Hyundai kicks off 2015 WRC preparations with Monte Carlo and Sweden tests

Three weeks after the finale of the 2014 FIA World Rally Championship, Hyundai has started working towards the opening rounds of its second season in the gruelling competition. The Hyundai Shell World Rally Team – as the rallying arm of the Korean brand is called, is undergoing a four day test in the Alpes in France.

Piloting the i20 WRC machine is Thierry Neuville and Dani Sordo, who will be putting the car through its paces in anticipation of the opening round of the  next season, which will take place in January.

The WRC-spec i20 is based on the latest-generation i20 (called the Elite i20 in India). The WRC version incorporates all the learning and feedback that the team has collected during its first season in the World Rally Championship. The 2015 challenger that will compete in the upcoming WRC season will be a substantially developed iteration of the car that started in the Monte Carlo rally earlier.