a very complex design that can lead to many mechanical failures. In fact, it is mostly due to this that the 206 had so many problems during the 1999 season. Peugeot uses this design for many reasons though. By placing the six-speed, sequential gearbox in this position, the 206 gained significant advantages in several areas. It provides better mass and weight distribution by having the gearbox mounted between the axles instead of toward the front of the car. The placement allows for much easier access to the gearbox for maintenance and replacement. Lastly, it gives Peugeot the ability to use larger and stronger gearboxes since there is more space for them to work with. Paddles on the steering wheel, allowing the drivers to keep both hands on the wheel when changing gears, control all six gears.
The rest of the drivetrain consists of three very important parts. The hydro-electronically controlled differentials. One in the center right behind the gearbox, one at the front wheels and one at the rear wheels. These are designed to distribute all the power possible to the wheels without causing them to lose grip. While in the older cars wheelspin was controlled by cutting power from the engine, the new car’s system allows for the power to be used more efficiently. These differentials act directly on the affected spinning axle by slowly locking it until the spinning is under control and the torque to the wheel is ideal. In this way the impact on the engine’s output is not affected nearly as much, therefore allowing more of that power to be transmitted to the ground.
After the chassis has been strengthened and modified the suspension goes into place. The FIA requires that the suspension design be related closely to that of the production model the car is to emulate. Therefore, the 206 uses a McPherson strut design suspension with lower wishbones, just like the production 206. This design has the advantage of being fairly compact and not taking up a lot of room. This allows for more room to add other parts to the car and is fairly simple to work on and service. The car also has the shortest wheelbase on the WRC circuit. At only 2468mm, it is small and nimble. Every other car on the scene has a wheelbase of over 2500mm. Along with having the shortest wheelbase, it also has its wheels placed so that it has hardly any body overhang. This helps the cars dynamic characteristics and gives it the nimble handling characteristics that make it such a good car on tarmac and tight stages. Braking comes from four or six piston calipers depending on the terrain being attacked and the wheel size being used. Large six piston calipers are used on the tarmac stages behind 18” wheels and smaller four piston calipers behind 15” wheels are installed for gravel and dirt rallies.
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