JOHN DAVENPORT / REINHARD KLEIN
Vorwort / Foreword
Anmerkung des Autors / Author's personal note
01 Col de Turini / Corte
02 Eine Geschichtsstunde / A history lesson
03 Rauchgeschwangerte Raume / Smoke-filled rooms
04 Opel Ascona 400
05 Lancia Rally 037
06 Ford Escort 1700T
01 Audi Quattro
08 Nissan 240RS
09 Opel Manta 400 .
10 Toyota Celica Twin Cam Turbo
11 Peugeot 205T16
12 Mitsubishi Lancer 2000 Turbo / Starion 4WD
13 Mazda RX7
14 Porsche 911 se RS / 959
15 Renault 5 Turbo / Maxi Turbo
16 MG Metro 6R4
17 Lancia Delta 84
18 Citroen Visa / BX 4TC
19 Ford RS200
20 1986 - Annus miriabilis, annus horribilis
21 Das Nachspiel / Aftermath
22 Gruppe S / Group S
23 Die Legende lebt weiter / The legend lives on
24 Nachwort / Epilogue
25 Statistik / Statistics
Fueron los coches más excitantes y espectaculares que jamás vió un Campeonato del Mundo de rallyes. Para muchos, aquello fue, en realidad, una locura sobre ruedas. Tras su prohibición, nunca más se dió tal libertad para crear unos coches tan extremos como los de aquellos años de la década de los 80. Este libro describe la historia de cada uno de aquellos mónstruos, de los Audi Quattro a los Lancia y Peugeot o coches tan exóticos como los prototipos de Porsche o Mazda e incluye la crónica exhaustiva de la última y polémica temporada de los Grupo B, el año 1986. Otro capítulo narra la desconocida historia de los Grupo S, los teóricos sucesores que nunca llegaron a correr. Como colofón, un capítulo dedicado a lo que fue de aquellos mónstruos, principalmente utilizados para rallye-raids (Dakar), Pikes-Peak, Rallycross, etc. El libro termina con todas la estadísticas, año por año, de la participación de los Grupo B en el mundial. Obviamente, todo ello ilustrado con las superlativas fotos del ya conocido fotógrafo Reinhard Klein.
They were the most exciting cars ever to have graced the international rally scene. To this day, many fans still consider Group B to be the epitome of madness on wheels. Never since have engineers had such a big freedom of choice to create extreme rally cars as they did during that fantastic era of the early 1980s.
This book tells the story of all the cars developed within Group B, from the Quattros to the outstanding Lancias and Peugeots and to the exotic sports cars from Porsche and Mazda. But all the technical development came to a head in the year 1986, when the euphoria somehow turned into an ungovernable risk. The mischief of engineers, politicians and fans led to tragic accidents, which finally resulted in Group B cars being banned from international rallies.
John Davenport, rally-journalist and author of several books on rallying, experienced this era first-hand, as he was Motorsport Director of Austin Rover at the time. His comprehensive knowledge takes the reader on a journey into the fascinating world of these hi-tech rally cars and offers a authoritative insight into the power struggles going on behind the scenes.
The book is filled with photographs from the archive of well known rally-photographer Reinhard Klein and they include many previously unseen pictures. By the use of large prints, they show to best effect the technical details of the cars, the slightly crazy ambiance of the time as well as plenty of action from the special stages.