Extreme Safety Helps Ford’s Rally Stars Go Faster

• World Rally Championship stars are protected by a hand-built roll-cage able to withstand ten tons in weight, the equivalent of more than nine road-going versions of the car
• More than 35 metres of aircraft industry steel tubing, nearly the length of three city buses, is used to make each roll cage a “survival cell”
• Drivers Jari-Matti Latvala and Petter Solberg say advanced safety technology such as these give them the confidence to shave crucial split-seconds from stage times

BRENTWOOD, UK, March 27, 2012 – Ford’s chances of winning the 2012 FIA World Rally Championship are being boosted by the Fiesta RS WRC being not only one of its fastest-ever cars, but also the safest.
 
The Fiesta RS WRC is a rally version of Ford’s best-selling family hatchback, transformed into a 300PS monster capable of covering 0-60mph in less than five seconds.

While that may be the focus for rally fans, the work which goes into keeping the car’s drivers and co-drivers safe as they tackle rugged and demanding speed tests around the globe is helping them go faster, too.

Ford Word Rally Team's Petter Solberg goes to work

“When rallies can be won or lost by less than a second you have to be able to trust the car, to push 100 percent,” said Ford World Rally Team driver Petter Solberg. “Accidents are inevitable in this sport but I know the Fiesta is one of the safest cars on the planet and this allows me to do my job without fear.”

Ford team director Malcolm Wilson speaks from personal experience. A high-speed rally crash left him with both ankles shattered in 1980.

“Make a mistake at 100mph and you can be in the trees or tumbling down a mountainside,” he said. “The Fiesta is incredibly strong anyway, but we’ve put a tremendous amount of work into making the rally car as rigid as possible and built on those strengths so it can handle crash forces you just don’t experience in normal driving.

“Back in the early 1980s the safety gear on the cars was almost non-existent and it’s a wonder more people weren’t killed or seriously hurt,” said Wilson. “The Fiesta RS WRC is the safest rally car Ford has ever produced.”

Jari-Matti Latvala is one of the fastest drivers on the planet

In addition to creating the unique roll cage, safety modifications include repositioning seats away from the doors to help prevent injury from side impact, as well as a plumbed-in extinguisher with nozzles spread throughout the car’s interior. Should an accident prove unavoidable, the risk of fire has been reduced due to a flexible, foam-filled, rupture-resistant fuel tank.

The safety features of modern rally cars most notably proved their worth when Ford drivers Jari-Matti Latvala and co-driver Miikka Anttila walked away unharmed after their Focus RS WRC rolled 200 metres down a mountainside in Portugal in 2009.

Ford is a vocal supporter of the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile's (FIA) Action for Road Safety Campaign. Launched last year by the governing body for motorsport, the FIA, the campaign aims to educate and advocate for safer roads, vehicles and behaviours. Ford's Fiesta RS WRC proudly displays the FIA Action for Road safety Campaign logo in support of this initiative to reduce injuries and deaths on the world's roads.

 
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About Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company, a global automotive industry leader based in Dearborn, Mich., manufactures or distributes automobiles across six continents. With about 164,000 employees and about 70 plants worldwide, the company’s automotive brands include Ford and Lincoln. The company provides financial services through Ford Motor Credit Company. For more information regarding Ford and its products worldwide, please visit http://corporate.ford.com

Ford of Europe is responsible for producing, selling and servicing Ford brand vehicles in 51 individual markets and employs approximately 66,000 employees. In addition to Ford Motor Credit Company, Ford of Europe operations include Ford Customer Service Division and 22 manufacturing facilities, including joint ventures. The first Ford cars were shipped to Europe in 1903 – the same year Ford Motor Company was founded. European production started in 1911.