The RB2004 chassis was built to be a refinement of the all-new RB2003 with a more durable rear-half of the monocoque. With durability issues from the year before all accounted for, the main focus lay in removing weight from the car’s sub-assemblies. This was realised with the ready-to-run weight of the car being reduced from close to 240kg down to 215kg – a saving of ten percent. The problem with this car, however, was that it wasn’t ready to run when it arrived at the competition.
The team was plagued with problems all weekend which resulted in the car not
passing scrutineering until Saturday afternoon. Some pride was salvaged with a sixth
in Autocross but the car failed to finish both Enduros on Sunday: fuel starvation from
a blocked in-tank strainer found to be the culprit upon autopsying the car back in Sydney. The one glimmer of light from the weekend was placing third in the Presentation event.
The disappointing result overshadowed the impressive performance of the heavilyrevised
sub-assemblies in the car. Ironically, upon passing scrutineering the car looked
to be reliable and, as in 2002, the potential of the car not being realized was perhaps
the greatest let-down. Revised bodywork meant that the RB2004 looked as good as it
should have performed and this made the disappointment all the more bitter. The allnew
powertrain systems developed in 2004 will form the heart of the RB2005.
Last Updated ( Wednesday, 08 March 2006 )
Written by Tim White
Tuesday, 07 March 2006