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Motorsport
Pavel Sibera, Emil Triner
At the Wheel of Great Change
At the turn of the 80s and 90s, both the carmaker and the Škoda Motorsport department were going through significant changes. Pavel Sibera and Emil Triner were the main drivers for the works team at the time. The Škoda Felicia Kit Car was an important milestone throughout this period.
Emil Triner (on the left)
He came to rallying through his work as a service technician. He competed in his first event in 1982. Ten years later, he was given an opportunity in the Škoda Motorsport factory team, where he became known for his flamboyant driving style in front-wheel-drive cars. Memorable is his class victory in Rally Nový Zealand in 1996, where he arrived sideways at the finish ramp. He is the F2 category European Champion from 1998.
Pavel Sibera (on the right)
He began racing in 1984 and just three years later was given the opportunity to compete in international events in factory colours. He won the Czechoslovak championship title three times in the A1300 class, and with the Favorit managed to win the class four times in a row at Rallye Monte Carlo – a feat he repeated in 1996 with the Felicia Kit Car. In 1999 he was European vice-champion, and he ended his racing career in 2001.
Both Pavel Sibera and Emil Triner have experience with rear-wheel-drive Škoda competition cars, front-wheel-drive models, and a WRC special. P. Sibera raced with factory backing as far back as the Škoda 130 LR, and E. Triner also cut his teeth on rear-wheel-drive machinery. He joined the factory team just as the rear-wheel-drive era was drawing to a close and the switch was being made to the front-wheel-drive Favorit. When Favorit replaced Felicia Kit Car in 1995, it marked another major turning point. "This was already a proper racing car in every sense of the word. And we built it to be as good to drive as possible," recalls P. Sibera. E. Triner adds: "Wide arches, spoilers, wheels and brakes, a fuel-injected engine, and also power steering for the first time — those were the fundamental changes." Felicia Kit Car ultimately competed in factory colours for three seasons before being temporarily replaced by Octavia Kit Car, which in turn foreshadowed the car built for the top competition category — the Octavia WRC. P. Sibera and E. Triner drove these cars too, and achieved significant results with them. Nevertheless, they look back on the Felicia Kit Car as a landmark car that stood at the very beginning of the modern competition era for the Škoda Motorsport team.
3
That is how many active seasons the Škoda Felicia Kit Car spent in factory colours. E. Triner and P. Sibera competed with it in world-championship events during the 1995, 1996 and 1997 seasons. The car went through three powertrain evolutions, progressing from a 1,3-litre engine to 1,5 litres and then to 1,6 litres.
1996
This year was the most successful in the short rally career of the Felicia Kit Car. The Škoda Motorsport team was competing for the title in the up-to-two-litre class. The final standings came down to the closing RAC Rally in Britain, where unfortunately neither of the two entered cars finished the event. Even so, Škoda Auto finished third in the manufacturers' standings in that class.
8,000
In the second half of the 1996 season, the Felicia Kit Car received its most powerful engine. The 1,6‑litre unit produced a maximum output of 128 kW at 8,000 rpm. "That engine wasn't really suited to it — it was an eight-valve, long-stroke unit — but it worked," smiles P. Sibera.
Interviews
Pavel Sibera
What was the difference for drivers between the Favorit and Felicia Kit Car race cars?
Behind the wheel, it doesn't really matter whether you're driving a front-wheel-drive car with 120 hp like the Favorit, 185 hp like the Felicia, or 280 hp like the Octavia Kit Car. The Felicia was somewhere in the middle: it was as agile as the Favorit, but especially on asphalt, you could tell it lacked the power of the two‑litre models we were competing against. The car performed great, though.
What successes do you remember with the Felicia special?
We raced in the Two-Wheel Drive Cup, and in 1996 we had a great chance at the title right up until the end. Unfortunately, we lost it when we had to retire from the final RAC Rally in Britain. But the Felicia was truly great. In 1995, I took fourth place overall with it in Argentina; we finished eighth at the Acropolis Rally; and a year later, we were sixth in Portugal.
Before you started racing, you were a car mechanic. Were you able to put that experience to use in competitions?
Definitely, but it had its pros and cons. I knew every car well; I knew how they were built. And that also meant I wanted to treat the machinery with care so it would last. But on the other hand, I wanted to drive fast, so it was a constant search for a compromise. After all, a race only counts at the finish line, and without finishing, there's no result.
How did you find driving the Octavia special in the Kit Car and WRC versions?
While the Octavia eliminated the Felicia's disadvantage of having a weaker engine, it was also a larger car that wasn't as agile. The rear end acted like a pendulum. The Octavia Kit Car was the car we used to gain experience for entering the top category of the World Championship. I didn't get to drive the Octavia WRC much with the factory team afterward, but I enjoyed it during the 2001 season in the Czech Championship.
And then you quit racing. How come?
When you're used to the factory level, everything else seems a bit ordinary. Plus, it was a time of major changes, when the need for strong financial backing was becoming increasingly apparent. That was something I didn't really want to deal with. And we were getting older, too. Even today, though, I occasionally take a spin during tests just for fun, so I still enjoy cars.
Emil Triner
What are your memories of the Felicia Kit Car?
The Favorit was still very much a production car, whereas the Felicia was already a true competition car. I'd say it was on par with the Škoda 130 RS, which was a special model with a significantly modified body and other technical features. And the Felicia returned to that level – it was a true "race car". At first glance, it had everything a car like that should have. And for the first time, it had power steering – that was fantastic. The first rally we entered was the Swedish Rally, and there we immediately secured a one-two finish in our class. The car handled beautifully and was a joy to drive.
You became famous for your finish in the Felicia Kit Car on the finish ramp in New Zealand in 1996. How do you remember that moment?
It all came together for us back then. I won my class there in the Felicia special, and during the celebration, I managed that magnificent sideways finish on the finish ramp. I really enjoyed driving that car there, just as much as the awards ceremony itself, when the national anthem played and the flag was flying. That's where the Felicia really shone; it was fantastic.
What other moments with the Felicia do you remember?
For example, when we first introduced it to Czech fans at the Šumava Rally. They were amazed by what the car could do, its power, and how it drifted. A lot of my friends from Příbram came to watch and cheer me on. They told me they were standing at an intersection, determined not to back down in front of the car. But when I came barrelling toward them, they all stepped back because they thought I wouldn't be able to stop in time. But I did manage to stop in time and drove past them sideways.
What was the atmosphere like in the factory team back then?
It was excellent. In my day, people used to say that only someone from Mladá Boleslav could make the team, but as a native of Příbram, they welcomed me with open arms. Everyone treated me wonderfully. It was also a time when we could drive however we saw fit, which probably wouldn't be possible today. My wild style might not have always been the fastest, but that's how it worked for me, and I wouldn't have known how to do it any other way.