Next-gen rally cars lose over 100 hp, slash costs, and ditch old rules in favor of dramatic new shapes and stripped-down performance for 2027
The World Rally Championship is heading into uncharted territory for 2027, with a sweeping rules overhaul that will redefine what Rally1 cars look like and how they perform. Expect them to be less expensive, less powerful, and visually pared back when it comes to aerodynamics.
Three early design studies have been released to preview the shift, and it’s clear the FIA’s designers drew inspiration from road-going models like the Audi RS3, Subaru WRX, and Porsche Macan EV. The resulting mashups look like they could have rolled straight out of a Gran Theft Auto garage.
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Back in the real world, every 2027 Rally1 car will be built around a tubular frame safety cell, engineered to be even stronger than those used in previous generations.
In a break from tradition, the regulations no longer require that Rally1 entries be based on production models. Instead, they define a reference volume that sets the limits for external body panels. This opens up much greater creative freedom for manufacturers to experiment with proportions and styling.
Aerodynamic elements have been noticeably scaled back. Compared to today’s cars, the rear wings on these concept designs are significantly smaller, and there’s a marked absence of extreme downforce features elsewhere on the bodywork.
One of the cars, complete with RS3-inspired headlights, takes the shape of a sleek sedan while the Macan-inspired model looks more like a low-slung crossover with hints of the all-electric Taycan.
All cars will run the same engine: a 1.6-liter turbocharged four-cylinder, now limited to around 290 horsepower. That’s a cut of more than 100 horsepower compared to today’s Rally1 machines.
They’ll also share a standard five-speed gearbox and four-wheel-drive layout, paired with double wishbone suspension. Steering and braking systems will be carried over from the current Rally2 category, making for a more unified technical base across classes.
Top-Spec Rallying at Half the Price
Price is one of the major changes. In tarmac spec, each car will be capped at €345,000 (about $404,000 at current exchange rates), a reduction of over 50 percent compared to the cost of current Rally1 cars. For 2027, these redesigned entries will compete alongside existing Rally2 models at the top level of WRC competition.
“Flexibility is a defining feature of the WRC27 regulations,” FIA deputy president for sport, Malcolm Wilson said. “The new Rally1 concepts that we have released have been designed to these specifications, demonstrating how that flexibility can be applied in practice. They highlight, for the first time, the range of technical solutions and vehicle concepts that can be developed within the framework, while still meeting the demands of top-level FIA World Rally Championship competition.”
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Brad Anderson’s lifelong affair and fascination with cars started young. Before even graduating high school,… Read full bio
