PIAA UK are supporting David Higgins as a product sponsor for the 2008 season. PIAA UK has been associated with David since he started in Rallying. David will be using the PIAA HID system that has unlike competitor’s products has been expecially designed for Rallying and is not a modified or compromise product.

 

2008 MSA BRITISH RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP
1	Pirelli National Rally, Carlisle	18/19th April
2	Jim Clark National Rally, Kelso	24/25th May
3	Rally Isle of Man, Douglas	17/19th July
4	Ulster National Rally, Armagh	22/23 August
5	Rally Yorkshire, Pickering	27th September
6	Wales Rally GB	29/30th Novmber

PRESS RELEASE: 17th September 2008

HIGGINS HEADS TO YORKSHIRE

Trackrod Rally Yorkshire may have a reputation for being one of the fastest rallies in the BRC, but David Higgins and his co-driver Ieuan Thomas are in the fortunate position of having it look slightly slower to them this year as they fight to maintain their championship points lead on the event.

“The rally we've just come back from in China was stopped because the average speeds were so high on the event so the Trackrod will look slow this year!” says David. “It's not often you go to Yorkshire and think it's slow because it's one of the fastest rallies we do every year because of the long straights.

“The speed of the event will mean the Mitsubishis will be hard to beat because of their strong engines, but we're not going there to finish second. Gravel is my favoured surface and we've just won an amazingly fast gravel rally in China, so we're in great shape for the Trackrod and we'll be going all out to maintain our championship lead. With only three rounds to go, we need to take
good finishes and need to finish ahead of my brother Mark.”

David will spend a day testing his Subaru Impreza N14 before Trackrod Rally Yorkshire after doing extensive work on the car following a disappointing finish in Ulster where he took fifth. It was their first non podium finish of the year. “We thought we had gone forward a lot with the car for the Ulster, but we seemed to have gone backwards,” admits David. “But we've done a lot of work to the car since then so it's looking good for our return to BRC gravel.”

With the Chinese Rally Championship schedule being rearranged this year to run alongside the Olympic Games, the next round of that championship takes place on the same weekend as the Trackrod. Therefore David has been forced to put an end to his record run of consecutive wins in China by missing the next round in favour of the Yorkshire forests.

Trackrod Rally Yorkshire takes place on Saturday 27th September, based in Pickering Showground. David and Ieuan are seeded at number four on the event, while their team mates Hugh Evans and Iestyn Williams are seeded at number 19.

Notes to editors:
David is 35 years old and lives in Trefeglwys, Mid Wales. He was the 2004 British Rally Champion, and the 2002 and 2003 SCCA Pro Rally Champion in America. In 2002 he was also the British Group N Champion. David competes in the Chinese and British Rally Championships, and has driven and taught other drivers rally skills all over the world. He is sponsored by TQ Education and Training, Inchcape, Cobra Seats, PIAA, Speedline Corse wheels, Tein suspension, AAT race wear, the FX Rally School, and Red Rock Wear.

 

PRESS RELEASE: 18th August 2008

ON TO ULSTER

David Higgins and leuan Thomas believe development work done to their Subaru Impreza N14 since Rally Isle of Man, will allow them to build their championship lead on the Ulster International Rally.

"We were disappointed with our speed on the Manx," says David. "But with the data we collected there and the development work we've done since, things look a lot better for Ulster.

"Going into the event we're leading the points, and it's important that we leave the event that way too. Guy [Wilks], my brother [Mark Higgins] and now Gwyndaf [Evans, back with the Mitsubishi squad for Ulster] will always be good competition, but we're still confident of a good result.

"We've got to get the points now because when it comes to the double header round on Rally GB at the end of the year we'll have BRC registered drivers Juho Hanninen and Patrik Flodin rejoining the championship as part of their PWRC season."

An addition to the FX Motor Sports service area in Ulster will be a screen on which the team and sponsors can keep track of David, his co-driver leuan Thomas, and his TQ.com team mates Hugh Evans and lestyn Williams while they are on the stages.

"We'll have a GPS tracker in the car called trackitnow," explains David. "That way the team can monitor our progress throughout the rally — where we are and what speed we are doing. So when our sponsors can't get to the stage, they can see us move through it on the screen instead."

The Ulster International Rally starts on Friday 22 August, based in the Armagh City Hotel, where the FX Motor Sports squad will be available to chat to and sign autographs throughout the event.

 

PRESS RELEASE: 25th May 2008

DAVID CHEWS HIS WAY TO THE CHAMPIONSHIP LEAD!

David Higgins has left the Jim Clark International Rally leading the British Rally Championship points, after he chewed a block of wood to fill a hole in his Subaru's radiator to make sure they made it through the event.

The hole appeared after the second run through the Langton stage on Saturday, most likely caused when the Subaru I mpreza N14 landed after a large jump.

" We lost all of the water out of the radiator,' said David. 'But you've got to keep pushing, so we got to the start of the next stage, found a bit of wood and I chewed it to the right size to block the hole. We filled up the radiator, got a pair of gloves to keep the wood in place, cable tied it down and managed to get the car to service. In situations like that you just can't give up.*

David and his co-driver leuan Thomas finished leg one on Saturday lying second overall behind David's older brother Mark. They kept that position until the very last stage of the rally when gearbox problems allowed Stuart Jones to get past.

"We lost over a minute in the last stage," said Manxman David. `After a good baffle with Stuart throughout the day, that finally let him get past. It's disappointing not to get second after lying second for so long during the event, but we took another podium finish for FX Motor Sports and we've taken the championship lead. The next round is Rally Isle of Man so it's especially good to be going to my home event leading the championship points!

David's TQ.com team mates Hugh Evans and lestyn Williams finished 13th in the BRC section of the event, taking another good set of points for the team. The result leaves team TQ.com second in the teams championship.

David and leuan had to make a quick exit from the finish ramp because they leave for China tomorrow morning to start their attack on the 2008 Chinese Rally Championship. Having become the first crew to win every round in one season last year, all eyes will be on them as they prepare for the Shanghai Rally this weekend.

"The stages don't look very challenging in Shanghai, but that's often the way if a rally is dose to a big city in the Chinese championship," said David. "But we can't wait to get back onto the Chinese stages, and the rally is asphalt, so going straight there from the Jim Clark will be a benefit."

Notes to editors:
David is 35 years old and lives in Trefeglwys, Mid Wales. He was the 2004 British Rally Champion, and the 2002 and 2003 SCCA Pro Rally Champion in America. In 2002 he was also the British Group N Champion. David competes in the Chinese and British Rally Championships, and has driven and taught other drivers rally skills all over the world.

PRESS RELEASE: 18th May 2008

FX MOTOR SPORTS PREPARE FOR SCOTLAND

The FX Motor Sports squad has made a successful start to their asphalt plans for their Subaru Impreza N14s in this year’s British Rally Championship with a day’s testing at Bala.

David Higgins and Nick Rowland took part in the test in preparation for an attack on the Jim Clark Rally on May 23-25, David in his Subaru Impreza N14 and Nick in his Suzuki Swift. With FX boss Hugh Evans unable to attend the test, David will apply the same improvements to his car as he does his own.

“The car was on the pace straight away and got better throughout the test,” said David. “It got easier to drive, and we did a lot of work to get unnecessary weight out of the car. Some things look great, but they’re heavy and not essential so they’ve gone. “We made a lot of changes during the day, maybe ten spring options and many diff options. We need to get more throttle response, but we’re hoping Prodrive can help with that before the event. We left the test with a lot of data which we will use to develop the car further before the Jim Clark. We hope to have another test, but if that’s not possible we’ll have the pre-event shakedown.”

After Nick took second place on the opening round of the Suzuki Swift Sport Cup on the Pirelli International last month, David was further encouraged by the teenager’s first day out on asphalt.

“It was Nick’s first experience of asphalt,” said David. “A few big moments made him realise how serious it is, but he’s come a long way since his time in the F1000 championship last year. He just needs more confidence and commitment at a higher speed, more trust in his car, and he’ll keep getting podium finishes.” TQ.com team driver David currently lies third in the BRC points, only four points behind leader Guy Wilks, with six rounds left in the season. TQ.com lie second in the teams championship.

 

PRESS RELEASE: 20th April 2008

DOUBLE PODIUM SUCCESS FOR FX MOTOR SPORTS

The FX Motor Sports squad took two podium finishes on their British championship debut on the Pirelli International Rally in Carlisle this weekend.

FX fielded three cars in the event: David Higgins and leuan Thomas, and Hugh Evans and lestyn Williams drove sister Subaru Impreza N14s under the TQ.com team banner, while Nick Rowland and Tim Studa competed in an FX-run Suzuki Swift in the new Swift Sport Cup. David finished third overall in the BRC points, while Nick took second place in the Swift series despite having to use superally rules after enduring problems on the opening Friday night stages.

"It's a great start to the year for the team," said David. "Everyone worked really well together and we've picked up good points in both the drivers and teams championships. Guy [Wilks] leads the championship with Juho [Hanninen] second in front of us, but Juho only plans to compete on Rally GB now so he won't have many more points scoring opportunities. Nick's taken great points too, and it's just a shame Hugh had an off or he would have had a stronger result. He had a great rally otherwise."

As FX's Sporting Director, it had been a hectic run-up to the event for David as he and the team completed work on setting up their new workshops at the Higgins family Forest Experience Rally School in Carno, Wales, took delivery of the three cars and tested.

"It was a lot of hard work," admitted David. "Things came together quite late, but we got all three cars ready on time including a chance to test and take part in the pre-event shakedown. It was important to get on the podium, because in the BRC you've got to be on the podium on every rally to have a chance of the title. We learned a lot more about the cars on the event too, so we can't wait for the next round, the Jim Clark Rally."

With the Jim Clark Rally being an asphalt event, the FX squad will now set to switching their three cars to asphalt spec in preparation for a pre-rally test session. But before the Jim Clark, David will also travel to the RBS International Manx Rally where he will run a Ford Escort Mk2 on the event for his father Tony and mother Christina.

Notes to editors:
David is 35 years old and fives in Trefeglwys, Mid Wales. He was the 2004 British Rally Champion, and the 2002 and 2003 SCCA Pro Rally Champion in America. In 2002 he was also the British Group N Champion. David competes in the Chinese and British Rally Championships, and has driven and taught other drivers rally skills all over the world.

 

PRESS RELEASE: 14 February 2008

Tesco 99 Octane MSA British Rally Championship
New for 2008 Regular crew profiles

In the second feature on 2008 BRC registered competitors, 2004 British Rally Champion David Higgins is in the spotlight with his vastly experienced and ever smiling co-driver Ieuan Thomas.

Driver David Higgins DOB 14/11/1972 Lives Trefeglwys, Mid Wales Car Subaru Impreza N14

Co-driver Ieuan Thomas DOB 03/11/1971 Lives Blaenau, Carmarthenshire

David was born in 1972 on the Isle of Man. He now lives in Trefeglwys, Mid Wales, with his wife Kara and his children Alicia and Matthew.

The Higgins family operate "The Forest Experience Rally School". They teach rallying skills and give novice drivers the chance to experience the thrill of driving a rally car. David's grandparents, parents and of course his brother Mark have all been successful rally drivers.

As well as teaching in Wales, David travels the world doing 1-2-1 rally coaching and gravel note making in places like Peru, China, USA, Russia, Finland, Australia and France.

David got his first taste of motorsport in motorcycle trials when he was eight years old, and had moved into national kart racing by the time he was ten. David was a highly successful karter. He won seven titles against drivers including David Coulthard, and still karts today.

As soon as he got the chance David moved into rallying and was invited to drive in Richard Burns’ team in the Peugeot 205 Challenge. After just one season he gained a works drive for Peugeot and won Class A5 in the British Rally Championship (BRC). He broke his neck in an accident in a works Escort in 1995, but recovered to take several BRC victories in the late nineties, including one 1600 and two Group N titles.

2001 was foot and mouth year, but David still took Group N victory on Rally GB after a fraught Formula Rally season. In 2002 he was the SCCA Pro Rally Champion in America and the British Group N champion again. The success led to a drive with the factory Mitsubishi team in America in 2003, David won six events, retained his SCCA title and helped Mitsubishi take the manufacturer's crown too.

For 2004 it was back to Britain where David won the opening round of the British Rally Championship in a Hyundai Accent WRC. His subsequent decision to contest the full season netted his first overall British Rally Championship title. He also helped Ralliart Hong Kong take the teams championship in China by winning two of the three events he contested.

Since starting rallying he has been involved in testing for manufactures including Subaru, Seat, Proton, Peugeot and VW, testing for Mitsubishi’s WRC team in 2004 and 2005. 2006 saw him contest some World Rally Championship events, China Rally Championship (CRC) and BRC where he drove for Mitsubishi. He had some success, taking second N4 in Monte Carlo and second place team in the CRC.

2007 saw a move to a Toyota S2000 in the BRC and a continuation of his CRC campaigning in an Evo. Despite a second place on the Jim Clark, by Yorkshire he had swapped to a Subaru in which he took another two podium places. Overseas he took the China Rally Championship in style, winning every round in his Evo. In 2008 his FX Rallying outfit will be supported by TQ.com again, contesting the BRC in an Impreza N14.

His co-driver, Ieuan’s vast 20 years experience in the co-driver’s seat includes time spent in the British Rally Championship, the Chinese Rally Championship, the MSA Gravel Rally Championship, the Evo Challenge, the Irish Tarmac Championship, the Welsh National Forestry Championship, the Skoda Trophy Championship, Welsh Clubman’s Forestry Championship and Welsh Road Rally Championship.

Ieuan also has experience of rallies from behind the scenes, having been Clerk of the Course on a Welsh championship road rally event. He has also spent time working for Mitsubishi Ralliart on Rally GB and Monte Carlo rallies as a gravel and ice-note collection crew, and spent two seasons with Peugeot Sport UK working as gravel crew for Justin Dale/Andrew Bargery in the BRC.

Other highlights of Ieuan's career include competing on Pikes Peak, co-driving for Hannu Mikkola on the RAC Rally, and competing all over the world including events in America, China, the Czech Republic, Finland and Africa.

Now part of the TQ.com team, Ieuan co-drives for David in the BRC and CRC, the pair having built a good relationship over the years.

 

PRESS RELEASE: January 12th 2008

New team car unveiled at the Autosport International Show

It's here!

The Team TQ Subaru Impreza N14 was unveiled today at the Autosport International Show at the NEC in Birmingham.

At 10.30 this morning David, Ieuan and Hugh Evans unveiled the car in front of a throng of spectators on the Cobra Seats stand.

Pictured, from left to right, are Nick Rowland, Ieuan, David, Hugh, Jon Mills from Inchcape, and team manager Andrew Farrington.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Note to editors:
David is 34 years old and lives in Trefeglwys, Mid Wales. He was the 2004 British Rally Champion, and the 2002 and 2003 SCCA Pro Rally Champion in America. In 2002 he was also the British Group N Champion. David competes in the Chinese and British Rally Championships, and has driven and taught other drivers rally skills all over the world. David is sponsored by TQ Education and Training, and PIAA UK.

Find out more at davidhigginsrally.com

 

Top of Page