Towards a more flexible and cheaper WRC from 2027

After exploring several options, the management has set itself the major objective of increasing participation and competition at the highest level. To achieve this, the regulations that will start in 2027 and will run for 10 years should offer more flexibility. This will be reflected in the construction of Rally1 by allowing a wide variety of shapes for production cars and designs for racing. The concept of the safety cell that is currently used in the cockpits will be refined into a common design that will reduce complexity and costs. This should allow the cell to be fitted in almost all bodies of production vehicles. This means that hatchbacks will be able to compete with saloons and SUVs and it is even possible that bespoke car concepts will take to the road from 2027.

The new regulations also provide for a range of powertrain solutions, an approach that reflects the changing automotive landscape and ensures environmental sustainability remains at the heart of the sport’s future. The initial aim is for competitors to use sustainably powered internal combustion engines by 2027, with diversification to include hybrid systems or fully electric technologies, which could be introduced at a later stage.

The other major part of this regulation concerned costs and Andrew Wheatley, the former head of the rally The FIA ​​had warned that the announcements would be surprising. In hoping that Rally1 cars would not exceed 350 euros, the FIA ​​has set an ambitious limit since it is 000% less than the current one. These savings will be achieved through the specification of component prices. Cuts will also be made to the technical design of some components, making them more durable during a rally. In addition to reducing the cost of the cars themselves, the running costs of the teams are expected to be reduced by reducing staff, compressing logistics transport costs and increasing the use of local facilities and increasing data connectivity to facilitate off-site engineering.