17 July 2014 ~ 0 Comments

Manitou Group VW Polo R2 diary:
Volkswagen Rally

Manitou Group Volkswagen Polo R2 co-driver Henry Kohne looks back on the challenging and disappointing 2014 Volkswagen Rally

2014 Volkswagen Rally: Franken/Kohne
 
The Volkswagen Rally which took part on the weekend of 11-12 July 2014 presented the Manitou Group Rally team with yet another character-building weekend. This being the home event for Volkswagen, the team had the VW Polo R2 prepared to perfection and was ready to put in the effort for a good result.
 
The event started in Uitenhage – the South African home of the Polo and where it is built – and after the first gravel stage the team found themselves right among the top competitors in the S1600 class. Unfortunately soon after, in the following stage, the Manitou Group VW Polo R2 lost third gear, presenting a huge challenge to the team to complete the next three gravel stages without third gear.
 
Managing to get to the service park at the end of day one, the service crew did a great job in changing the gearbox of the Polo R2 in 45 minutes. Without losing too much time the team was in seventh position at the end of day one with only seconds separating them to fifth position, the challenge was on.
 
Bad luck continued on day two, getting a puncture on the second gravel stage of the day the team lost even more time. Just as the team thought things couldn’t get any worse, they picked up engine trouble in the next super special stage and were forced to retire from the event.
 
‘This was truly a frustrating event for the Manitou Group Rally team, we had plain bad luck. The whole team put so much effort into this event. Although it was a disappointment to retire we have once again learned a lot and would be working harder towards the next event,’ added Paulus Franken.
 
The Manitou Group Rally team can be seen in action again on 15-16 August at the Ford Dealer Rally in the Cullinan, Gauteng area.
 
Thanks to the support we receive from Manitou Group, Volkswagen Motorsport and SASOL Racing. Follow us at: www.facebook.com/Manitougroupsarallyteam

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