Michelin

Evidence of the versatility of MICHELIN’s tyres

Rally de Espana, the 12th and penultimate round of the 2011 World Rally Championship, was based on a mixed travel/asphalt route which saw MICHELIN rise successfully to a two fold challenge.

The menu of the opening day featured two attempts at a loop of three loose-surface stages which, for the first and only time this season, forced the teams to start a predominantly asphalt event with a gravel set-up and hard-compound MICHELIN Latitude Cross H gravel tyres on 15-inch diameter wheels.

The demanding conditions punished many of those who dared to stray off the main line with damaged wheels after impact with rocks or stones, but the performance potential of MICHELIN’s gravel tyre produced times that were significantly lower than those recorded over the same tests last year. The MICHELIN LATITUDE Cross H delivered an average gain of 0.7 seconds per kilometre, despite the fact that this season’s generation of cars are less powerful than those of 2010. It was also interesting to note that Friday’s stages incorporated several asphalt portions on which MICHELIN’s gravel was able to showcase its versatility.

The switch to an all-asphalt format for the action on Saturday and Sunday forced the teams to modify the suspension and ground clearance of their respective cars and, here again, MICHELIN provided its runners with a choice of competitive and durable products.

In Saturday’s mild weather conditions (dry roads, and temperatures of around 22°C), the frontrunners opted for the hard-compound ‘H’ version of the 18-inch interior diameter MICHELIN Pilot Sport tyres. The only variant was the decision to carry either two spare wheels or, like Ogier/Ingrassia (CITROEN DS3 WRC), a single spare in order to save valuable weight.

Sunday’s cooler conditions brought a threat of rain and, although FORD continued to run the hard compound, MINI and CITROEN opted for a ‘mixed’ strategy which included the soft compound ‘S’ version of the MICHELIN Pilot Sport. Both teams carried soft compound tyres as spares, but the DS3 WRCs were on hard rubber all-round as they headed out for the final loop, while the MINIs ran two hard tyres and two softs on the car, in addition to the two soft-compound products in the boot. Thanks to this tactic, MINI was able to secure a one-two finish on the ‘Power Stage’ with Meeke and Sordo.

Here again, the performance and consistency of the crews’ MICHELIN tyres allowed them to put in extremely competitive times. The win ended up going to Sébastien Loeb and Daniel Elena (CITROËN DS3 WRC) who emerged in front from Day 1 before making sure of the 2011 Manufacturers’ crown for Citroën at the end of the event.

That achievement was hailed by Nick Shorrock, the director of MICHELIN Competition: “This title rounds off a very successful year for a team which celebrate its 10th win of the season here, despite the increasingly stiff competition it faces. I would also like to underline the maturity of all the drivers of our partner teams [Citroën, FORD and MINI] who have made the most of their MICHELIN tyres at the wheel of cars that are lighter and less powerful cars than those they campaigned last year. The speed at which they adapted highlights the quality of the tyres we developed for 2011.”

The final round of the season takes teams to Great Britain for Wales RallyGB (November 10-13) where the cars will compete on MICHELIN LATITUDE Cross H tyres.

Tags: MICHELIN LATITUDE Cross, MICHELIN Pilot Sport, Rally de Espãna, Sebastien Loeb