Meet The Citroën C3 R5 – The Little Sister Of The C3 WRC

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INTERVIEW WITH FRANÇOIS WALES

Development Director, Customer Racing Vehicles

“WE STARTED FROM SCRATCH”

What were the specifications for the C3 R5?

Well, clearly, the idea was to start from scratch. Obviously, the aim was for it to be reliable and fast, especially given that the standard in the R5 class – which was already high a year and a half ago when we began development work – just keeps on going up as new competitors join the category.

What are the challenges posed by the R5 category?

There are many of them. First of all, there is very little room for manoeuvre (five upgrade tokens in the first 24 months, five others after) once the car has been homologated. It therefore has to be well designed from the outset. Similarly, in terms of the chassis and suspension systems, the number of potential interfaces is very limited. And yet we set ourselves the ambitious target of developing both the tarmac and gravel versions, opting for different designs. On tarmac, the front strut is angled towards the rear, whilst it leans forwards on gravel. We are the only manufacturer to have proceeded like this, and whilst it is fairly straightforward to do this in the WRC, it’s a lot less easy in the R5 class! Lastly, as regards the engine, the restrictor/pop-off valve combination makes these machines particularly complicated: everyone has more or less the required power and torque on the engine test bench, but the differences then come at the rallies, when factors like altitude and temperature vary, as well as in all the transition phases. This is why we invested in a much more powerful ECU, involving considerably more fine-tuning, but which has delivered very good results.

How did development work go?

Although the overall timing left us very little room for error, everything went well. We started work on preliminary project drawings at the end of 2016, but we didn’t really begin proper design work, based on the C3, until January 2017, the first road tests being held in September 2017. We haven’t had any issues with any of the major components since then. Engine endurance tests were completed without incident and we now have what is beginning to feel like a reasonable number of testing miles under our belt. We have tested on pretty much all types of tarmac and have defined a good basic set-up. The same goes for gravel, where we have held sessions at a wide variety of test bases. We are now going to use this year to fine-tune our set-up at specific events such as Monte-Carlo, Sweden, Finland, Wales GB and Germany.

A lot of drivers were involved in testing: Stéphane Lefebvre and Yoann Bonato, as well as the likes of Craig Breen, Kris Meeke, Yohan Rossel, Paolo Andreucci and Simone Tempestini. What was the aim?

We believe that a fast, powerful rally car must also be versatile, especially when it comes to a customer racing product. This is why we decided to use a small panel of drivers – so we could not only get a comprehensive view but also go quicker in understanding any areas that needed to be corrected on the car, by comparing several opinions.

PIERRE BUDAR

Citroën Racing Team Principal

“The title is the aim for Stéphane Lefebvre!”

“The target we have set Stéphane Lefebvre in entering him in the WRC2 in the C3 R5 is to win the championship, in order to show the potential of the car, both in terms of performance and reliability on a wide variety of surfaces and in what is a highly competitive series. There is a considerable sales & marketing side to it too. Stéphane will be in the spotlight, showcasing the brand. He has two undeniable assets, starting with the fact that he participated in a large part of the development testing. So he knows the car well and will be sharp coming into the rallies, especially as each time, he will have a pre-event test. He also has experience of the events since he contested most of them last year in the WRC. After the Tour de Corse, he will be competing in Portugal and Sardinia, and then we’ll see what happens after that. In any case, we have faith in his speed, and in his consistency, to get the most out of our new flagship product.”

A ROOT AND BRANCH REVIEW WITH PROMISING RESULTS!

Following last year’s introduction of the C3 WRC, 2018 is set to see the competitive debut of the R5 version of Citroën’s muscular city compact, this time aimed at the customer racing market. To ensure it is competitive in the WRC-2 – the feeder category to the WRC – and in the various FIA regional championships (ERC and MERC), as well as in the wide array of national championships, Citroën Racing has undertaken a root and branch review of the design, producing a radically different car to its predecessor. Led by Olivier Maroselli, an experienced engineer renown for having developed several accomplished rally cars, the team of twenty or so people involved in the project started from scratch, in order to be sure of making the best technical choices. This approach was also guided by the fact that the standard in the category is higher than ever before, with several high-profile manufacturers seriously involved. The main challenge concerns the regulations, which are much more restrictive than in the WRC as regards homologation, competitors only being allowed five upgrade tokens in the first two years (only two of which are allowed for safety or reliability reasons) and then five more in the next two years. This is why is so important to get things right first time! In other words, produce a reliable and fast car from the outset. After the traditional design stage in the engineering office, in September 2017 – date on which the car’s first road tests were held – the project team therefore began work testing the car in the wide range of conditions that make rallying such a great but also difficult sport. To assess its handling with a wide variety of grip levels and therefore fine-tune the set-up, the tarmac version of the C3 R5, fitted with its large eighteen-inch tyres, was put through its paces on the demanding roads of Corsica, as well as in the east (Vosges) and south (Tarn) of mainland France. The car also had its first outing in a competitive setting as one of the zero cars at the Rallye du Var in November of last year, driven by Yoann Bonato. A full-scale test session that proved highly successful, both in terms of its popularity with the fans and the times posted by the car. Meanwhile, work continued on the version intended for use on gravel – the most common surface in the WRC – with sessions conducted on gravel roads in Fontjoncouse, near Narbonne, Cardona in Spain and Mazamet, to the north of Carcassonne, all renown for providing cars with a very serious examination. Six thousand kilometres of testing later, Citroën Racing is now able to present an accomplished product, the development of which will be fine-tuned on some very specific surfaces. Further test sessions are scheduled for later this year. Designed for the most ambitious talented young rally drivers as well as gentlemen drivers, teams with international aspirations and those with more modestly-sized operations, this car is all about competitiveness, endurance, versatility and ease of maintenance. But don’t take our word for it, judge for yourself…

ENGINE

Developed in-house, the engine represented an enormous challenge for Citroën’s technical team. “We set ourselves some very ambitious targets,” explained Olivier Maroselli, the project manager. “Targets that we have met by working in three major areas. First of all, reliability and heat management with all the internal parts of the engine, which proved to be very sophisticated. We also paid very special attention to the cylinder head, to increase permeability as much as possible on the intake and exhaust ducts. The last major area of development was the car’s electronics, with a more advanced ECU than what we have had in the past. On the one hand, the purpose of this was to have a much more functional anti-lag system and therefore get much better response from the accelerator during in-gear acceleration. But the idea was also to be constantly as close to the maximum authorised booster pressure, without opening the pop-off valve, which always has a highly detrimental effect on power. All of this means that the engine is now undoubtedly one of the car’s major strengths. All the drivers were in agreement that the car has bags of torque, but we also know that it is also well placed in terms of power, with a higher rating than its rivals.”

GEARBOX

The C3 R5 is fitted – like its famous big sister, the WRC – with a Sadev gearbox. However, the similarities end there, the model used for the C3 R5 having been specially designed for the specific requirements and constraints of the category. “It’s a question of safety, really,” commented Olivier Maroselli. “Although some of the internal components are familiar, and therefore tried and tested, we nonetheless chose to design our own architecture. Our packaging is different in terms of both the width and the height of the gearbox outlets. This is because they have a direct influence on the transmission angles, and therefore the maximum travel allowed. We therefore paid very special attention to this point.”

CHASSIS AND SUSPENSION SYSTEMS

Like its big sister, the C3 WRC, the C3 R5 has two different front suspension geometries depending on whether it is being used on tarmac or gravel. The idea is, in each situation, to optimise both versions of Citroën’s iconic new model, with the chassis and suspensions systems meeting the specific constraints of the surface in question. “As the number of interfaces authorised between the hub carrier, the strut, the suspension arm and the toe rod are very limited, this was no mean feat,” explained Olivier Maroselli. “But we chose to incline the strut towards the rear on tarmac, for the purposes of kinematics, and towards the front on gravel, mainly to do with travel. This is another of the car’s strengths, because we didn’t have to compromise on the designs chosen at all. We were also determined to ensure all of these parts were at the minimum weight. This involved using Reiger shock absorbers. Not only are they very fine-looking products, which provide plenty of room for manoeuvre when it comes to defining the appropriate set-up, but their aluminium struts also helped us to keep the weight down.”

EASE OF MAINTENANCE

Constantly attentive to the concerns of its customers, Citroën Racing were equally determined to ensure the best possible maintenance conditions for the C3 R5, whilst also paying special attention to the durability of the parts selected. “Yes, this was clearly one of the areas we worked on, without however compromising on performance,” admitted Olivier Maroselli. “The gearbox and the front end, for example, can be removed very easily. We have also made a lot of progress on the bodywork, by investing in multi-material technology so that there are rubberized components in all the lower parts of the bumpers and in some areas on the wings. They are therefore more resistant to wear and distortion. Similarly, we covered a lot of miles in tests on really rough gravel surfaces such as at Fontjoncouse, and we noted a vast improvement in the ageing of the body and all of the subframe. Damage to consumable parts, like the protective skidplate, is at a really very good level and that is undoubtedly a plus for running costs.”

STÉPHANE LEFEBVRE / GABIN MOREAU

A pure product of French promotional formulas, Stéphane made his rallying debut in 2010 at just eighteen years old, making a name for himself in 2012 when he finished as overall runner-up and won the junior category in the “Volant Peugeot 207”. His performance earned him a place in the European Rally Championship as part of the Peugeot Rally Academy in 2013, whilst he again finished second overall and first in the Junior class in the 208 Rally Cup. 2014 proved to be an incredibly successful year for Stéphane: he won both the Junior WRC and the WRC3 titles in a DS3 R3, and won the ERC Junior crown in a 208 R2. His potential was such that Citroën Racing decided to gamble on him and instead of contesting just six races in the WRC2 – as initially planned – the JWRC winner competed in all thirteen rounds of the World Championship in 2015, five of which in a DS3 WRC. The highlights of his season came in Germany, where his finished tenth on his WRC debut, and at Wales Rally GB, where he grabbed eighth position. In 2016, the talented young Frenchman began working with co-driver Gabin Moreau, at the same time as joining the Abu Dhabi Total WRT in order to continue honing his skills. He made the perfect start to the season with fifth place in Monte-Carlo, before then producing some promising times in Portugal and Poland. However, his progress was brought to an abrupt halt in Germany in mid-August by a violent crash, which left him on the sidelines until the end of October. Gabin, meanwhile, had to wait until the end of November before he could return to competitive action. Citroën Total Abu Dhabi WRT renewed their faith in the pair for 2017 and the launch of the C3 WRC. After a tough start to the year, they enjoyed a strong second half to the season, finishing fifth in Poland, sixth in Catalonia and setting some good times in Australia. At the same time, they also played an active role from the outset in the development programme of the C3 R5, Citroën’s latest customer racing product, and took part in the majority of the test sessions. For 2018, armed with experience acquired in the world championship in four-wheel drive cars, Stéphane and Gabin have been tasked by Citroën Racing with showing off the C3 R5’s qualities in the highly competitive WRC2 class.

STÉPHANE LEFEBVRE IN FIGURES

Date and place of birth: 16 March 1992 in Noeux-les-Mines (France)

Competitive debut: 2010

First WRC rally: 2013 Rallye de France

Number of WRC starts: 34

Best result in the WRC : 5th (Monte-Carlo in 2016 and Poland in 2017)

GABIN MOREAU IN FIGURES

Date and place of birth: 28 September 1988 in Saint-Martin-d’Hères (France)

Competitive debut: 2005

First WRC rally : 2013 Rallye de Portugal

Number of WRC starts: 20

Best result in the WRC: 5th (Monte-Carlo in 2016 and Poland in 2017)

THREE QUESTIONS FOR MAYEUL TYL

Peugeot Citroën Racing Shop Manager

What sort of welcome can C3 R5 customers expect here?

I think it’s safe to say we will be really looking after them! We already have about twenty confirmed orders, from France, of course, but also from Belgium, the UK, Spain and Portugal, which just goes to show how successful the car has been throughout Europe. However, it has already become popular outside of Europe since we have also had a lot of potential interest from elsewhere, particularly including requests from Latin America. It is true, of course, that it was designed to impress on all surfaces and locations! However, so that we can be sure of providing the very best in quality of service, we have deliberately limited our assembly capabilities to about thirty cars this first year, before ramping up to close to seventy next year. After that, we’ll adapt according to market demand.

In what specification is the car sold?

The aim is that the car is pretty much ready to go and set times straight away! It is therefore sold fully-assembled, with equipment that meets the highest market standards. By which I mean lamp pods, two spare tyres, a set of wheel rims, intercom/radio, helmet storage net, co-driver torch, harness cutter, a collection of shims, springs, and there are doubtless other items I’ve omitted.

What customer follow-up is planned for the launch?

Obviously, we have a dedicated team of technical advisors, and as part of the market launch of the C3 R5, they will be available as much as possible to provide on-the-ground support and advise the crews and teams as they get used to their new machine. They are equally capable of guiding the drivers about set-up options as advising the mechanics if they are unsure as to how to carry out a technical operation of one kind or another.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS C3 R5

CHASSIS

Structure  Reinforced body with welded, multi-point roll cage

Bodywork  Steel and composite fibre

ENGINE

Type  Citroën Racing – 1.6-litre turbocharged direct injection engine with FIA regulated 32mm restrictor

Bore x stroke  77×85.8 mm

Capacity  1,598cc

Maximum Power  282bhp at 5,000rpm

Maximum torque  420Nm at 4,000rpm

Specific output  178bhp/litre

Distribution  Double overhead camshaft valve train driven by chain, 4 valves per cylinder

Fuel feed Direct injection controlled by SRG Magneti Marelli unit

CLUTCH

Type Cerametallic Twin-disk

TRANSMISSION

 

Type  Four-wheel drive

Gearbox  Sadev Five-speed sequential – Manual control

Differential  Front and rear mechanical, self-locking

BRAKES

Front Ventilated disks, 355mm (tarmac) and 300mm (gravel), Alcon 4-pistons calipers

Rear  Ventilated disks, 355mm (tarmac) and 300mm (gravel), Alcon 4-pistons calipers

Handbrake  Hydraulic control

SUSPENSION

Type  McPherson

Shock absorbers  REIGER three-way adjustable shock absorbers (low-and-high-speed compression and rebound)

STEERING

Type  Hydraulic power-assisted steering

WHEELS

Tarmac  8×18″ wheels – Michelin tyres

Gravel  7×15″ wheels –  Michelin tyres

DIMENSIONS, WEIGHT AND CAPACITIES

Length / Width  3,996mm / 1,820mm

Wheel base  2,567mm

Track  1,618 mm (front and rear)

Fuel tank  81 litres

Weight  1,230kg without driver pairing (regulations) / 1,390kg with driver pairing (regulations)

 

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