The Group B Rally Rx7

Group B Rx7 in the 1985 Acropolis Rally. (m43 photography at the end of article)

Race for Glory: Audi vs Lancia, is a new movie opening in early January 2024 depicting the epic battle between Audi and perceived underdog Lancia for the World Rally Championship (WRC) during the first year of the new Group B competition in 1983. Professional racing is all about the rules governing every aspect of the competition – and how to break them to your advantage without being caught! To be fair, Lancia creatively exploited the vagueness and loopholes in the rules to even the field against a behemoth that is Audi.

Tweaking the rules is also how Group B came to be and ushered in the historically most popular and outrageous period of racing from 1983 to 1986 that ultimately had to be cancelled in order to preserve the lives of both drivers and spectators.

It all began with the ascension of Jean Marie Balestre in 1978 to become president of FIA (Féderation Internationale de l’Automobile) which owns the global rights to all World Championship titles in racing and rallying. Balestre had served in the Waffen-SS during the Nazi occupation of France in WW2 but was later imprisoned by the Germans for unknown transgressions. After the war, he claimed that he had secretly worked for the Resistance the whole time and unfortunately all those who could vouch for his patriotic service had died. It’s not surprising that such a man would manipulate the rules to serve his own ends. During the 1989 F1 season there was strong animosity between the McLaren teammates Aryton Senna and Alain Prost who happened to be closely tied for the championship. After the two collided in Suzuka (Japan) Senna managed to restart his car with a push from race marshals and enter the pits to replace the damaged nose of his car and win the race. Balestre had Senna disqualified for receiving a push start so that fellow Frenchman Prost could win the championship. A year later back at Suzuka, Senna had won pole position and had spoken to race organizers to move the pole position slot to the left, onto the clean side of the race track. Balestre overruled that arrangement and Senna had to start on the right, dirty side giving Prost who was in the starting slot to his left, the advantage of a clean track. No wonder he was greeted by the grandstand F1 spectators in Brazil with their arms outstretched in Nazi salutes and chanting Sieg Heil!

One of Balestre’s first battles was to bring to heel the powerful Formula One Constructors Association (FOCA) and thereby have the financially lucrative F1 series completely under the control of FIA. He realized that rallying attracted much more money and interest from car manufacturers who did not play a major role in F1 and proceeded to leave his mark on that series in an effort to demonstrate his superior managerial skills and win support for FIA to administer F1.

He decreed that there would be only three categories for competition cars: Groups A, B and C. Group A cars had to be produced with a minimum number of 5000 units by the manufacturer and were limited in terms of power, weight and allowed technology and overall cost to encourage privateers. Group C were the two seater competition prototypes built for racing on closed circuits with no production requirement. Group B was reserved for sports and GT cars with a minimum production number of 200. Once a car model was homolgated, each team could manufacture up to 20 competition versions with improvements to suspension and engine that passed a variance approval or could be shown to be using equipment that could be purchased as an option on the road going model. And if the manufacturer produced a more powerful version of the model, rather than submit multiple variances to details the model changes, the team could apply for an evolution. Despite these rules, teams found ways to produce the era’s most powerful and technologically advanced cars. More than a dozen manufacturers participated with some rally courses attracting more than 30 vehicles.

In this mix could be found Mazda who empowered exBMW/FIAT/ & Toyota driver Achim Warmbold in 1983 to set up the Mazda Rallye Team Europe (MRTE) outside Brussels to develop and homologate the Rx7. Unfortunately Mazda was not prepared to give unrestricted financial and factory support to the endeavour and the Group B Rx7 is a compromised beast. With a Mazdaspeed peripheral port 13B engine pushed four inches closer to the firewall, it was the most powerful naturally aspirated car in the group but it was strictly RWD and not 4WD. It was competitive on asphalt paved rally stages but simply did not have the grip on loose surfaces.

Screen Shot 2023-12-19 at 11.51.09 AM — The Rx7 GSL-SE model was homologated on February 1, 1984 and in the following month of May the first evolution model was homologated to introduce lightweight panels like the replacement of all glass with Lexan and fiberglass wings and hood, a rear wing mounted oil cooler, dry sump tank and parallel rear axle links. Surprisingly fuel injection was not utilized despite being stock on the GSL-SE and a 51 mm IDA Weber was used instead.

Screen Shot 2023-12-19 at 11.52.18 AM — MRTE only built 7 complete competition cars with one lost in a crash. The remainder of the 20 were either incomplete or scavenged for parts for the active cars. #019 is an original survivor, never raced (in anger) and nearly complete. In the early 1990s the car along with many spares and a number of other chassis’ were sold to the Swiss Mazda Importer. The remaining cars were sold off piecemeal for privateer use or stripped or modified to compete in events like Rally Cross.

Screen Shot 2023-12-19 at 11.52.34 AM — The car was built in June 1985 producing 300 bhp @ 8200 rpm and 196 lb-ft of torque @ 7500 rpm. The car wears Michelin TRX rubber on 15″ magnesium Enkei rims with a wet weight of 960 kg.

Screen Shot 2023-12-19 at 11.52.50 AM — #019 was displayed in Switzerland for a few years and then privately sold. In 2000 it was sold again to a buyer in Norway where it remained untouched and unused. The current owner then acquired it without seat belts or seats which he addressed with correct period accessories. The correct cable ties were purchased from the US and replaced the ones found on the electrical harness. The rally race decals had not even been applied and were found in an envelope.

Screen Shot 2023-12-19 at 11.53.12 AM — This car was offered by Sotheby’s Auction House in 2017 with an estimated price of £170k – £190k but remained unsold.

Screen Shot 2023-12-19 at 11.53.42 AM — If Group B had not been cancelled in 1986 after the fatal crash of a Martini Lancia Delta S4 in Corsica, Mazda sources revealed that a subsequent evolution included a sequential gearbox, lighter rear axle, electric power steering and fuel injection.

The highest finish achieved by the Group B Rx7 was in the 1985 Acropolis Rally when they came in a very credible Third behind a Peugeot 205 T16 and an Audi Sport Quattro and finished 10th overall in the World Championship.