Plangi takes 2WD Cup in Scotland

18-year-old Estonian Siim Plangi was relieved to finish the gruelling RACMSA Rally of Scotland but delighted to be doing so in fifth place overall. Plangi brought his Honda Civic Type R home seven minutes ahead of Harry Hunt, his nearest rival.

“It was a relief to get to the end because we were having a few problems on the final day,” said Plangi. “The first two days were mostly very enjoyable and the stages were very challenging.

“On Sunday morning the engine had trouble running on low revs and sometimes it would run on just three cylinders. There was not very much grip and by the final stage my back tyres were completely worn and the car was sliding around all over the place.”

Hunt’s Fiesta R2 had considerably less horsepower than Plangi’s Civic, and he had to drive carefully throughout the final day after discovering that his sump had cracked.

“We knew from the beginning that we would have to let him [Plangi] do his own thing,” he said.

Colin Smith finished second in the Intercontinental Rally Challenge’s 2WD Cup in Sardinia but a points finish eluded him here. Having fitted his Civic Type R with new gearbox parts specifically for this rally he was very disappointed when the gearbox failed on Saturday. Rather than retire entirely, he sourced a road car gearbox and re-entered the rally on the final day.