Grassroots Motorsports
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An Unlikely MG That Recalls the Glory Days of Group B Rallying story and photos by david s. wallens G roup B rally cars are the stuff of legend: fre-spitting, gravel- throwing machines from the likes of Audi, Peugeot, Lancia and Renault. The tacked-on box fares just added to their coolness factor. These machines defned the '80s–until the FIA pulled the plug on their class after the 1986 season. The reason? Just too fast– and deadly–for their own good. The Group B rules gave manufacturers a place to show off rally-ready versions of their latest street cars. The basic sil- houettes might have looked familiar, but each one contained a full slate of go-fast parts: unlimited boost, all-wheel drive and composite body panels. Engineers ignored the drivetrain layout found on the street versions, quickly turning front- engined, front-wheel-drive econoboxes into mid-engined monsters. Performance was simply staggering, with most recording zero-to-60 times in less than 3 seconds. On gravel. This rally heyday gave us several motor- sports legends, including the Audi Sport quattro, Peugeot 205 T16 and Lancia Rally 037. A few machines, no less crazy, joined the fray a little late to make an impact on the record books. Even so, they have become legends in their own right: Today's collectors crave the Ford RS200, Porsche 959 and Ferrari 288 GTO. Another car that arrived a little late to the party is the MG Metro 6R4. Yes, the company known for giving this country the wire-wheeled, open-top roadster also had set its sights on Group B. Not New to Rally The MG Car Company's interest in per- formance rally predates Group B by a few decades. Flip through car magazines from the postwar period through about 1965 and you'll fnd factory-backed rally MGs, including the TF, MGA and MGB. This wouldn't be their frst rally effort. They entered the Group B wars with a seemingly unlikely yet very capable partner, though: Williams Grand Prix Engineer- ing, the nine-time Formula 1 construc- tor champion associated with greats like Ayrton Senna, Alain Prost and Nelson Piquet. They also handled the development work for the Metro 6R4. Their driveline approach was a bit unorthodox. Where their Group B con- temporaries often used highly boosted FEATURE: MG METRO RALLY CAR Grassroots Motorsports 93