Rally1 teams allowed to make changes to prevent further fuel system problems – FIA decision follows incidents in Greece
Rally1 teams in the World Rally Championship (WRC) are allowed to make changes to their vehicles to prevent a repeat of the fuel system problems that occurred at the Acropolis Rally Greece.
The Rally1 teams had to monitor difficulties with their vehicles’ fuel systems in Greece. Ultimately, the problems forced Toyota and M-Sport-Ford to withdraw the vehicles of Sami Pajari, Martins Sesks, and Gregoire Munster from the competition. The affected stages of the gravel rally were particularly demanding for both man and machine, which exacerbated the problems.
The exact cause of the failures has not been clearly established. However, it is widely believed that the extreme heat in Greece – with cockpit temperatures reaching up to 70 degrees Celsius on Friday – acted as a catalyst for the problems.
Investigations are ongoing
The fuel system failures occurred in the fourth event since the switch to a new sustainable fuel supplier. After P1 Racing Fuels filed for bankruptcy at the beginning of the year, the FIA named TotalEnergies as its new partner at short notice. The French supplier has been supplying the fuel since the Canary Islands Rally in April.
The FIA, the world governing body for motor sports, investigated the problems, which occurred exclusively in Rally1 cars in Greece. This was followed by a series of meetings between the teams and the FIA’s technical department. It is considered certain that there are no problems with the fuel itself, so TotalEnergies will remain the supplier until the end of the season.
To avoid similar incidents at other rallies, Rally1 teams will be allowed to use different fuel tanks in their vehicles, starting with the upcoming Rally Estonia. Although the tanks are homologated components, no homologation joker is required in this case.
What the FIA says
“There will be no change to the fuel for the 2025 season. It is the responsibility of each manufacturer to ensure that the fuel tank used fully complies with FIA homologation requirements and is correctly matched to the specified fuel.”
“The FIA has supported the manufacturers by facilitating discussions with suppliers and adapting the regulations. This gives the teams the flexibility they need to make the necessary changes from Rally Estonia onwards without affecting their homologation jokers.”
The FIA added: “The timing of the previous supplier’s insolvency inevitably affected the manufacturers’ usual testing processes for a change in fuel specification. This is most likely the reason for the problems experienced by the Rally1 cars in the extreme temperatures of the Acropolis Rally in Greece.”
