Nicolas Klinger: “I don’t feel like I’m working”

When were your first memories of cars?

I feel like my earliest memories are all about cars. (Laughs) I must have been 4 or 5 years old and my father had damaged his Renault R12 during the Ballon d'Alsace hill climb. Since we had come by road, we had to find someone to take us back. I also remember the day my father returned from Versailles with a Talbot Samba. My grandfather screamed when he saw it completely dismantled a few hours after arriving at the garage because it had to be put into Group B configuration.

Was your father in this industry?

No way. He worked delivering newspapers in Alsace. Not being a mechanic, he had to rely on friends to provide assistance. Knowing what it cost, the Samba not having been a good memory, my dad never encouraged me to take up motorsport. However, I really liked cars. I have worn out many pants at the knees playing on the floor, painting miniatures, installing stickers.

Was it already too late? Was the virus contracted?

It was still him who woke me up when the Monte-Carlo Concentration course passed through the region. I saw Michèle Mouton, with whom I work today, in her Audi Quattro. I couldn't hear the radio in my room well, but I still listened to Turini on RMC all night. I only lived for that. We started by doing map rallies. When I was 12, I spent entire nights reading c