Tolman Engineering Launches Dedicated Group B Restoration Programme

Do you have a Group B homologation special casually sitting around in your garage? Well, firstly, we want to be your friends, and secondly, you’ll be pleased to know there’s a new option if keeping on top of maintenance has been an issue.

It comes from Tolman Engineering, the firm behind the brilliant Peugeot 205 GTi restomod we drove last year. It’s just launched a dedicated service for restoring and recommissioning the cars that were built in tiny numbers to give manufacturers a leg up during the short-lived, spectacular and dangerous Group B era of rallying in the mid ’80s.

The Warwickshire-based outfit says that in the post-Group B years, lots of these roadgoing homologation specials suffered from a lack of manufacturer support as well as being pulled apart for spares as the racing versions were used in other disciplines like rallycross and hillclimbing. 

That’s led to lots of them not getting the regular use they deserve and, in fact, need, says founder Chris Tolman: “Even with the best intentions, not exercising a car, especially those increasing in value, can lead to more headaches. Rubber components such as belts, engine or drivetrain seals and fuel lines will deteriorate over time, making them potentially unsafe or unreliable.”

Now, obviously, your local Lancia dealership isn’t going to stock the drivetrain seals for a Delta S4 Stradale, especially if you live in Britain and therefore don’t have a local Lancia dealership. This is where Tolman, and its ability to both recommission existing parts and manufacture new ones, comes in.

It’s already given two cars the treatment they deserve. A 1200-mile Ford RS200 has been given a full refurb complete with a brand new ECU upgrade for better reliability and on-road driveability, something Tolman says can be fitted to any fuel-injected homologation special of the era.

That’s nothing, though, compared to the Peugeot 205 T16 it’s had its hands on. That not only had a full transmission rebuild, with new-old stock components somehow sourced from France, but was also treated to a new cambelt timing kit, front anti-roll bar bushes and coolant pipes, all designed and manufactured in-house.

Tolman says it has a Renault 5 Turbo 2 landing in its workshop very soon to get some similar attention lavished on it. Now, if only we owned that MG Metro 6R4 we’ve been fantasising about, we could finally get some of its inevitable issues straightened out…