Hyundai has expressed concerns over the performance of next year’s World Rally Championship non-hybrid powered Rally1 cars and is asking the FIA to reconsider changes to the air restrictor.
The FIA confirmed last week that hybrid power will be dropped from the WRC’s top tier Rally1 cars in 2025 in a move triggered by a rise in costs to service and repair the control 100kW Compact Dynamics hybrid unit.
The removal of the hybrid kit (weighing in at 87kg) will coincide with changes to the minimum weight of Rally1 cars, which will decrease from 1260kg to 1180kg. The FIA has also decided to reduce the car’s air restrictor from 36mm to 35mm to maintain the current power-to-weight ratio.
Hyundai has tested its i20 N Rally1 without the hybrid unit while running the 2024 specification air restrictor on its engine with Thierry Neuville at the wheel at Rally La Nucia-Mediterraneo in Spain. Hyundai was able to compare the performance of the 2025-spec car against its current 2024 model, driven by Andreas Mikkelsen, at the asphalt event.
Neuville fears the 2025 Rally1 cars will be “quite a bit slower” on asphalt next year and believes keeping the current air restrictor would be a better option.
“I have been driving the car without hybrid and obviously without the extra weight and I was running with the standard restrictor from this year and that felt pretty good,” Neuville told Motorsport.com.
“We did some qualifying runs with Andreas at a rally and I was two tenths faster, so the times were really close. That’s why I’m a bit concerned with the next year that the cars will be quite a bit slower.
Thierry Neuville, Martijn Wydaeghe, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1
Photo by: Austral / Hyundai Motorsport
“I have informed the FIA. I don’t think they will consider anything I have said which is quite frustrating, but at least the message has been passed.
“Obviously, we take away 80kg, which would be nice in some of the corners, but we lose 130 horsepower, which on gravel I don’t know how it will be, but on tarmac for sure the additional power was very helpful.”
Hyundai team principal Cyril Abiteboul admitted he isn’t overly enthusiastic about losing hybrid power but understands why the decision had to be taken to help safeguard the current level of competition on financial grounds.
However, the Frenchman also feels the FIA should re-examine the move to reduce the air restrictor on the cars to…
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