This year’s Rally of Argentina won’t be contested at 2 000m above sea level, as was the case in certain sections of last year’s event, but this won’t make the rally easy, says Hyundai WRC driver Freddy Loix.
Certain special stages of last year’s Rally of Argentina were contested at 2 000m above sea level, but this weekend the stages around La Cumbre will reach a comparatively conservative 1 600m.
Hyundai World Rally Team crews Freddy Loix and Armin Schwarz are particularly keen to participate in the rally, the event in which the manufacturer scored its first world championship points in 2000.
In keeping with the evolving style of world championship rallies however, the event organisers have reduced the amount of ground covered to facilitate a single service park, now based in La Cumbre.
Loix enjoys the roads the country has to offer: “The style is a little bit like Greece but the roads are not quite as bad – a mix of rough and very quick. But some stages are a bit sandy which means it is slippery if it’s wet and the repeated stages will be rough as they’re going to get quite cut up.
Team-mate Armin Schwarz added: “You find the rough roads on the second time through end up causing a lot of broken wheel rims on the deep ruts.”
The stages may not venture as high this year but it’s still high enough for the world rally machines’ engines to suffer a reduction in power. “We know from the past that every 100m higher you go you lose a percentage of your power, making it a little bit more difficult,” said Loix.
“The fog can also be an issue at altitude but last year we went well and managed to set a fastest time in the fog so it can work to your advantage. And hopefully the engine modifications we made for New Zealand will assist us in Argentina. My last two finishes scored points so I think we can do it again this year,” he added.
“The fog can be a problem,” Armin agreed, “but it can also make things a bit easier for the engine as the more water there is in the atmosphere the more oxygen it will hold. This will only be my third time to Argentina but I have never finished the event. My aim will be to finish it this year to get more experience”.
