A Peugeot 205 Turbo 16 Evolution rally car from the fabled Group B days will be sold by RM Sotheby’s at the auction house’s Monaco event in mid-May.
Peugeot’s entrant into the Group B scene was homologated in 1984 and in 1985 it claimed six victories out of eleven races.
The particular car, serial number C11, debuted at the 1985 Rallye Monte Carlo with 1981 World Champion Ari Vatanen behind the wheel. It competed alongside two other Peugeot T16’s and went up against the likes of the Audi Sport Quattro S1 driven by Walter Rohrl.
Despite the best efforts of Audi, Vatanen managed to secure seven of the first 10 stages before being slapped with an eight minute penalty. Now second in the standings by 4 minutes and 41 seconds, Vatanen went on a rampage managing to win 14 of the next 16 stages and not only made up the deficit, but opened up an unassailable 5 minute and 17 second lead. Ultimately, C11 won 21 of a possible 33 stages during the rally.
Vatanen went on to claim overall victory at the next rally in Sweden and at the third round in Portugal, was favorite to win again. However, suspension failure and a faulty flywheel sensor forced him to retire. C11 was then pulled from Peugeot’s Works competition in the World Rally Championship.
Given the unique history of this 205 T16, it’s impossible to estimate how much it will fetch at the auction. What’s certain is that the winning bidder will obtain much more than a magnificent racing machine.
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