Austria
At the risk of repeating ourselves , natural gas engines in sports applications continue to break down barriers, this time with the OMV CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) Rally Team taking out first place in the Ostarrichi-Rallye last weekend. Just 18 months after first entering competition in a CNG vehicle, Beppo Harrach and Andreas Schindlbacher finished the rally 47.7 seconds ahead of the second place vehicle. Making the win even sweeter, the OMV team was driving their older Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VI, rather than the current model Evo IX that the team has been using this season. The win is believed to be the first for a CNG vehicle in an international rally championship event.
The CNG Mitsubishis were first entered into the rally championships
with a goal of eventually finishing within the top ten, but have
progressively lived beyond expectations.
The team took the lead in the event on the first stage of the second
day of racing, increasing their margin as the day wore on, an average
speed of 104.8 km/h in the second to last stage of the event
contributing to the win.
The win also secures first place in the alternative fuel class (Division IV) for the team for the season.
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