Of course, no one would ever expect or want the FIA sanctioned World Championship to go the one-make route (although the drivetrain is now uniform in World RX), it begs the question why World RX didn’t take this opportunity to turn the drama levels up to 11 when it comes to reaches the cars.
The vast majority of rallycross fans didn’t want an electric switch, even if the teams and (now departed) manufacturers did. So, to win them over, something sharp was definitely needed, not something visually reminiscent of the flaming cars that everyone is used to and still craves.
Cost would be an easy argument, but at a reported €300,000 for the electric drivetrain kit and €100,000 for four years of technical support, the World RX isn’t exactly cheap. You’ll notice that the actual car, four wheels, suspension, brakes, and all that was not included in those numbers either.
Meanwhile, the first 10 customers of Nitro Rallycross’ FC1-X get a complete car with “just” support for €375,000 – a car that packs around 400 extra old-money horsepower and a 0-60 time that’s up 0.4 seconds faster if that’s what you like. If you want to buy one right now, it’s about €430,000, in full.
https://dirtfish.com/rallycross/world-rx/has-world-rx-missed-an-opportunity-with-electric-revolution/
