P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Gearbox explosion caused Lappi’s Safari Rally exit
The Rally Sweden winner had to give up second place due to a transmission issue that caused his i20 N to stop in stage five. The frustrated Finn revealed that there were no warning signs before the failure. This incident follows last year’s four propshaft failures in Kenya, prompting the team to install a stronger version of the component for the 2024 edition. Esapekka Lappi described the gearbox failure as sudden, leading to the car shifting to front-wheel drive with no power regardless of gear. Despite no visible impact during the stages, Lappi highlighted the frustration of the situation, contemplating the point of continuing the rally. Hyundai’s technical director acknowledged the gearbox weakness as a known issue with no easy long-term solution. As Lappi retired due to reliability concerns, teammate Ott Tanak briefly inherited second place before crashing out in stage six, marking another setback for Hyundai at the rally.
