Neal Bates is a four-time Australian Rally Championship winner, long associated with Celica GT-Fours and AWD Corollas that we didn’t get here in the states. Though retired, Bates spent the last 18 months building a replica RA40 Celica rally car inspired by Ove Andersson‘s 1980s WRC ride. There’s a few differences though, like the updated 3S-GE 2.0-liter twin-cam and a 5-speed Aussie dog box. Still, it qualifies for the ARC Classic Rally Challenge for pre-1986 classic cars like the A10 Datsun Stanza, Porsche 911, and Ford RS 1800.
Watch the beautifully constructed and freshly painted machine roll out of the shop and immediately onto some unpaved roads for maximum hoonage. Continue reading
