Top Gear’s Top 9: rally-spec sports cars

By topgear, 28 August 2021

Top Gear’s Top 9: rally-spec sports cars

Morgan CX-T

1. Morgan CX-T

Quick, conventional Morgan enthusiasts, cover thy eyes. The CX-T, based on the Plus Four roadster, is, according to Mog, for “overland adventure”, and has been rally-specced in partnership with Rally Raid UK, specialists in preparing cars for the Dakar rally. 

You’ll note the hard-top roof and roll cage, obviously. What isn’t so obvious to the naked eye are the longer suspension arms, new rally-spec springs, four-way adjustable dampers, underbody protection… the list goes on. And if you’re interested in the ins and outs, you can read Ollie Marriage’s full review here. For now, we’ll just say it has been properly rally-fied. 

Not, sadly, that you’ll ever be seeing it in the Dakar rally. Not even Rally Raid’s expertise could see it that far. But the eight lucky owners (each paying RM1.1m a pop) can rest assured it’ll more than manage whatever the local dirt track can throw at it. 
 

Singer ACS

2. Singer ACS

Meet Singer’s All-Terrain Competition Study, or ACS for short. Designed in partnership with 911 rally expert Richard Tuthill (more on him later on), it’s proof that even track stars, in the right hands, can get down and dirty too.

The story goes as follows. A long-standing customer approached Singer with the request for a 911 that could “compete in off-road racing and demonstrate all-terrain exploration capabilities”. Not being Singer’s forte, they turned to Richard for his expertise.
What started as a 1990 Porsche 964 was converted into a rally racer, complete with a 450bhp turbo’d flat-six, permanent all-wheel drive, carbon panels, stripped out interior, monster truck ride height and much, much tyre knobble. 

But you’d much rather see it in action than read these words, wouldn’t you?
 

Lamborghini Huracan Sterrato

3. Lamborghini Huracán Sterrato
 

And you thought the Urus was Lamborghini’s only super-luxurious, go-anywhere crossover, huh? Wrong. Enter the Huracán Sterrato, which takes its name from the Italian for ‘dirt road’. 

Powered by the Huracán Evo’s 5.2-litre V10, ride height has risen by 47mm and the track increased by 30mm. The 20-inch wheels, meanwhile, have been fitted with high-profile tyres, while there’s also a reinforced front splitter, wheelarches, side sills, and undertray. Wouldn’t want your expensive Lambo getting scratched, would you?

To complete the look, roof rails, a light bar and two front spotlights have been added. And we’d take it over an SUV any day of the week. 

Alpine A110 SportsX

4. Alpine A110 SportsX

Alpine. Maker of lighter than light, super-sleek coupes. Unless, of course, you’re talking about the A110 Sports X, revealed at the 2020 International Automobile Festival in Paris, which saw the French manufacturer throw its own rulebook out the window.

Inspired by the 1973 Monte Carlo Rally-winning A110, it’s essentially a base-spec A110 on steroids. The body is 80mm wider than standard, while the ride height has been raised by 60mm for clearing the rough stuff. There’s also protective wheelarch cladding, classic rally style fog lamp tape and a stylish new ski rack. Is that the Alps calling?

Sadly, despite our pleas, the SportsX remained concept only. But there is an alternative in the form of the €150,000 (RM742k) Alpine A110 Rally, developed in partnership with Signatech to compete in the R-GT class. Keep ‘em coming, we say.
 

Marc Philipp Gemballa Marsien

5. Marc Philipp Gemballa 'Marsien'

Welcome, readers, to the Marsien. It comes courtesy of Marc Philipp Gemballa, son of late German tuner Uwe Gemballa, and it’s based on the 992-generation 911 Turbo S. Looks otherworldly, doesn’t it? Which is exactly where its name, derived from the word ‘Martian’ and inspired by the Mars-like desert dunes of the UAE, comes from.

Spec, then. There’s a full carbon-fibre body, while German Porsche specialists RUF have tweaked the 3.7-litre flat-six so that it now develops in excess of 750bhp and 930Nm of torque. Necessary when visiting the most unexplored corners of the earth, right?

Underneath, the Marsien has been reinforced with components from the Cayenne, while there’s adjustable suspension, designed by KW Automotive, that hydraulically raises the ride height from the standard on-road 120mm to a soaring 250mm high. Shouldn’t be any issues on the Red Planet there. Price? Yours for €495,000 (RM2m)… plus a donor 911 Turbo S.
 

Jaguar F-Type

6.Jaguar F-Type

“F-Type.” “Rally car.” Fair to say, you wouldn’t normally associate the two. But back in 2018, Jaguar built two F-Type convertibles to celebrate 70 years since the XK 120, which, in the early Fifties, completed three consecutive Alpine Rallies without incurring a single penalty point. Turns out Jaguar has rally pedigree, too.

Equipped with a 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine, Jag’s anniversary present(s) to itself were built to FIA specification, with uprated brakes and suspension fitted alongside a protective roll cage, race seats with six-point harness, bonnet-mounted light pod and fire extinguisher.

Sadly, the F-Type rally car was never made available to the public, nor did it ‘officially’ compete in any rally stages. Which seems a shame really, much like buying a sportscar and never allowing it out of the garage. Especially as it very much proved its rally credentials when we got the chance to put one through its paces a few years back.
 

Lotus Exige R-GT

7.Lotus Exige R-GT

Back in 2011, some three decades after Lotus’ World Rally Championship victory in the Talbot Sunbeam Lotus, it announced its intention to return to the rally scene at the Frankfurt Motor Show in this, the Exige R-GT, in the newly formed FIA R-GT category.
In line with series regulations, power from the 3.5-litre V6 engine was limited to 302bhp, while weight was up to 1,200kg thanks to a new roll cage, in-yer-face light pod, six-speed sequential gearbox, and upgraded brakes. Looks the part, doesn’t it?

And it showed plenty of promise in initial testing, as well as at the series opener in Portugal. That is, before it was forced to retire due to an electronics glitch and subsequent slight accident. It was to be the first and only time it appeared on the world rally stage too, which leaves us asking one question… when are we going to see a rally-spec Emira?
 

Aston Martin V8 Vantage R-GT

8.Aston Martin V8 Vantage R-GT

A grand tourer, for when the going gets gnarly. Yep, back in 2015, this V8 Vantage, which started life in the GT4 series and competed in nine races, was converted into an R-GT class competitor by Finnish rally specialists Mäkelä Auto Tuning.

Rally-fications included four-way adjustable suspension, all-essential light pod, roof scoop and underbody protection, while inside there was a roll cage, bucket seats and hydraulic handbrake. Under the bonnet the only modification was a sequential gearbox, with the monstrous 4.7-litre V8, outputting 494bhp, deemed suitably rally worthy. We bet.To prove its rallying credentials, it was put through its paces at the 2015 Lapland Arctic Rally, a 900km race at temperatures below minus 25 degrees. No biggie. It later appeared at the 2017 WRC Rallye du Var, driven by renown French driver and former WRC competitor François Delecour, as well as the Goodwood Festival of Speed.
 

Tuthill Porsche 997 R-GT

9.Tuthill Porsche 997 R-GT

Turns out, the Porsche 911 GT3 really can fly, if this picture is anything to go by. But this wasn’t your standard 997, but instead the work of rallying specialists Tuthill Porsche (told you), built under R-GT regulations for the FIA World Rally Championship. 
And boy could it fly round the rally stage, too. Powered by a 3.8-litre flat-six engine with sequential transmission, and equipped with what surely must be the biggest wing ever seen on the WRC stage, it made its WRC debut in Germany in 2014, finishing first in the R-GT class and 27th overall – the first Porsche to finish a WRC event in nearly three decades.

It was a sign of things to come. A year later, driven by that man François Delecour, who must have quite the CV, it took victory in the inaugural FIA R-GT Cup, including first place finishes in Monte Carlo and Tour de Corse. 

Image: Tuthill Porsche