It would appear that pleasure and discomfort can coexist. Having threaded your way past the rollcage, fallen into the race seat and wrestled the harness into submission, it's time to fire up. It's steamily hot in here, your forehead beading with sweat as you pump the throttle and turn the key. And nothing. And again. And nothing. Finally, reluctantly, the very first car ever homologated for Group B rallying coughs into life. It's loud, naturally, and each flex of the accelerator ushers in more fanfare. It sounds startlingly exuberant, if only to the onlookers who had stopped to take in the scenic vistas of the Iberian Peninsula but now have their backs to them. Smile for the cameras.
Righty-ho, slot the lever into gear. Okay, try again because it's a mite gristly... And we're in. Ease off the clutch, give it some gas and off we go, off-piste, kicking up dust between the trees. There's some residual compliance in the suspension - but then it is a Citroën, with all that entails. Even so, it's getting busy in here, but boy is it fun. The Visa Trophée is communicative beyond merely being vocal, although 'fidgety' is perhaps closer to the truth. What is conspicuously absent is the sort of speed normally associated with Group B. In the mind's eye, this was the knife-fight-rules era of rallying, the mere mention of it conjuring images of bestial, mid-engined monsters teetering on the brink of oblivion.
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Mick WALSH
'Had someone said that this worn-looking titan would win the most famous old-car event, we would have laughed'
ALFA ROMEO STELVIO QF
Rewriting the rulebook on what an SUV can do, and how it can make you feel
FLOATING INTO THE FUTURE
Citroën's DS-replacing CX was at a cutting edge so sharp it still looks fresh today, and it had the drive to match - as five superb survivors reveal
"It's a car for posing in really"
Broadcaster Michael Buerk reflects on more than three decades with his beloved Jaguar E-type S1 3.8 fixed-head coupé
HONDAS DECK THE HALL
The Japanese firm's Los Angeles collection is now on public display for the first time in two decades
ABSOLUTELY buzzing
Honda's Si Civics brought agile, cheap fun to motorists long before the Type R name got anywhere near a hatchback
THE FEMININE TOUCH
In 1955, General Motors styling guru Harley Earl brought 11 talented women into the male-dominated world of automotive design. What was their lasting impact?
Out on a limb
Panther's innovative Solo 2 was something completely different, both for its maker and the sports car market
Restyles with substance
Panther Westwinds blended a passion for pre-war designs with modern-era mechanical usability and remarkably fine coachbuilding
Dead ringers
The Maserati Kyalami and De Tomaso Longchamp share much, having emerged from the same stable, but are poles apart at heart
