She’s a McLaren Extreme E driver already into her second full international season, owns and runs a Suzuki dealership in Dunedin, and this coming weekend will pilot her new Citroën C3 Rally2 car at the Otago Rally, the opening round of the 2023 NZ Rally Championship. Emma Gilmour is easily one of NZ’s top five rally drivers and maybe now has the machinery and team to put some results on the board.
The factory-built FIA-spec WRC2 car was new in 2020 and had already competed in several European rally seasons before coming into New Zealand last spring for German driver Armin Kremer to campaign at the 2022 Rally New Zealand. Hence, the opportunity to take the next step and purchase a proven (and reliable) Rally2 car was open to Gilmour.
“It’s cool to show it off and talk about it,” commented Gilmour.
Head back to 2014 and Gilmour debuted a new Suzuki Swift Maxi (AP4) car to compete in the New Zealand Rally Championship. Having previously campaigned a Subaru Impreza WRX, the fraternity was heading to the new AP4 format, (the Australia Pacific region’s answer to the R5 rally car. The rules and basic technical specifications are similar. AP4 rally cars are not FIA homologated and don’t have to be produced by a vehicle manufacturer), and this was Gilmour’s answer.
While the Suzuki was quick, even Gilmour would admit it wasn’t the most reliable. However, the highlight was early on in its career, winning the 2016 Canterbury Rally. From then on results didn’t really come as the retirements stacked up.
Through it all, if you looked at the individual Special Stage times of numerous events, Gilmour was often in the top three behind WRC driver Hayden Paddon. There is no doubt about it, Gilmour is one quick driver.
Hence, when we got an inkling of a new car on the horizon (the worst kept secret of 2022), we knew that it was going to be good. Gilmour’s choice of car coupled with choosing to run with Paddon Rally Sport is strategically a set of brilliant decisions.
“I had started thinking about how I could get into a Rally2 car,” said Gilmour. “I had a few people around me encouraging me and was talking to Hayden (Paddon) about options available.
“We had heard that someone from overseas was bringing out a Citroen and needed a buyer. We were interested and on the Monday, after Rally NZ, I got to drive it and decided to go ahead with the purchase. It made a lot of sense as we could have a Rally2 car without the new price tag.
“It was already here in NZ so we didn’t need to worry about freight. Hayden (Paddon) helped with the negotiation of all the spares as the car has competed in around a dozen WRC events and we wanted to do an extensive rebuild.
“I needed to talk to our many partners, especially Suzuki, who have been fantastic over the years. There has been a lot of hoops to get through including an extensive rebuild in time for the rally season.
“The car is not blistering quick in a straight line buy very quick around corners. It’s much faster into a corner, faster than you think that you can go so it’s a new way of driving for me.
“Otago is going to be a great opportunity to get some miles in the car. It’s pretty special to be running with a top team and a top driver. Hayden has given me lots of help with setup. He has so much knowledge and experience.
“This season is about getting up to speed with the car. It’s a competitive entry and it will be nice to focus on my driving.”
Let’s hope that we may now see the true potential of Gilmour’s talent. McLaren sees it and now, at home, don’t be surprise to see her step onto the podium.
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