Engine problems sideline new Subaru WRX on its Thailand return

The new Subaru WRX STi TCR of Top Run Motorsport completed nine laps in Race 1 on Sunday, before an engine failure forced Luigi Ferrara to park at the side of the circuit at Turn 4, ending their weekend prematurely.

The team had a trouble-free Saturday, but with a gearbox sensor problem on Friday reducing their testing time, and with an engine problem in the first race, the newly-built Subaru had a tricky return to the championship.

“We had an engine failure so the driver decided to stop the car,” said team manager Renato Russo to TouringCarTimes.

“We had no time to change it as we only had one hour, so we’ll work on it to find out what was wrong.”

The car was running competitively in the mid-field throughout the race before the problem hit, but Russo said the team had hoped the car would be further up the field.

“It was not bad, but we should have been a bit faster,” he said. “We have had different troubles starting from the gearbox sensor (on Friday) and now troubles with the engine, so we’re not very happy with the weekend but hopefully it’ll be better next time.”