Shamrock Motorsport driver Richie Dalton is back in action this weekend as he ramps up his preparation for next month's Rally Australia.
Dalton and co-driver Dale Moscatt are the number one seed for the seventh round of the Victorian Rally Championship, the Akademos Rally.
Dalton will use the rally as a shakedown for the World Rally Championship event at Coffs Harbour in mid-November, and will test some key changes to his Ford Fiesta Proto.
"Holinger have fully stripped and rebuilt the gearbox with all new gear ratios," Dalton said.
"The performance of the car was lacking in fifth and sixth gears previously, and the turbo restrictor was really sapping the power of the engine.
"The new gear ratios should dramatically improve the drivability of the car, and we're hoping for a trouble free run at the Akademos Rally."
The rally is a pacenoted event, with reconnaissance on Saturday and the rally on Sunday. Four stages totalling 80 kilometres will be run once in the morning, and then repeated in the afternoon.
Dalton and Moscatt's leading challengers in the Akademos will come from young gun Arron Windus, who currently leads the Victorian Rally Championship in a Subaru Impreza WRX.
Windus' father, Darren, is also in a Subaru and will be another driver to watch.
"Both the Windus boys will be fast, but to be honest it's not the final result we're chasing," Dalton added.
"We need to ensure that the car performs well and that we complete the required testing ahead of Rally Australia.
"For sure we'll be watching the stage times, but we'll be playing the long game and looking ahead to next month."
Dalton finished Rally Australia in a brilliant eighth place in a Skoda Fabia R5 in 2017, but missed last year's rally.
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The rally is a pacenoted event, with reconnaissance on Saturday and the rally on Sunday. Four stages totalling 80 kilometres will be run once in the morning, and then repeated in the afternoon.
Dalton and Moscatt's leading challengers in the Akademos will come from young gun Arron Windus, who currently leads the Victorian Rally Championship in a Subaru Impreza WRX.
Windus' father, Darren, is also in a Subaru and will be another driver to watch.
"Both the Windus boys will be fast, but to be honest it's not the final result we're chasing," Dalton added.
