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Fiesta mine sortie worth its salt

WRC star Elfyn Evans has completed one of the most exhilarating driving challenges of his career - powering Ford's exciting new Fiesta ST road car through a salt mine 400 metres below ground!

The M-Sport Ford driver put the car through its paces within the mine's 60km network of tunnel roads at a secret European location and was impressed by the experience.

"The salt is actually like fine gravel to drive on, quite slippery to be honest, especially on road tyres," said Evans. "You expect it to be claustrophobic but actually it's quite the opposite, a great place to really enjoy the new Fiesta ST."

Ford's Great European Driving Roads series has put a range of Ford performance cars, including the GT, Focus RS and Mustang Convertible, in some of Europe's most stunning locations.

The frozen Arctic Circle in Norway and the sunny climes of holiday island Mallorca have featured, but this is the first to venture underground.

Ford chose the mine for new online advert Undertrack. Evans' spectacular driving as the car slides and jumps in the dirt is matched by the sound of the 200PS 1.5-litre EcoBoost engine as it tackles a high-speed drop through the narrow entrance tunnel.

Temperatures in the mine are kept at a constant 16°C and safety precautions required that a skeleton crew was used for the three-day shoot.

"The drama of the tunnels and the chance to show off Fiesta ST's ability on a different type of surface were a big part of choosing this unique location," said Leo Roeks, Ford Performance director. "

It wasn't a typical race track, it was somewhere we could drive this great car to its full potential."

Zdroj: wrc.com