East African Safari Rally 2005

[Z-point]

The head of the leaderboard of the 2005 East African Safari Rally remains largely unchanged after the fourth day of competition, with Kenyan Rob Collinge maintaining his lead in the Datsun 260Z. Belgium's Gerard Marcy holds second in a Ford Escort, with John Lloyd holding on to his third position in the lead Porsche 911.

Today, the East African Safari Rally took the crews north of Nairobi and into the famed Masai Mara for another four competitive sections and 175.38 competitive kilometres. The route headed out towards Nakuru and the Delamere Estates for the first section of the day before heading to Narok and the Mara plain, awash with spectacular game. The crews spent the overnight halt in the Mara Simba Lodge after driving a total of 504.65 kilometres and nearly nine hours on the road.

Collinge, co-driven by Anton Levitan, started the day with nearly 16 minutes in hand and marginally extended his advantage during the day, despite some gearbox problems in the second section (CS16).

"It wasn't going into fourth properly," said the Kenyan, who won CS15. "The stages have been very good today, but there were a lot of cows and sheep which needed a bit of caution. Overall I'm happy with the day though."

Gerard Marcy, who was one of the early leading contenders in the 2003 East African Safari Rally, had a virtually problem-free run in the Escort, although co-driver Alain Lopes, who is competing for the first time, had some problems with the road book. "Our only problem today was losing time in CS18 when we got a bit lost," said Gerard.

John Lloyd and Paul Amandini also powered through the day without trouble, their Porsche 911 not missing a beat during the 175.38 kilometres of competition. "Everything's been fine today, other than wrong-slotting in CS18," said John. "We've had no problems at all."

Stig Blomqvist and Ana Goni maintain fourth, the duo relieved to have escaped without problems after a frustrating day yesterday. They claimed fastest time in CS17. Frederic Dor - who won CS16 - and Iain Freestone round off the top six, with Australian Graham Alexander climbing up the leaderboard from ninth to seventh overnight. Safari veteran Björn Waldegård suffered with brake problems during the day and slipped to eighth while former team-mate Juha Kankkunen climbed from 14th to 11th in the Datsun 240Z after winning the final section of the leg (CS18).

Tuesday (6 December) is a welcome rest day for the crews in the Masai Mara. However with nine hours of permitted servicing time, support teams are likely to be busy throughout the day. The competitive action then resumes on Wednesday 7 December (Leg 6) with another big day covering a total of 609.01 kilometres. The route takes the crews from the Masai Mara, north, for another three sections over 176.66 competitive kilometres. The first section (CS19) takes them up the Mau Escarpment and is one of the toughest and roughest of the event, reaching altitudes of 2,900 metres. The route then takes the crews through the famous Kerio Valley before the overnight camp at the Du Toits farm, 12 kilometres from Eldoret.

Leaderboard after Leg 4

1. Rob Collinge/Anton Levitan Datsun 260Z 8hr 15min 33sec

2. Gerard Marcy/Alain Lopes Ford Escort RS 8hr 33min 32sec

3. John Lloyd/Paul Amandini Porsche 911 8hr 40min 49sec

4. Stig Blomqvist/Ana Goni Ford Escort RS1600 8hr 41min 11sec

5. Frederic Dor/Paul Howarth Porsche 911 8hr 44min 25sec

6. Iain Freestone/Preston Ayres Ford Escort 9hr 00min 55sec

7. Graham Alexander/David Stewart Datsun 260Z 9hr 02min 10sec

8. Björn Waldegård/David Cavanagh Porsche 911 9hr 02min 25sec

9. Simon Glover/Russ Langthorne Ford Escort 9hr 07min 11sec

10. Anthony Ward/Ievan Thomas Ford Escort 9hr 23min 39sec

[Doehring]

Thanks Guus

[turbo carrott]

The leading zed was prepared by Stewart Wilkins and he is over there looking after the car at the moment.

[Z-point]

It may cost a few bucks but the again you are in the lead......:rambo:

[Z-point]

Graham Alexander / David Stewart (AUS/AUS)

[260DET]

One interesting thing about the Brisbane prepared car, which may have been done for an African competitor, was that they retained stock rubber bushes in the suspension. The idea was to reduce driver fatigue by minimumising NVH and also chassis stress, compared with using aftermarket metal or poly bushes.

Fingers crossed that the Porkers stay where they belong, behind the Datsun

[Z-point]

2005 East African Safari Rally

Leg 6 (Wednesday 7 December)

The all-Kenyan crew of Rob Collinge and Anton Levitan have extended their lead after the sixth leg of the East African Safari Rally. Despite gearbox problems, Collinge - in the Datsun 260Z - has pulled out more than a 22 minute advantage over his nearest rival, Belgian Gerard Marcy. Third position is now held by 1984 World Rally Champion Stig Blomqvist, who has climbed one position up the leaderboard during the leg.

Yesterday was a welcome rest day for the crews in the Masai Mara. However with nine hours of permitted servicing time, most of the support teams were busy throughout the day. The competitive action then resumed this morning (Leg 6) with another big day covering a total of 609.01 kilometres. The route took the crews from the Masai Mara, north, for another three sections over 176.66 competitive kilometres. The first section (CS19) took them up the Mau Escarpment and was one of the toughest and roughest of the event, reaching altitudes of 2,900 metres. The route then took the crews through the famous Kerio Valley before the overnight camp at the Du Toits farm, 12 kilometres from Eldoret.

Collinge still continues to dominate the event, the experienced Kenyan winning one of today's three demanding stages (CS19). He does however continue to have gearbox problems, and will be changing the unit overnight. "The gearbox went at one kilometre from the Mara," said the overnight leader. "It was difficult to keep a rhythm knowing we'd lost third gear, but okay, we drove round it and kept going and didn't lose any time."

After an all-but trouble-free run in Leg 4, Gerard Marcy, piloting the leading Ford Escort RS1600, had his share of problems today. He nevertheless finished second in CS20 and CS21 to maintain his second position overnight. "We've had big problems," said the Belgian. "The clutch broke and we've been going slowly to make sure we don't break everything. It's been a hard day."

Former World Rally Champion Stig Blomqvist has moved one position up the leaderboard after today's competitive sections and trails Marcy by just four minutes in this gruelling event. He won CS20 and was never outside the top four during the day. "It's been a rough day, but we've had no problems and the car's been fine," said the Swede.

John Lloyd and Paul Amandini have had a virtually trouble-free day and were never outside the top six in any of the competitive sections. They hold fourth overnight ahead of Frenchman Frederic Dor, who rolled and lost time in CS20 but won CS21. Sixth position is still held by Britain's Iain Freestone in the Ford Escort.

Safari Rally veteran Björn Waldegård has slipped one position into ninth, while former Toyota team-mate Juha Kankkunen has been forced to withdraw after co-driver Juha Repo fell ill during the night.

Thursday's seventh leg takes the crews from Eldoret for another four competitive sections and 214.57 competitive kilometres. The route initially heads north into the Cherangani Hills at heights of 3,050 metres, famous on the Safari Rally, before heading back south back into the Kerio Valley. A new section then takes them up the Laikipia Escarpment for some very steep climbs over tricky terrain before moving on the spectacularly high-speed plains. The route then heads to Nanyuki and the overnight halt at the famous Mount Kenya Safari Club for the overnight halt.

Leaderboard after Leg 6

1. Rob Collinge/Anton Levitan Datsun 260Z 10hr 27min 06sec

2. Gerard Marcy/Alain Lopes Ford Escort RS 10hr 49min 13sec

3. Stig Blomqvist/Ana Goni Ford Escort RS1600 10hr 53min 13sec

4. John Lloyd/Paul Amandini Porsche 911 10hr 56min 24sec

5. Frederic Dor/Paul Howarth Porsche 911 10hr 58min 42sec

6. Iain Freestone/Preston Ayres Ford Escort 11hr 19min 56sec

7. Simon Glover/Russ Langthorne Ford Escort 11hr 25min 23sec

8. Graham Alexander/David Stewart Datsun 260Z 11hr 27min 52sec

9. Björn Waldegård/David Cavanagh Porsche 911 11hr 28min 04sec

10. Anthony Ward/Ievan Thomas Ford Escort 11hr 49min 29sec

DRIVER QUOTES - LEG 6

3. Juha Kankkunen/Juha Repo - FIN/FIN - Datsun 240Z

The crew has been forced to withdraw after Juha Repo fell ill during the night. The crew drove drive directly from the Masai Mara to Nairobi. More information to follow when available.

5. Björn Waldegård /David Cavanagh - S/RI - Porsche 911

"I remember back in the Toyota days the amount of preparation we did for this rally. There would be one month at the end of the year, before Christmas, and then back in January for another month of confirmation tests. Then we'd arrive early for the recce, deciding what we were doing for the rally, as well as doing two full surveys of the route, maybe three. In total, I'd say we did 30,000 kilometres preparation for one Safari Rally, including the event. That's why I got upset at home when people said it was easy for us! From the first rally I did here, I would say I've spent more than three years of my life in Kenya! Overnight, Francis Tuthill's crew kindly gave us some Őhlins shocks and it made a big difference. We've only got them on the rear though. The last stage (CS21) was brilliant; it brought back real memories of the early days."

6. Frederic Dor/Paul Howarth - F/GB - Porsche 911

"We rolled in the second section (CS20). There were two flat-out junctions where at least the top six crews went off, but only we rolled. It was a fifth gear off into the two junctions at 120 mph; we went off backwards at the second corner." Adding to Frederic's comments, Paul Howarth said: "It's the pace of the World Rally Championship."

9. Iain Freestone/Preston Ayres - GB/GB - Ford Escort

"CS21 was great fun, a super stage, but you had to be careful at the start because it was so rough. It was one of those stages where you were either cautious, or went faster and risked damaging something. We need to change the clutch tonight, as it's been slipping during the day."

10. John Lloyd/Paul Amandini - GB/GB - Porsche 911

"We broke the windscreen and had a puncture on the way to the second section this morning. We've had a couple of overshoots, but otherwise everything's been fine. The car's good, the driver's knackered!"

12. Simon Glover/Russ Langthorne - GB/GB - Ford Escort

"What a great day's rallying!"

15. Anthony Ward/Ievan Thomas - GB/GB - Ford Escort

"We got a broken windscreen on a road section, but the stages have been great; no problems and another Sunday drive!"

16. David Kedward/Crispin Sassoon - GB/GB - Ford Escort

"Somehow we drove out of Parc Ferme with the bonnet pins out and the bonnet flew up and smashed the screen. In the first section (CS19) we had a problem with a front strut, and then the steering rack mount broke; it's all been held together with a Jubilee clip and bungee straps for three stages!"

18. Jayant Shah/Lofty Drews - GB/GB - Datsun 180B

"We tried to sort out the steering during the rest day, having broken all the roll bars, but had to wait until the rest day to sort it. The Terratrip cable ripped out in Leg 4 which made things difficult. so we had to judge distances on the clock. We were supposed to be driving the Datsun 260Z we had in 2003, but it's still delayed on the ship from Australia, so our preparation with the 180B had to be very quick. Today, we got stuck in sand in the Delamere Estate (CS20) and lost a lot of time as we had to be towed out. We also broke a shock absorber and the propshaft."

19. James Ingleby/Mike Bowen - GB/GB - Rover

"We went off at the same place as Frederic Dor, but didn't roll. We had a problem with the shock absorbers after Leg 4, but didn't have time to repair them during the rest day, so we did it on the road section outside the Mara this morning."

20. Marzio Kravos/Renzo Bernardi - EAK/EAK - Mercedes 450 SLC

"The starter motor broke in Nakuru and we've had a shock absorber pop out, otherwise, an okay day."

24. Jurgen Bertl/Jiri Kotek - D/CZ - Porsche 911

"We lost the brakes halfway into CS21, couldn't stop and went off three times."

2015. Soren Kjaer/Mads Kjaer - DK/DK - Porsche 911

"We were basically just fettling the car during the rest day, although we needed to sort a synchromesh problem with the gears. Otherwise, 2015 is ready for action! We had a few punctures today and need to change the gearbox tonight, as we lost a couple of gears."

22. Graham Alexander/David Stewart - AUS/AUS - Datsun 260Z

"It's been an average day."

24. Jurgen Bertl/Jiri Kotek - D/CZ - Porsche 911

"We changed all the suspension during the rest day and just checked the car over."

29. Marc Devis/Dan Erculisse - B/B - Porsche 911

"All the shocks and wheel bearings were changed during the rest day and we were happy with the condition of the car going into today. We'd been warned it was rough at the start of CS21, but it wasn't so bad and overall things have been good."

32. Timothy Mammen/Jaspal Matharu - GB/EAK - Datsun 1600 SSS

"We've blown the exhaust so it's been a noisy day! We had a puncture in CS21 and it's been very rough today."

34. Bo Axelsson/Eugen Damstedt - S/FIN - Volvo 142S

"We changed another piston - our second of the event - rebuilt the suspension and reinstalled the gearbox during the rest day." The crew is now reported to have retired during the leg.

36. Simon Sharpe/Denis Burnett - EAK/GB - BMW 2002

"We had a problem in CS20 when we caught Jayant Shah. Trying to pass him we got stuck in deep sand and lost 20 minutes."

43. Uwe Kurzenberger/Gabriele Mahler - D/D - Peugeot 504

"We had problems with the suspension on the first day and after that we had problems with the clutch, with too much dust going into it. Day 4 we had gear selection problems."

47. Jonathan Savage/Quentin Savage - EAK/EAK - Datsun 260Z

"It's been very rough, but everything's held together. The car and navigator did good and we have no complaints."

[g260]

Hey Guus,

Good to see the Datsuns are again leading the EASF. The Collinge car is once again prepared by Aussie Stewart Wilkins of Sydney who is over there as service crew.

The Alexander/Stewart 260Z, another Aussie entry from Melbourne, is also going well and has been in the top 10 since the start.

Pity that Juha had to retire after his co driver took ill, he seemed to be on a charge after suffering multiple punctures early in the rally.

As for the Coads in their Holden Torana, after seeming to spend a fortune in getting the car ready, they are probably now wishing they were in a Datsun!!!

[Z-point]

What can we make of the top ten list??? The ultimate rally car is a Datsun 240Z, Porsche 911 and Ford Escort. The battle continuous…. even after 30+years.

http://www.z-pointt.nl/eas2005/index.html

[Z-point]

2005 East African Safari Rally

Leg 7 (Thursday 8 December)

Local favourites Rob Collinge and Anton Levitan continue to lead the 2005 East African Safari Rally after the seventh day of competition over Kenya's unforgiving roads. The Datsun 260Z crew has just over 20 minutes in hand, however former World Rally Champion Stig Blomqvist has been on a charge, powering into second after another long day of gruelling competition. Porsche 911 driver Frederic Dor has enjoyed a trouble-free run and the Frenchman moves into third position.

Today's seventh leg took the crews from Eldoret for another four sections and 214.57 competitive kilometres. The route initially headed north into the Cherangani Hills at heights of 3,050 metres, famous on the Safari Rally, before heading back south into the Kerio Valley. A new section then took them up the Laikipia Escarpment for some very steep climbs over tricky terrain before moving on to the spectacularly high-speed plains awash with holes and ruts. The route then headed to Nanyuki and the famous Mount Kenya Safari Club for the overnight halt.

Rob Collinge started the day with a 22 minute advantage over Gerard Marcy. The Kenyan was never outside the top six throughout the leg and won CS23 and CS25. "It's been reasonably traumatic," said Collinge. "We dropped onto five cylinders this morning and I reckon we've lost about six minutes."

Belgian Gerard Marcy started the day in second position, but has dropped down the order to 17th after a disappointing day. A broken alternator screw on the Escort initially delayed them and, despite repairs, they were again stopped in the final section with the same problem. So, second position has been taken by Stig Blomqvist and Ana Goni, the pair winning both CS22 and CS24 to move one place up the leaderboard in their Escort RS1600. "We've had no problems and I'm quite happy we've got through another day," said the Swede.

Frederic Dor has enjoyed a great day of competition, the Frenchman powering up the leaderboard from fifth to third overnight, just over 10 minutes adrift of Blomqvist. The pressure is however on Dor, as he and fourth-placed John Lloyd have been battling hard throughout the event and they are only split by 12 minutes with two days remaining and where anything can still happen. "We've had no problems at all today," said Dor.

Former World Rally Champion and Safari Rally veteran Björn Waldegård has moved two positions up the leaderboard, into seventh, despite more brake problems.

Friday's penultimate leg is another long day for the crews, leaving the Mount Kenya Safari Club at 06:00 hrs and arriving far south, in Voi, at 16:35 hrs. A 212 kilometre road section takes the crews to the first competitive section - the longest at 113.62 kilometres - before the final section of the leg from Nziu to Makindu. In total, the penultimate leg takes in 188.79 competitive kilometres over just two sections before the overnight halt at Voi Wildlife Lodge.

Leaderboard after Leg 7

1. Rob Collinge/Anton Levitan Datsun 260Z 12hr 55min 00sec

2. Stig Blomqvist/Ana Goni Ford Escort RS1600 13hr 15min 15sec

3. Frederic Dor/Paul Howarth Porsche 911 13hr 25min 48sec

4. John Lloyd/Paul Amandini Porsche 911 13hr 37min 37sec

5. Iain Freestone/Preston Ayres Ford Escort 13hr 58min 32sec

6. Graham Alexander/David Stewart Datsun 260Z 14hr 00min 55sec

7. Björn Waldegård/David Cavanagh Porsche 911 14hr 02min 49sec

8. Simon Glover/Russ Langthorne Ford Escort 14hr 22min 23sec

9. Anthony Ward/Ievan Thomas Ford Escort 14hr 33min 50sec

10. Jonathan Savage/Quentin Savage Datsun 260Z 14hr 40min 46sec

DRIVER QUOTES - LEG 7

3. Juha Kankkunen/Juha Repo - FIN/FIN - Datsun 240Z

Juha Repo is confirmed to have had blood circulation problems. The Finn is however fine, resting in Nairobi and hoping to join the rally in Mombasa.

5. Björn Waldegård /David Cavanagh - S/RI - Porsche 911

"It's been an interesting day; fantastic places, beautiful and famous mountains, absolutely lovely. We slowed a fair bit today to preserve the car and survived okay. On extremely fast and rough roads like the last one (CS25) you need some speed, but you have to pace yourself as well. We lost the brakes again, for the fifth time, on the section, but at least we had the front brakes. A rear suspension bolt also came loose before CS24, but we managed to fix it for the section. It's just been another day at the office!"

7. Gerard Marcy/Alain Lopes - B/B - Ford Escort RS

The crew has been delayed with an alternator problem.

9. Iain Freestone/Preston Ayres - GB/GB - Ford Escort

"The final section (CS25) was too fast and dangerous with so many holes. It's been a mixed day. We totally broke the front suspension on CS24 and managed to replace it, but with just 20 seconds to spare."

10. John Lloyd/Paul Amandini - GB/GB - Porsche 911

"We had a puncture in CS24, just after passing Gerard Marcy; it took a long time to change."

12. Simon Glover/Russ Langthorne - GB/GB - Ford Escort

"It's been a mixed day. The throttle linkage fell apart, but we managed to fix it. Then we broke the left rear suspension, so it was a bit bumpy on the last one!"

15. Anthony Ward/Ievan Thomas - GB/GB - Ford Escort

"The last section was rough and fast, the type of stage where you can smash the car to bits. The car got very very hot earlier and we had to slow; the temperature was off the clock."

16. David Kedward/Crispin Sassoon - GB/GB - Ford Escort

"No dramas for us today. We've been driving steadily as it was a make or break day."

18. Jayant Shah/Lofty Drews - GB/GB - Datsun 180B

"The car died on us six times in CS25; the battery, ignition, alternator - it just kept happening. The rest of the day's been beautiful and we're up for a beer tonight!"

19. James Ingleby/Mike Bowen - GB/GB - Rover

"It's been a fraught day. We had no brakes in CS24 and only the front left working through CS25. The oil pressure and brake pipes had rubbed together; it was very dodgy on the section. Every time I pressed the brakes, more fluid came out."

20. Marzio Kravos/Renzo Bernardi - EAK/EAK - Mercedes 450 SLC

"We broke the rear cross-member in the second section today and it took us 3.5 hours to replace it. Still, we're here."

2015. Soren Kjaer/Mads Kjaer - DK/DK - Porsche 911

"We fitted a new gearbox last night and I didn't take my foot off the floor throughout CS25!"

21. Josef Pointinger/Peter Hall - A/GB - Ford Escort

"We're here! In CS24 (where Hall was driving) there were so many uphill sections where you needed big engine revs that we lost all the oil. The warning light came on, but we just had to limp through."

22. Graham Alexander/David Stewart - AUS/AUS - Datsun 260Z

"We've had no real problems, other than following in other people's dust."

24. Jurgen Bertl/Jiri Kotek - D/CZ - Porsche 911

"We lost the rear brakes 20 kilometres before the finish of CS25."

29. Marc Devis/Dan Erculisse - B/B - Porsche 911

"It's been a good day. We've been gentler on the car; the end is near and the risk of breakage bigger. CS25 was incredibly fast, as fast as I dare go putting my mind away. It's been a lovely day though; great scenery and I can already taste the beer!"

30. Jean-Michel Martin/Jean-François Chaumont - B/B - Porsche 911

"The whole day's been very difficult; in fact the whole rally. We're trying to get to the finish and happy to be here. No mechanical problems, just a puncture this morning."

33. Aslam Khan/Imran Khan - EAK/EAK - Datsun 180B

"It's been an excellent day. We took a precautionary extra service this morning because we could hear a noise underneath the car, but it's all been beautiful, very good."

36. Simon Sharpe/Denis Burnett - EAK/GB - BMW 2002

"It's been a bit of a struggle today. We had a broken bolt in the gearbox cross-member but otherwise no major dramas."

40. John Hills/Michael Tuckey - GB/AUS - Ford Escort

"Excellent, no worries, and the stages have been pretty good."

47. Jonathan Savage/Quentin Savage - EAK/EAK - Datsun 260Z

"CS25 was hairy! We overtook another car and it's been a good day taking it a bit easier. The car's fine, but we need to check one or two things tonight."

[Z-point]

Have a good look at the Porsche of Waldegard, it is almost written off......

[Z-point]

2005 East African Safari Rally

Leg 8 (Friday 9 December)

The Datsun 260Z crew of Rob Collinge and Anton Levitan continue to head the leaderboard in the East African Safari Rally. The all-Kenyan crew claimed the lead after the third day of competition and now have nearly 24 minutes in hand with just four competitive sections remaining. Stig Blomqvist, the early leader, maintains second in the Ford Escort RS1600 with Frederic Dor extending his lead over fourth-placed John Lloyd to 16 minutes.

Today's penultimate leg was another long day on the road for the crews, although the second scheduled competitive section was cancelled due to the volume of heavy machinery along the route. The crews left the Mount Kenya Safari Club at 06:00 hrs and arrived far south, in Voi, at 16:35 hrs. A 212 kilometre road section took them to the first and only competitive section of the day - the longest at 113.62 kilometres - before a long road section to the overnight halt at Voi Wildlife Lodge, north-west of Mombasa.

Collinge and Levitan were unable to repair their engine problem overnight, so the Kenyan duo has been forced to run on five cylinders throughout the day. They nevertheless won the section by nearly four minutes. "We obviously had a lack of power in the section; one of the inlet valves isn't working on one of the cylinders," said Collinge. "The section was very rough, but the suspension is awesome on these stages."

Former World Rally Champion Stig Blomqvist has not been feeling at his best today, but the Swede still set second-fastest time to maintain his overall second position. "It was a bit rough in places, but I'm feeling happy," said the Escort RS1600 driver after a trouble-free day.

Frederic Dor consolidated his third position today, the Frenchman also enjoying a good day in the Tuthill-prepared Porsche 911. "No big problems, we just lot the 'trip after 20 kilometres'," he said. "We had to take it a bit carefully in the section as it was very fast with a lot of dry mud holes, which are difficult to see. I've been surprised by the speeds this year though."

John Lloyd maintains fourth in the second Tuthill Porsche, while Iain Freestone continues to hold fifth position, currently one position higher than his 2003 East African Safari Rally result. Australian Graham Alexander rounds off the top six in another Datsun 260Z. Safari Rally veteran Björn Waldegård, and co-driver David Cavanagh, were lucky to maintain seventh position, having driven the section with big steering problems.

Tomorrow (Saturday 10 December) may be the final leg but it will be no cruise to the finish for the 30 remaining contenders in the second East African Safari Classic. The leg takes the crews from Voi into the famous Taita Hills for the first of four competitive sections that could well prove to be the sting in the tail. After a further three sections the crews arrive back at Diani Beach, Mombasa, after completing a total of 170.70 competitive kilometers in a total distance of 347.04 kilometers.

Leaderboard after Leg 8

1. Rob Collinge/Anton Levitan Datsun 260Z 13hr 58min 49sec

2. Stig Blomqvist/Ana Goni Ford Escort RS1600 14hr 22min 45sec

3. Frederic Dor/Paul Howarth Porsche 911 14hr 33min 46sec

4. John Lloyd/Paul Amandini Porsche 911 14hr 49min 07sec

5. Iain Freestone/Preston Ayres Ford Escort 15hr 09min 37sec

6. Graham Alexander/David Stewart Datsun 260Z 15hr 11min 45sec

7. Björn Waldegård/David Cavanagh Porsche 911 15hr 13min 39sec

8. Simon Glover/Russ Langthorne Ford Escort 15hr 44min 37sec

9. Anthony Ward/Ievan Thomas Ford Escort 15hr 56min 13sec

10. Jonathan Savage/Quentin Savage Datsun 260Z 16hr 59min 16sec

DRIVER QUOTES - LEG 8

5. Björn Waldegård /David Cavanagh - S/RI - Porsche 911

"We've driven 75 kilometres with the steering completely loose," said the Swede, indicating 4" of play in all directions as the steering column retaining bracket had failed. "Bloody hell; that was hard work!"

7. Gerard Marcy/Alain Lopes - B/B - Ford Escort RS

"We ran for 50 kilometres in John Lloyd's dust, but the car is feeling very nice after our electrical problems yesterday."

9. Iain Freestone/Preston Ayres - GB/GB - Ford Escort

""I spoke to one of my daughters last night and she told me it should be easy to win, just don't take your foot off!"

10. John Lloyd/Paul Amandini - GB/GB - Porsche 911

"That was a great fun section and the car's running beautifully."

12. Simon Glover/Russ Langthorne - GB/GB - Ford Escort

"The section was as advertised! Just one puncture, otherwise fine for us."

15. Anthony Ward/Ievan Thomas - GB/GB - Ford Escort

"I'm happy, again, and the car's running great."

16. David Kedward/Crispin Sassoon - GB/GB - Ford Escort

"There was a horrid smell of gearbox oil in the car, so there's obviously a leak. The section was rough in places, but good fun."

19. James Ingleby/Mike Bowen - GB/GB - Rover

"We lost the anti-roll bar yesterday and repaired the steering last night and picked up penalties going into Parc Ferme. Otherwise okay today, although we lost the intercom in the section."

20. Marzio Kravos/Renzo Bernardi - EAK/EAK - Mercedes 450 SLC

"We hit a big ditch in the section, the car flew into the air and bashed down hard on the back end."

2015. Soren Kjaer/Mads Kjaer - DK/DK - Porsche 911

"The goal; Mombasa!"

21. Josef Pointinger/Peter Hall - A/GB - Ford Escort

"We've been keeping an eye on the oil gauge after yesterday's problems. The engine generally seems to be using a lot of oil, but we're still running!"

22. Graham Alexander/David Stewart - AUS/AUS - Datsun 260Z

"The section was very rough and loose, but the car's fine although the driver's a bit beaten around!"

24. Jurgen Bertl/Jiri Kotek - D/CZ - Porsche 911

"We've had slower cars in front of us and got stuck in dust twice for 25 kilometres. The front brakes were a bit in and out, but just because they were hot."

29. Marc Devis/Dan Erculisse - B/B - Porsche 911

"We're taking it easy, looking after the car to get to the finish now."

32. Timothy Mammen/Jaspal Matharu - GB/EAK - Datsun 1600SSS

"We had a good run with no problems, thank God!"

36. Simon Sharpe/Denis Burnett - EAK/GB - BMW 2002

"We're having fun! No problems at all today, just a lot of fun."

38. Hardev Singh Sira/Manjeet Singh Degun - GB/GB - Peugeot 504 Coupe

"We broken the steering and the head gasket went yesterday and we arrived at Mount Kenya at 03:00 hrs. Today we've had no problems, but it's straight to bed now."

47. Jonathan Savage/Quentin Savage - EAK/EAK - Datsun 260Z

"Excellent; a great fun section. We changed two shocks and the engine mounting yesterday and the car's now running very sweetly."