Pirelli classic rally tyre makes competition debut

Pirelli’s new high performance historic rally tyre, the P7 Corsa Classic, has made its competition debut in March on the Rally de Espana Historico with a legendary name behind the wheel: two-time World Rally Champion Carlos Sainz. Driving a Porsche 911 for the first time, Sainz won the event. The product was first launched just before the 2011 Rally Legend San Marino event, joining Pirelli’s competition tyre range and reinforcing the Italian firm’s commitment to every discipline in motorsport. Pirelli believes historic rallying is “taking off, with a huge fan base,” saying this means greater involvement is warranted from all the partners and friends of the sport. In the UK, the British Historic Rally’s decision to open up tyre supply has resulted in four tyre manufacturers entering the series from 2013, including Pirelli.

Several past masters in the sport, including Markku Alen in the Fiat 131 Abarth, Juha Kankkunen in the Lancia Delta 4WD and reigning Italian Rally Champion Paolo Andreucci in a Lancia Stratos joined an international group of journalists in the road test of the P7 Corsa Classic on the famous Colle San Bartolomeo stage close to Imperia. The P7 Corsa Classic, created by Pirelli’s Research and Development division for all cars currently competing in historic rallies, is a mix of tradition and cutting edge technology; the company reinterprets its P7 and P7 Corsa rally tyres by recreating their classic look while adding modern levels of performance and safety.
 
The new P7 carries over the style of the original tyre from the end of the 1970s and is characterised by a dual road and competition tread pattern, made necessary by modern homologation requirements. The tyre is designed for high performance on asphalt under all weather conditions. Bespoke compounds – the dry compound (called the D3), the compound for dry or mixed conditions (D5) and the wet compound (W5) – have been provided to optimise grip, achieved too through the special design of the tread pattern.
 
The P7 Corsa Classic has a tread pattern that unites two distinct designs: a semi-slick dry pattern and a treaded wet pattern, in an asymmetric layout typical of Pirelli’s ultra high performance tyres. The external semi-slick pattern increases lateral grip on dry surfaces, the central part of the tyre with a circumferential rib works to provide a precise response to high-speed direction changes, while the blocks on the internal part of the tyre help to evacuate water from the contact patch. The tyre also uses compounds that are entirely free of highly aromatic oils and provides low ambient noise.

The The P7 Corsa Classic comes in a wide range of sizes to suit all the most prestigious rally cars from the 1970s and 80s. It is also available for 16-inch rims, as used originally by the Lancia Rally 037 and Delta S4.
 
From the P7 to the P7 Corsa Classic
 
P7 Corsa Classic is an evolution of the famous P7, which was first developed in 1973 for the Lancia Stratos. Inspired by the new Stratos, Pirelli developed a low profile and radial tubeless structure, together with 0° nylon belts. Compared to other tyres at the time, the new P7 presented a completely new structure, the company says, using a bigger contact patch and greater structural stability even at high speeds.

Developed in 195/50 VR size (for the first time the sidewall height was half of the tread width) the P7 was the world’s first ultra low profile radial tyre, an action Pirelli says revolutionised tyre development, now an integral element of competition car design. After the success of the P7, Pirelli launched the P7 Corsa, which was quickly adopted by the most successful teams in rallying such as Lancia, Fiat-Abarth and Ford.

The new Pirelli P7 Corsa Classic is available in the following sizes:
 
•    225/595-15 (235/45R15 80W) 7.5 > 9 Ant (suitable for the Lancia Rally 037, Lancia Stratos, Fiat 131 Abarth, Porsche 911, Opel Ascona and Opel Manta)
•    265/40VR15 (285/40R15 82W) 9.5 > 11 Post (Fiat 131 Abarth, Porsche 911 Gr.4-2, Opel Ascona, Opel Manta)
•    305/35VR15 (305/35R15 87W) 10 > 12 Post (Lancia Stratos, Fiat 131 Abarth, Porsche 911 Gr.4, Opel Gr.4)
•    290/660-16 (315/40R16 90W) 10.5 > 12.5 Post (Lancia Rally 037, Lancia Delta S4)
•    230/660-16 (255/50R16 89W) 7 > 9 Ant. (Lancia Delta S4)