RAC Rally preview 1985. Tony Pond Metro 6R4

[@cotswoldclassiccarrestorat8396]

Tony Pond one of the greatest all round drivers ever, and he comes across as such a nice man... As for the 6R4 it won many events world wide for many years and continues to do so. There is a video of one in time attack destroying modern Evo's with all the fancy electronic trickery... Its iconic and they are fetching some silly money now which is a shame be cause I want one :)

[@tony9416]

We must also say about incredible Rob Arthur, one of the greatest english co-driver with others, a very good speach, really clear and a good tone

[@alexmarkgz5939]

The wisest of words from Tony Pond between 10.25 and 10.50 if only Mr McRae could have heeded them

[@mexicossie1592]

Yes without a doubt in my opinion Tony Pond is the best driver coming out of the UK period!!! Driving a TR7 & a Rover Vitesse & have the top guys chipping... he deserves knighthood...lol

[@cvtt3194]

Pond is a legend, great driver. The little metro is a fantastic machine, great combination.

[@1richbish]

Today I got to ride in this very 6r4!! Amazing!!

[@twincamGT]

Pond was some man great fella

[@memorialgardens1664]

Thank you for the memories❤💪🧠🙋‍♂️

[@mikejackson5246]

Tony Pond used to drive for Norman Reeves motors in Uxbridge in the 70s before he went pro... i used to know him well. really nice bloke.

[@lenanderson753]

I worked for Reeves Uxbridge and also knew Tony, Reeves Racing and Rallying, The Escort as the rally car and a Capri on the Racing side.

[@brianmcmenamin7269]

@11:35 was a stage of the 1985 Donegal International Rally. I was there. The engine blew up due to a stuck open throttle!

[@andrewphippsphillips1455]

4:00 onwards is just stunning!!! Sounds like a Charger or badass Roadrunner!!

[@ianmangham4570]

A Ray of sunshine 🌞 in Thatchers Britain 🇬🇧 🤣🤟💯

[@lr882027]

7:06 I remember when this happened, Tony Pond, the great white hope in a Rover Vitesse hoping to take on the Audis..... Nice bloke.

[@ianmangham4570]

Priceless footage 👌

[@ianmangham4570]

Tony was so awesome 👌 🔥 🇬🇧

[@cardaft110]

Great video, Great driver

[@6R4ONLINENEWS]

Very good piece

[@hemptinyhouse6663]

He sounds a bit like Nigel Tuffnell. Love them both!

[@wejustsawmanfly]

Is it just me or the metro sound exactly like stratos here ?

[@Pen3989]

Late answer but both car used the V6 engine, that's why the engine noise share some similarity

[@ianhill20101]

How do you handle that power and performance ? Gently ! Rooooooooaaarrr grrrr grrr grrrr This car is brian blessed, hell of a throat on it.

[@trsfc1595]

Truly Talented

[@ronsax4820]

10m31s in... a warning that sadly wasn't heard.

[@stebailey5162]

A true gent, but Christ he was quick hehe

[@velobob4299]

Top bloke, cool and funny too.

[@nearlyretired7005]

Not an easy car to drive and didn't have the torque of the supercharged and turbo cars! Tony Pond made it look easy because of his huge talent as a driver

[@TheBlaert]

Legend

[@blowduke]

Metro was a death trap before they put a v6 in the back .

[@gothicpagan.666]

Ah in the end the 6r4 just didn`t quite have it. Were they really a genuine 450BHP?

[@speedmyster1]

At a guess probably because they would have been down on the A1 etc even with 450bhp.

[@patbutete1722]

@@F0rdy57 The The Audi Quattro and the Peugeot 205 turbo16 and Lancia Delta S4 says Hi!

[@Botomatic]

Later down the line, Tony Pond’s own 6R4 in 1986 was allegedly cranked up to 520bhp for the San Remo and Manx rally, according to people who owned the very car afterwards. That was just a one off though, the majority of international spec 6R4s I believe where at around 430hp from what I remember.

[@carcontrolcommitment]

@@Botomatic that didn't happen. A poor exhaust manifold design limited the engine's drivability and so it was nearer 380hp. Later generation's and Colin Mcrae's version had around 440hp, but that took another 25 years of development

[@Botomatic]

@@carcontrolcommitment ARM will always be ARM I suppose... such a shame...

[@thecornwall125company6]

If only Colin McRae had taken his advice on Helicopters !

[@flammenjc]

Lets not overdo it. The 6r4 wasnt great internationally. It did okay but was ultimately a failure however it sounded absolutely glorious and nobody can take that away from it. And besides.. it wasnt as much of a failure as the rs200 either.

[@paulcaswell2813]

Strangely, on home territory the 6R4 wasn't that popular, but the car was hugely popular with the spectators on the continent...

[@DropkickNation]

The Metro is one of my favorite rally cars of all time. It's such a shame it never got the chance to be developed to a point where it could shine on an international stage. Gods knows where it would have been in 87 or 88, if Group B had continued.

[@timexironman100m]

Sadly group b got banned and never saw the road version...died into history.

[@patbutete1722]

Huh? How about the 200 road going versions that had to be built in order for the car to be homologated under the then FIA rules? Previous to that 400 had to be manufactured. Hence the Opel Ascona and Manta 400s. Chevette HS Talbot Lotus and Escort RS1800s.

[@paulcaswell2813]

There were no 'roadgoing' 6R4s as such. After the works cars, the rest were built to what was called 'Clubmans' spec - the engine was down-tuned for more reliability, but there was no trim or luxury fittings as in the roadgoing T16s, Quattros, and Lancias...

[@memorialgardens1664]

Yup I went to school with Tony’s children 🧠💪🙋‍♂️💯