WRC: M-Sport's first Ford Fiesta S2000 rally car begins testing

From M-Sport press release

Less than six months after announcing the news that it would be producing a Fiesta S2000 rally car, M-Sport has completed the build of the first car absolutely on schedule and has begun an extensive testing programme.

The Fiesta S2000 has today been given its initial system checks close to M-Sport’s Cumbrian base and will continue testing in the UK before heading to mainland Europe for asphalt and gravel tests in the coming months.

The team of designers and engineers, led by M-Sport’s award-winning Technical Director Christian Loriaux, have been able to stick closely to the tight schedule laid out for the them at the start of the project allowing the maximum amount of time for testing the reliability and competitiveness of the new car between now and the end of the year.

Matthew Wilson was at the wheel for the first shakedown and he will be among a number of drivers who will be tasked with testing the vehicle during the condensed development programme scheduled for the rest of 2009.

M-Sport’s award-winning design team used the experience gained from the development of the record-breaking Ford Focus RS WRC to produce the Fiesta S2000 rally car, which will be aimed at competitors in the WRC World Cup, IRC and national rally championships around the globe. Its homologation is planned for January 2010 and so will not appear in competition this year.