05 Dec 06
'You are OK?' yells Kenneth Hansen from the passenger seat. I nod. I am OK - just about - even if my stomach has filled with nerve-induced acid and my heartbeat is visible through my Nomex racesuit. But I need to overcome all that and not make a fool of myself as I juggle the throttle and clutch. The Citroen C4 Rallycross trundles slowly forwards. So far so good.
This is the C4 in which Hansen narrowly missed out of the 2006 FIA European Championship - the world championship in all but name. He's due to compete in the car this very weekend and there's no spare. I don't know why he agreed to let me drive it, but I'm glad he did.
I begin gingerly, trying to drink in the cacophony of information. You can tell a lot about a car - any car - in the first few metres of travel. The carbon fibre clutch is light, surprisingly so for a device transmitting 518bhp. The gearbox, six speeds and sequential, is rifle-bolt rapid; its stubby lever is exactly where you want it to be. The throttle is sensitive but not stupidly so - you don't need the dexterity of a ballerina to drive this car smoothly.
Rallycross might have a relatively low profile in the UK, but there can be no doubting the machinery. The C4's specification is on the ridiculous side of outlandish. The Citroen's 2000cc engine has been fitted with a single Garrett GIK turbocharger with a peak pressure of 2.5bar. Even with a 45mm airflow restrictor, this engine offers up 518bhp and 531lb-ft of torque in a car that weighs 1200kg. That's around 200bhp more than the new-for-2007 C4 World Rally Car musters, and its impact is exaggerated by the ultra-short gearing. Sixth is geared to just 124mph.
