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July 2008 Cotcomp has been rallying again, with a handful of events for customers, on one event entering a two car team. Simon & Rob entered a car each on the Four Counties stages at Longcross in late May, but more recently Rob scored a great eleventh place overall on the Rally of the Midlands in his Cotcomp prepared GC8 Impreza. In the workshop there is another Impreza in build, the local customer's Bugeye car having had a custom rollcage fitted, it is now in paint and in the process of having the bespoke wiring loom finished. At Brock Richard is coping well with a move to the former office from where he is managing the Subaru and Izuzu genuine parts sales. February 2008 It has been pure madness at Cotcomp in February! Three rallies in as many weeks with a car to finish before the second one! The lads did a fantastic job of getting Rob Taffs' two door STi ready for the Riponian Rally where he finished 10 places lower than he should have. The reason was a missed road penalty of five minutes, but the team was reasonably pleased with the first event of the year. Next up was Simon's turn. Now working full time for the British Rally Championship, he changed from staff to customer and it was all hands to the pumps to prepare his neglected four door GC8. "It has stood on my drive for 18 months since we bought it for Steve to do Mull." said Simon, "but the lads all worked really hard after I decided to do only my second ever event as a driver. Young Martyn Taylor guided us to a finish on the Nort West Stages with no major problems. I'm absolutely made-up!" Cotcomp also sponsored the Pontin's stage of the rally and provided hospitality for event VIPs from the service truck. "The lads worked on Simon's car from the little Vito van," explained Steve, "and we had to split ourselves to cover both. I've got to thank Richard and Joyce for looking after the guests in the stage. It was a full team effort to make it all happen." Finally the boys are off to Rallye Sunseeker this weekend with the two door for Rob's (nearly) local event. In the mean time John and Joe have been busy with the regular road car work and they are all looking forward to a break from rallying at the end of February. January 2008 Cotcomp is proud to sponsor a stage of the North West Stages on the 16th February again, after a successful involvement in 2007. The Pontins stage will be run several times thoughout Saturday and Steve will be on hand to answer technical questions all day. Since the event began it has raised over £60,000 for charity and we are pleased to confirm that for the 8th year in succession ‘Marie Curie Cancer Care’ has been selected as the main beneficiary. Additionally the event will contribute a sum of money from any profit to a number of other charities including Broadfield School for children with learning difficulties and Water-aid. Cotcomp will have Subaru merchandise available at the display right next to the stage and LADS members are invited for a brew. For more information visit: 10th December 2007 Rob Taffs was joined by new co-driver Kim Baker for this weekend's Grizedale Stages Rally which took place in atrocious weather conditions. The Cotcomp run Impreza ran without a hitch with Rob claiming 23rd overall on his firts event in over six months. "There was rain, hail, snow, mud and some of the stages were less gravel and more rivers." said Rob at the finish in Coniston. "The guys did a great job again and I'd likre to thank Kim too who took the hideous conditions in her stride." November 2007 Steve Joe and Simon joined LADS club members at Guys Thatched Hamlet just a mile from Cotcomp's new Brock site on a rainy Saturday in November. The meeting was for modified cars and was at the venue for the third time, having previously been in Warrington. It attracted nearly a hundred cars including several LADS members' Subarus and everything from Fiestas to Skylines. The meet was organised by LADS member zero260 and although he attended in a Skyline (reputedly 600bhp!), it was a good afternoon's social (better weather next time please). SYMS Rally Team first to run 2008 Gp N Subaru Impreza SYMS Racing from Japan, using their motorsport operation, SYMS EUROPE, based close to Antwerp in Belgium, has become the first team to run the new-shape Group N Subaru Impreza STi, in collaboration with STi. Cotcomp engineer Joe has also been working with SYMS on the Lake Superior Rally in America where Andrew Pinker finished 2nd in the series. The new Group N Subaru Impreza STi was launched yesterday in Japan, just prior to the country's round of the World Rally Championship this weekend. On this occasion it will make its world debut as the zero car at the head of the field, driven by a local Japanese driver. Next year, however, the eagerly-anticipated new Impreza STi will take part in active competition, in the FIA Production Car World Championship, US Rally Championship and in national championships, run by SYMS Rally Team. In a relatively short space of time, SYMS has established itself as one of the foremost Subaru teams in the world, leading to this latest joint venture with STI. The team was runner up with Toshi Arai in 2003 and won the FIA Production Car World Championship in 2004 with Niall McShea, and is currently running two cars in this year's FIA Production Car World Championship series for Finn Kristian Sohlberg and Cypriot driver Spyros Pavlides. In this weekend's Rally Japan SYMS will also be running Polish driver Leszek Kuzaj. It also fought for the US Rally title with Andrew Pinker and Tanner Foust where Joe spent the week looking after Pinker's car. SYMS won the Gold Medal in the world-famous X-Games in California this year with Foust, cementing the team's growing reputation in America. With a new car comes a new challenge, but the expert know-how of SYMS promises to help unlock the maximum potential out of the new Impreza, which is bristling with the latest technology. From today, SYMS can deliver, along with its new composites partner M-Tech Composites all the competition parts needed to build a full-specification, new shape Group N Subaru Impreza STi in time for the 2008 season. All the parts sold by SYMS are approved by the Subaru factory and STi. News - July 2007 Cotcomp has taken over Gibson's of Brock (former Subaru main dealer) business and premises. This is to complement the existing business and site and to develop genuine Subaru parts sales. The main phone numbers will remain the same: 01995 605605 / 640542 and for new customers the location on the A6 just south of Garstang will be easier to find. Steve Cotton, "The opportunity only arose within the last couple of weeks and we seized the chance. We will continue to operate from both sites and will be delighted to offer Gibson's customers parts and servicing as before. We have taken on John who was Gibson's apprentice and Richard has offered to help us with the transition on the genuine parts side. We'd like to think the combination makes an unparalleled level of experience to rival any in the North of England.” All contact details are on the "Contact" page News - June 2007 Nurburgring 24 Hour Race Steve put his Motorsport experience to good use in June when he was part of the team running an Impreza at the Nürburgring 24 hour race in Germany. The ADAC Zurich race took place over the weekend of 9th & 10th June and the team scored an excellent 2nd in class on the car’s maiden outing. “We had some teething troubles and with the car,” said Steve, “but the drivers were pretty sympathetic as it was basically in standard trim. They finished 85th from a field of 220 and apart from a couple of minor scuffs the car was undamaged.” Brothers Mike and Chris Rimmer were joined by Llynden Riethmuller for the race which was delayed due to thunderstorms and held up by fog part way through. The team completed 85 laps of the circuit which linked the classic thirteen mile Nordschleife and the Grand Prix circuit. For full results and information visit the event website: http://adac.24h-rennen.de/en/live.html March 2007 Neetronics DCCD Controllers Cotcomp is the UK importer of the Neetronics DCCD Controller unit. This is the latest version (1.08) and is now available new & boxed, delivered within 24 hours. This Driver Controlled Centre Differential controller can be fitted to any Subaru model with an electric centre diff. Ideal for road, track or rally cars. Features include:
Once parameters are set, the thumbwheel allows nine presets to be selected by the driver Cal 01995 605605 now to order Just £397.75 including VAT and delivery Legend Fires North West Stages Rally 17/02/2007 The 2007 North West Stages Rally was a resounding success for both competitors and spectators alike. After rain on Friday the sun shone on the Fylde coast and 110 crews attacked 70 stages miles over 5 venues based around the service area at Pontins in Blackpool. Cotcomp was proud to sponsor the popular spectator stages at the resort’s holiday camp which was visited four times by the crews. Buoyed by the fine weather, the spectators were out in force and were treated to some excellent and entertaining driving by competitors in everything from WRC machinery to humble 1300cc production cars. The promenade stage was also popular, drawing the crowds for the first and last stages of the event, running into chilly darkness on Saturday. The eventual result was hardly foregone, but favourites Steve Simpson and Mark Booth did take their fourth win in a beautifully presented Hyundai Accent WRC. Thanks go to the organisers for putting on such a good event and allowing the team from Cotcomp to take over the Pontin’s stage with their banners and display. As usual the event raised substantial funds for charity, in particular Marie Curie Cancer Care, the event’s main beneficiary. LADSOC Track Day 3rd November 2006 Steve and the Cotcomp team attended the Lancashire & District Subaru Owners Club track day at Donington Park a couple of weeks ago and are all hooked. The plan was to take a couple of cars and have a bit of fun after the frantic work in the run up to the Tour of Mull Rally. Steve (and his wife), Joe and Dave were joined by Simon and three other LADSOC members for a full day's entertainment in the glorious sunshine. The TrackSport team made everyone welcome and after a drivers' briefing the action began. Unfortunately after just one session the venerable old Legacy Turbo had sprung a radiator leak, but after a bit of phoning round, Coolex of Derby (thanks guys) delivered a new one right to the pit garage! The black STi was not surprisingly pronounced much faster but 'Old Leggy' was equally entertaining and everyone took their turns in both driver and passenger seats. Sharing the pit garage was the LPG converted Impreza Wagon that Steve converted earlier in the year and its owner was suitably impressed with the performance on both petrol and gas. The day was somewhat spolied for both the other LADSOC members when they were black flagged for excessive noise. But Steve ' Tunnelmeister' managed to sufficiently silence his 22B and special thanks go to him for arranging the outing. Tunnocks Tour of Mull Rally Trophy Rally Finish (15/10/06) Steve, Haggis and the team were delighted to finish 3rd overall and 1st in Class D on the Tour of Mull Trophy Rally after a broken driveshaft had put them out of the main event on Friday. "It has been a tiring event but well worth the effort," said Steve early on Sunday morning, "I've never rallied a four wheel drive car before even though I've been working on them for years now. I'd like to thank Rob Taffs for letting me use his car and I'm relieved to report that there isn't a mark on it. Special thanks go to the lads, Joe, Gary, Dave, Andrew and of course Haggis who have all done a top job." The other LADS members Martin and Adrian finished the main event in 36th and 57th places respectively but only one place apart in Class D. Trophy Rally (14/10/06) After retiring from the main event, Steve, Haggis and the crew were looking forward to a good showing on the Saturday afternoon Trophy Rally, put on by the organisers for anyone who could get their cars back together after their first leg retirements. Unfortunately several accidents in the main event and in the Trophy Rally meant they only got two competitive sections, before stages had to be cancelled so the rally could stay within its allotted time. The main event re-starts at 9 pm tonight with Trophy Rally 2 running behind. LADS member Martin Fox is up to 33rd overall but at the time of writing no results are available beyond 57th. The mystery of the disappearance of the Evo 6 that Joe, Gary, Dave and Andrew were looking after was also answered when one of their party came over to give Steve the low-down. Apparently the car had gone off in a notoriously bad section and landed in the ditch in complete darkness. The driver, Michael Johns, had broken his arm and it was at least five minutes before anyone spotted them in the dark and stopped. Michael is in good hands in hospital but won't be rallying again for a while. End of Leg 1 (14/10/06) Steve and Haggis had a cautious start on the first pair of stages as Steve admitted he wanted to get a couple under his belt before pushing harder. "There was a delay at the start of stage two after an accident," explained Steve, "The usual early Mull carnage. After not competing for four years, I decided I didn't want to be one of the many early retirements." The car arrived unscathed at service in Craignure and after a thorough check over, they were on their way for stage three. The two shortest stages at the bottom of the island passed without a hitch leaving the final run to the overnight halt, totalling 30 miles over four stages. Unfortunately as the clock started for stage five, there was an almighty bang and the car lost drive. After an initial suspicion of clutch failure, the problem was quickly diagnosed as a broken rear driveshaft joint - rally over. The Tour of Mull is, however, unusual in running a 'Trophy Rally' for competitors who retire on the first Leg. So with driveshaft replaced, the crew restarts this afternoon for the remaining 10 stages. The LADS members are having a better time of it, Martin Fox is currently 47th with Adrian Spencer 98th. Pre Start Friday afternoon (13th October '06) Steve, Haggis and the team are ready and waiting for the off after tithe car sailed through scrutineering this morning. Gary was reported to have calmed down after a cock-up with the ferry booking (thanks Simon!) meant the rally car only just squeezed on yesterday. He was last seen applying stickers to the truck in the sunshine south of Craignure. The rally starts at 9 pm tonight with Steve and Haggis driving over the start ramp in Tobermory 43 minutes later. The finishers from Friday night will be re-seeded for Saturday afternoon when the rally continues on Leg 2. Other crews from the LADS Club are Martin Fox/Nigel Webster (Mef) at car 101, Adrian Spencer/Mark Hewitt (Adge) car 145 both in Imprezas, with their team completed by a Ford interloper at 137, Tony Jones/Dayle Traynor. September/October 2006 Tour of Mull Update The trip to the Tour of Mull Rally is still going ahead but workload has caused some changes to the original plan. Steve and Haggis will compete in the Group N Impreza GC8 Type RA that Cotcomp normally runs for BTRDA competitor Rob Taffs. Steve estimates that this is probably plan F as the amount of customer work has forced the team to postpone the scheduled bare shell car build. "We even bought an unfinished project rally car but found the engine down on compression so we've gone with a car we know in the end." Simon's driver Alex Taylor cancelled the entry at the 10th hour for similar reasons, citing the cost of repairing his already tired Impreza along with heavy workload as the reason for the late withdrawal. "We're obviously all gutted as it would have been a good battle in similar spec cars." said Steve, "but the lads are going to be busy anyway as we are looking after an Evo 6 while we're there." Steve's entries on the rally have been split by eight year gaps, having competed in 1990, 1998 and 2006. The results have been closer though, 9th, then 10th, he is hoping for a decent result but is realistic about his chances. "The event has become much more competitive in recent years and we're just going to go at a sensible pace and see what happens." August 2006 Steve and 'Haggis' are contesting the forthcoming Tour of Mull Rally in mid October in a classic shaped Impreza. The rally car is being built by Cotcomp from a shell supplied by Scoobyteknix but it will run 2004 STi running gear for the 150 mile event on the beautiful Scottish Island. Simon is also competing alongside Alex Taylor from Brighouse in a similar GC8 Impreza. Both cars will run in the open category but Steve's will use mainly standard components as it will be used as a track day hire car after the event. For more information on the 37th Tunnock's Tour of Mull Rally visit the website at www.2300club.org or at www.tourofmull.com July 2006 Cotcomp has been approved as an official LPG installer by National Autogas. The first customer for the alternative fuel was the driver of a 300bhp 2005 Impreza WRX Wagon and both he and Steve are delighted with the results. "This is a unique installation as we have been able to sequence the LPG ECU and the car's own ECU using EcuTek software." explains Steve, "It has meant that there is no discernable difference when you switch over from petrol to LPG and the power is unaffected. All the power at half the fuel price, you can't beat it." June 2006 The recent Northern Big One was on the calendar for Steve and the team from Cotton Competition where the Lancashire and District Subaru Owners Club (www.ladsoc.co.uk) used the service truck as their base for the well attended event. Steve also took his MY03 Impreza STi to demonstarte the EcuTek mapping and Deltadash facility to the assembled Subaru owners |
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