Ex Richard Burns 1988 Peugeot 309 GTI Group A

Ex Richard Burns 1988 Peugeot 309 GTI Group A 0

Ex Richard Burns 1988 Peugeot 309 GTI Group A 1

Ex Richard Burns 1988 Peugeot 309 GTI Group A 2

For Sale - Ex Richard Burns 1988 Peugeot 309 GTI Group A

- Driven by Richard Burns to 1st in Class and 16th Overall on the 1991 RAC Rally
- Owned by Richard Burns and placed in his personal collection from 1999-2021
- Built by Peugeot Talbot Sport UK and also campaigned to success by Kalle Grundel and Håkan Eriksson.
- Price Upon Application

Built in early 1988 by Peugeot Talbot Sport UK to Group A specification, E777 KKV was first registered on the 17th february 1988 and was immediately allocated to super suede Kalle Grundel for that year's British Rally Championship. The cars first outing would be at the Cartel International Rally but it would be short lived with Grundel suffering with a loss of oil which would force him out of the event. Grundel would go on to compete on the Circuit of Ireland, Welsh and Ulster before handing over to Mikael Sundström to contest the Manx. The year would be rounded out with Grundel getting back in the car for the RAC to finish a fine 10th place overall and second in class.

For 1989, E777 KKV would be allocated to young Swede Håkan Eriksson, the younger brother of Kenneth. Eriksson would contest the whole of the 1989 British Rally Championship for his first championship outside of Sweden.

Eriksson would return in 1990 for another season in the British Rally Championship with the Peugeot Talbot Sport Team. As was now becoming a tradition, the season would start on the Cartel Rally. With an upgraded Group A specification over last year's car, Eriksson by his own admission just wasn't getting to grips with the car and therefore the times were not coming on the first half of the rally. With some setup adjustments in service, Eriksson came through the field strongly to take the class win and 7th overall.

A class win would follow on the Circuit of Ireland after finishing 8th overall, the only hiccup being a loose gear linkage. Eriksson commented “perhaps we have two more days of rally, then we will win”, clearly the confidence in the car was high!

Onto the Welsh International, the winning spree would continue in the unusually hot and dry stages. Despite Eriksson having to have the interior fan on to cool the engine, they finished a remarkable 4th overall and 1st in class. The Scottish would bring a further class victory and 8th overall, only scuppered by collecting a number of punctures. However this would be enough for Eriksson to lift their class title.

In return for winning the 1991 Peugeot Cup, Richard Burns would be given a prize drive in E777 KKV on that year's RAC Rally. Peugeot’s Des O’Dell was hoping to find the next British driver to go on and be World Champion and by providing a car for the RAC for Burns proved to be a step in the right direction.

With the first day's stages being held on mainly stately home grounds, the little Peugeot would come out fighting with a number of top 30 stage times leaving Burns and Reid in 30th overall. As the fog and rain came into Wales for the second day’s stages, the 309 used its lightweight and nimble character with Burns at the wheel to its advantage. After completing the forests of Clocaenog and Hafren there would only be one two wheel drive car ahead, that being the Works Vauxhall of Dave Metclafe.

As the rally headed north towards Kielder Forest, the pace would only improve. Rarely would Burns be seen setting times that weren't fastest in his class. As the weather started to improve, so did the move up the leaderboard. Entering the last day of the rally, Burns would be up to 17th position overall with only four stages until the end of the 565 kilometre event.

Richard Burns and Robert Reid led their class from the finish of SS7 right through to the end of the rally, some 30 stages later. 16th Overall and 1st in Class would bring E777 KKV across the finish line after four days of competition. A dominant performance for the 20 year old youngster behind the wheel and showing great promise for the future.

Following the RAC, the car would be retained by Peugeot and would eventually be sold to Ian Patterson in May of 1998. Patterson would contest that year's Scottish Rally before the car would be sold to none other than Richard Burns through Steve Black of SBG Sport in April of 1999.

The decision would be made to fully restore the car to as it was on the 1991 RAC which included the engine and gearbox being fully rebuilt by Davison Motorsport. The car was completed in February of 2000 where it then joined Burns’s personal collection of cars he had campaigned over his career to date. Autosportif Engineering were tasked with maintaining the complete collection for Burns.
Sadly Richard Burns would pass away in 2005 following a lengthy illness, he remains the only Englishman to lift the World Rally Championship Title. Throughout his career, Burns claimed the 2001 World Drivers Championship, 10 World Rally Victories, 1 British Rally Championship, 2 Peugeot Cup Championships and a Sole British National Championship.

Following his death the car remained in the care of Richard’s family who used the car to promote the newly founded Richard Burns Foundation, a charity set up to help people and families with cancer and neurological illness. The car remained in the care of Autosportif Engineering who maintained the car ready for shows across the UK such as the Goodwood Festival of Speed, Wales Rally GB and the Autosport Show.

E777 KKV entered private ownership in August of 2021 and was once again sent to Autosportif to be overhauled ready for that year's Rallyday show at Castle Combe where the 20th anniversary of Burns World Championship would be celebrated.
Complete with an intriguing history file which includes letters to Burns’s upon acquiring the car, restoration documents, and a comprehensive rally history book amongst others.

Viewing in the UK at Rally Replay HQ based in Chichester, West Sussex, walking distance from the famous Goodwood Motor Circuit. Personalised videos available on request. Global shipping available.