The Citroën Xsara WRC is a World Rally Car built for the Citroën World Rally Team by Citroën Racing to compete in the World Rally Championship. It is based on the Citroën Xsara road car. The car was introduced for the 2001 World Rally Championship season and has taken the first three of nine drivers' titles for Sébastien Loeb, as well as the manufacturers' title in 2003, 2004, and 2005.
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| Category | World Rally Car | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Constructor | Citroën Racing | ||||||||
| Predecessor | Citroën Xsara Kit Car | ||||||||
| Successor | Citroën C4 WRC | ||||||||
| Technical specifications[1] | |||||||||
| Length | 4,167 mm (164.1 in) | ||||||||
| Width | 1,770 mm (69.7 in) | ||||||||
| Height | 1,390 mm (54.7 in) | ||||||||
| Axle track | 1,568 mm (61.7 in) | ||||||||
| Wheelbase | 2,555 mm (100.6 in) | ||||||||
| Engine | 1,998 cc (121.9 cu in) I4 turbo charge Front transverse | ||||||||
| Transmission | Six-speed sequential 4-wheel drive | ||||||||
| Weight | 1,230 kg (2,711.7 lb) | ||||||||
| Tyres | |||||||||
| Competition history (WRC) | |||||||||
| Notable entrants | |||||||||
| Notable drivers | |||||||||
| Debut |  2001 Rally Catalunya | ||||||||
| First win |  2001 Tour de Corse | ||||||||
| Last win |  2006 Cyprus Rally | ||||||||
| Last event | 2010 Rallye de France | ||||||||
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| Constructors' Championships | 3 (2003, 2004, 2005) | ||||||||
| Drivers' Championships | 3 (2004, 2005, 2006) | ||||||||
Competition history
editWorld Rally Championship
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The Xsara World Rally Car, based on the road going Xsara hatchback but ultimately having very little resemblance to it under the skin, was one of the most successful cars ever to compete in the World Rally Championship. In 1999, the WRCs predecessor, the two wheel drive naturally aspirated Xsara Kit Car, won overall in Rallye Catalunya and Tour de Corse.
This car was considered the best car in the class. The late Philippe Bugalski placed seventh overall and won the Kit Car F2 class.
In 2001, the Kit Cars category disappeared and was replaced by the Super 1600 and Super 2000. Citroën Xsara competed in the category of World Rally Car.[2] In 2002, French driver Sébastien Loeb was supposed to win the Monte Carlo Rally but he was penalized for an illegal tyre change, but he later won the Deutschland Rally.
In 2003, Citroën partook their first full championship season, with Loeb joined by former champions Colin McRae and Carlos Sainz. The Xsara was more competitive, winning four rallies, and both Loeb and Sainz went into the final round of the season, the Wales Rally GB, with a chance at winning the drivers title. After championship rival Richard Burns suffered a blackout and withdrew from the rally, and Sainz crashed out on day one, Citroën chose to prioritise winning the manufacturers' title, which they did by 15 points. Loeb finished the rally in second and lost the drivers title by one point to Petter Solberg. In 2004, Loeb won his first drivers championship and successfully defended his title in 2005, winning a record ten rallies in a single season.[3]
Sébastien Loeb won 28 rallies with the car, three consecutive Driver's Championship titles from 2004 to 2006, and Citroën to three consecutive Manufacturer's Championship titles in 2003, 2004, and 2005.[4] In addition to Leob piloting the Xsara WRC, Jesús Puras, Carlos Sainz, and François Duval have also driven it to win since its 2001 conception.[3]
The car was replaced in 2007 by the Citroën C4 WRC, however the Xsara was still used by privateers and others. World champion of 2003, Petter Solberg drove a 2006 spec Xsara for the majority of the season of 2009, which was entered by his own Petter Solberg World Rally Team.[5]
Rallycross
editKenneth Hansen won the FIA European Rallycross Championship every year from 2000 to 2005.[6]
In September 2014, French based Lebanese businessman Nabil Karam entered the 2014 World RX of France with an Xsara, finishing 34th out of 37 entrants after the qualifying heats, and failing to qualify for the semi-finals. Having upgraded to a DS3 for the edition of 2015, this is the only time an Xsara has been used in a FIA World Rallycross Championship event.
WRC victories
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WRC results
editReferences
edit- ^ "Xsara WRC". juwra.com. Retrieved 4 November 2019.
- ^ "WRC, motorsport news, results, features, teams, drivers, updates". Crash.net. 2 July 2008. Archived from the original on 2 July 2008. Retrieved 27 November 2011.
- ^ a b "Peugeot 306 Maxi Rallye car Citroen ZX Xsara WRC Race". marxxon.com. June 5, 2017. Retrieved November 4, 2019.
- ^ "Kronos - Season 2006". Juwra.com. 16 November 2011. Retrieved 27 November 2011.
- ^ "World Rally Championship – Rallies". Wrc.com. Archived from the original on 8 July 2009. Retrieved 6 October 2009.
- ^ "KENNETH HANSEN APPOINTED - FIA'S DRIVER COMMISSION". Archived from the original on 3 January 2015. Retrieved 26 September 2013.
External links
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