Reiger World Rally Championship Teams extending the lead

The Reiger off-road dampers show top performance not only in the deserts of Saudi Arabia at the Dakar Rally. Reiger Suspension’s motorsport customers are also extending their lead in the 2022 World Rally Championship (WRC).

Following the Rally Monte Carlo, where the Reiger customers were in the lead, a similar picture appears after the Rally in Sweden. The Rally in Sweden 2022 was won by the Finn Kalle Rovanperä with his co-pilot and countryman Jonne Halttunen in their Toyota GR Yaris Rally1.

There are many new features in the 2022 rally season, and the familiar WRC cars have been replaced by the so-called Rally1 cars. These are rally cars with hybrid drivetrains.

As a result, the 1.6-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine developed from the WRC cars has been upgraded with a 136 hp (100 kW) electric powertrain, meaning the cars have a peak system output of up to 514 hp.

According to the regulations, many more standardized components than previously will also be used, and one challenge for teams is that only two 1.6-liter four-cylinder engines may be used per vehicle per season in this tough competition.

In the 17 competitive stages, the Toyota team with Kalle Rovanperä at the steering wheel and Jonne Halttunen as co-driver in the GR Yaris Rally1 (#69) crossed the finish line eleven times as the fastest. Over the whole event distance of 264.81 kilometers, the rally mostly went over ice and snow.

In the forests of Sweden, top speeds of over 180 km/h were clocked. Toyota teammates Esapekka Lappi and Janne Ferm finished third in the #4 Yaris.

Takamoto Katsuta and Aaron Johnston drove their #18 Toyota to fourth place, while Gus Greensmith and Jonas Andersson scored points in their #44 Ford Puma Rally1 in fifth, as in Monte Carlo.

Currently, Kalle Rovanperä leads the drivers’ championship with 46 points. In the WRC standings, Toyota leads with 83 points, Ford M-Sports have 54 points. The next WRC event will be held in Croatia at the end of April 2022.

Photos Toyota Gazoo Racing (Toyota Media), Ford M-Sports (Red Bull Content Pool)

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