The next piece in the mod touring puzzle will fall into place this weekend at the British association’s AGM.  At that meeting they’ll set the rules for their National championships in 2007 – and rules for modified tourer are firmly on the agenda. With Japan set to run their nats soon as a 4-cell class, and the Brits considering 4 cells (along with a raft of other solutions), and EFRA’s AGM setting the standard for Europe also just a few weeks away, we are close to getting an idea of where some of the biggest racing markets in the world will go with mod tourer rules.

The potential answers are still many, and the problems aren’t getting any smaller. Battery voltages keep going up and up, and motor problems become more common.  It seems to me that there are a few options:
1. Go to 4-cell for modified.  Continue with open motors.  There is some feedback out of Japan that this will put a high premium on batteries as run-time once again becomes an issue.  With current motors, this is fine, but once we start running 4-cell spec’d motors (4/5/6 turn) the problems will potentially appear
2. Go to 4-cell for modified and put a limit on motors. Limits are hard to do, but I do wonder if a wind limit, along with a fixed-timing limit might be a solution.  EG, 7 turns, 0 degree timing?  Tough question then is how to integrate brushless motors – maybe a 4.5 turn limit equates to 7-turns of brushed power?
3. Do nothing. Hope the motor manufacturers can get on top of motor problems and all the concerns will go away.  This is possible, though hard to see how brushed motors can change much without some more freedoms in rules. Ditto brushless who at world level are still not allowed to run sintered rotors, and limitations on winding patterns.
4. Continue with 6 cells, but free up motor rules in consultation with motor manufacturers.
5. Continue with 6 cells, but implement motor limits. Same comments as above apply. A simple “turns” limit won’t help, but perhaps “turns” combined with timing might make a difference?  Say 8-9 turns with zero timing?  Perhaps a brushless equivalent of 5.5?
6. Continue with motors and batteries as is, but change the cars to 2wd.  This is my personal favourite. Touring cars are very easy to drive – and even in modified we have more grip than power (which is precisely why there are motor problems). Reduce the grip, reduce the demand on motors/batteries, make the cars more interesting to drive. Win, win, win in my view!
I’m no closer to knowing the true solution.  BRCA, EFRA will be big pieces in the puzzle.  We wait and see what the poms decide this weekend. Keep an eye here, or at www.rcracechat.com – the home of some long and protracted discussions about the future of modified tourers (in Britain at least).