SA Earthworks pair battle Ford Dealer Rally
KYALAMI - The 5th round of the SA Rally Championship, the Ford Dealer Rally, which took place in the Cullinan area, was a tough event for Kyalami resident Nic van der Westhuizen and Stefan Cilliers, who had to overcome their SA Earthworks Toyota Auris' reluctance to get to the finish after 14 stages of dusty rallying.
The young team was finally classified fifth in their Super 2000 Challenge class, which rewarded their determination and perseverance after overcoming a string of mechanical issues along the way.
Day one started well before a gearbox issue meant van der Westhuizen was unable to left-foot brake, which cost several seconds per stage and resulted in a spin and stall in stage five. The otherwise clean run resulted in fourth position in their class for the pair at the overnight halt.
Day two started with a puncture in the first stage of the day; the tyre eventually came off the rim and ripped the left front fender clean off the car. Hearing a loud noise, van der Westhuizen stopped to investigate and although able to continue, the crew lost two minutes to their rivals.
Two stages later, a gear selector bolt sheared, leaving the SA Earthworks Auris stuck in sixth gear. With the help of a pair of pliers, van der Westhuizen was able to select second gear and limped back to the service park where repairs were carried out.
Three trouble-free stages followed where van der Westhuizen and Cilliers set top ten times but in the final stage, an engine mounting broke. This resulted in eventual mechanical carnage and although van der Westhuizen completed the stage, the engine overheated on the open section back to the finish and the pair was forced to retire, but remained classified as a finisher after the addition of a ten-minute penalty.
Team patriarch Danie van der Westhuizen had a clean run until close to the end when he beached the SA Earthworks Ford Fiesta R2, while Donovan Meyer and “Team Mom” Debby van der Westhuizen retired their Toyota Yaris with a broken driveshaft but were classified third in their class.
Van der Westhuizen said, “Our times are improving steadily. When we started in the S2000 Challenge class we were lagging in minutes; now it’s a handful of seconds. We had our fair share of issues and incidents including a broken sub-frame.
“The rally itself is one of the best I’ve competed in. It was great that everything happened from one central place with minimal driving required and the roads were generally in excellent condition – and our promo girls added a splash of glamour to the service park.” he said.
