Tyre giant Hankook is set to round off its 2009 international rally testing programme for the Opel Corsa on Rally of Scotland later this month.
The Hankook Opel Corsa has appeared on a number of rallies this year which form part of the Intercontinental Rally Challenge – ahead of a full IRC campaign next year.
German rally driver Tim Stebani will pilot the Hankook Opel Corsa in Scotland, the final round of the IRC.
The 23 year old is no stranger to driving a Corsa and has this year been competing in the German Rally Championship in the S2000 Corsa.
Hankook motorsport manager Mike Patterson said he was delighted to finish the season in Scotland where the tyre company has been main sponsor of the Scottish Rally Championship.
“Our involvement in rallying in Scotland this year has been tremendous and we are delighted to see SRC regulars and the Hankook Corsa competing on this exciting new event in the IRC calendar,’’ said Mike.
“Our testing programme has been invaluable in preparing our 2010 campaign and to be able to test the car with a number of different drivers has really given us the very best feedback in terms of testing and development.’’
Hankook has been working with world renowned preparation company MSD to develop and run the Opel Corsa OPC Super 2000 on a variety of high profile rallies this year with events including rallies in Spain, San Remo and Czech Republic.
MSD managing director David Whitehead said that testing on events is proving a valuable way to evaluate the car ahead of 2010. “Testing behind closed doors is vital to fine tune many components but the real test is in competition conditions and the Scottish forests will once again provide us with a valuable opportunity to develop the Corsa.’’
Rally of Scotland takes place on Friday November 20 and Saturday November 21. The route will take in some of Scotland’s most iconic and historic landmarks across two of Scotland’s most picturesque constituencies: Stirling and Perth and Kinross. The ceremonial start will take place in the grounds of Scone Palace in Perth with the ceremonial finish on the esplanade of Stirling Castle.
