Safety first in ERC with new-for-2024 rules

New rules from the FIA, motorsport’s world governing body, require championship’s run to the Regional Rally Regulations to mandate a second manual fire extinguisher to be carried in all cars contesting ERC rounds from this season.  

The new regulation will permit one of the extinguishers to be provided for the purposes of fighting a fire not inside the competitor’s car, such as fire in another competing car or in the event of a shrubbery by the side of a stage igniting.  

Crucially, however, providing the second extinguisher is replaced as soon as possible, at the next service or parc fermé, the crew providing the additional extinguisher won’t be penalised.

FIA Regional Rally Category Manager Jérôme Roussel explained: “By requiring all cars to carry two fire extinguishers, we won’t face the situation where a crew is reluctant to provide their extinguisher to assist another crew or to help with an incident, such as a forest fire, as nobody will be penalised for helping. The regulations just require the second fire extinguisher to be replaced as soon as possible.”   

A procedure for managing safe overtaking on special stages of ERC events has also been formalised for 2024.

The new Regional Rally regulation (Article 34.1.8) states that: “Any car (crew) caught by another must make the necessary move to allow itself to be overtaken. This applies notably if it has lost time due to a technical failure or has gone off the road before restarting.  

“The readiness to be overtaken should be shown by appropriate flashing indicators (e.g. left indicator means that the overtaken car will stay on the left side of the road).  

“The overtaken crew shall make every effort to facilitate the overtaking manoeuvre, including stopping in a safe place. If the vehicles are equipped with car-to-car communication, this applies from the first request for overtaking. The crews are responsible for ensuring that no danger is caused by overtaking”.  

Rally Hungary opens the highly anticipated 2024 ERC season from 12 - 14 April with an all-new gravel event.