Another very intense season came to an end, with more than a hundred N5 cars competing in hundreds of rallies around the world. While this period is considered an off-season in many parts of the world, we wanted to fill the gap and ask Roberto Mendez, founder of RMC Motorsport, a few questions about what this year was like for the main N5 manufacturer.
How have the N5 cars developed in 2024? What was the biggest improvement?
The biggest development of the 2024 was the change to the new cross member and front roll bar. This has been very noticeable, especially on asphalt the car has improved a lot. Another benefit was cooling the intercooler, changing the pipes to get more air into the engine and turbo inlet, and achieving a good intake temperature and more torque.
Tell us more about the new models – Škoda Fabia RS and Peugeot 208.
The new models are the Škoda Fabia RS and the Peugeot 208. The Škoda RS is an improvement on the old Škoda, especially in terms of the wheelbase. The chassis is a little heavier, but the longer wheelbase makes it better in fast places. The Peugeot looks very nice with its modern and aerodynamic body kit, even with the long wheelbase. Another big news will be the Ford Puma, already have a very advanced project and first model we will be in Lithuania.
How much has RMC Motorsport improved this year? How many cars have you built this year?
There have been a lot of improvements at RMC in 2024. We have improved in mechanical performance, we have also greatly improved in the quality and finishing details of the cars, the proof of this is that 19 N5 units have been produced in this year 2024.
What is the situation with N5 in Spain? Is the community growing?
In Spain, N5 sales are increasing, not as much as we would like, but they are increasing considerably, it is still the country with the most N5 units.
N5 has a strong community in Spain, Italy, Lithuania, Peru and Ecuador. This year Portugal has also taken a big step. Which other countries is N5 planning to expand into?
In 2024, Portugal has been added, with 9 N5 car in the first year, Mexico with 2 N5 cars, and we are in negotiations with France and Switzerland. These are the four countries we started with in 2024, we have kept all the others.
What new N5 models can we expect in 2025?
The presentation of the new Ford Puma N5 is planned for 2025, and it is possible that we will also launch a Dacia on the market. We are very involved in the Spanish Rally Cross Championship and we did a test in Portugal, which the Portuguese also liked very much. We believe that this is also a good step for the N5.
The N5 family already has 107 cars around the world.
