More Than 50 Years Apart: Champion Takes Two Customer Cars Around the Track

More Than 50 Years Apart: Champion Takes Two Customer Cars Around the Track

RS Family 5 min reading

Škoda Motorsport has a long tradition of producing so-called customer cars. It dates back more than 55 years, and WRC2 World Champion Emil Lindholm demonstrated just what this means. He took one of the first Škoda 120 S Rallye customer cars and the current Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 special around the track. See what he has to say about these two cars. 

Although the Škoda Motorsport department has entered competitions as a factory team on many occasions in the past, customer cars are the cornerstone of the Czech carmaker’s competition programme. Thanks to them, literally hundreds of different drivers and teams around the world can take part in competitions.

The tradition of the Škoda Motorsport customer programme dates back to the 1970s. Škoda 100 already had its own racing version, called the Škoda 110 L Rallye, but the homologated Škoda 120 S Rallye became far better known. It was this car that Emil Lindholm drove around the racing circuit.

“Unlike modern cars, it has a number of production-spec components, such as the pedals and gear lever. The transmission has differently spaced gears and there is a reinforced clutch. The car is homologated without bumpers, which gives it a unique appearance,” Lindholm notes about the characteristics of one of the first Škoda rally cars with which drivers could compete literally all over the world. According to him, the engine is particularly impressive, with the Škoda Motorsport team managing to squeeze up to 120 horsepower out of it in the racing version of the car.

Lindholm enjoys driving the historic rally car from the collection of the Škoda Museum: “The challenge here is simply to get to the limit. The car has a mind of its own and you have to push it to the limit with effort, heart and courage. It is a full-body workout,” the champion laughs. 

The current Fabia RS Rally2, according to him, has considerably more purely racing technology and it is easier to push it to the limit, stay there and drive fast on any surface. “The engine, four-wheel drive and brakes are at world-class level, as is the safety,” he says. “It is easy to drive, and it is not tricky,” adds the WRC2 World Champion about his experience behind the wheel of the current rally car

Despite the obvious differences, however, Lindholm believes that the two rally cars have something in common. “The Škoda 120 S Rallye was great for drivers with different driving styles. It was reliable, durable and very popular. Just like today’s Fabia RS Rally2. That has not changed and it never will,” concludes the champion, wrapping up his comparison of the two legends.

Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 

The current Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 rally car, with which the carmaker is also celebrating the 125th anniversary of motorsport “in its colours”, already ranks among the historically most successful models from Škoda Motorsport. In July, the factory motorsport department handed over its 300th customer car. Since the first full season of the Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 project in 2023 alone, drivers have racked up a total of 5,256 starts in 1,547 rallies, standing on the podium 1,768 times and winning 721 rallies. These results are supported, among other things, by Škoda Motorsport’s continuous support for teams, whether in the form of upgrade packages (such as Packet 25 or the special customer edition for this year), the provision of spare parts, or, for example, assistance with setting up the car for individual events.