YOU don't need a fat wallet to succeed in motorsport - just ask Kevin Furber.

The former Hapton driver won his class and finished an amazing fifth overall on the Park Hall Stages, driving a car bought for just £800 six weeks ago!

Furber, a former works Peugeot pilot and now promoter of the new Peugeot 205 Challenge, turned in an astonishing performance against machinery three times more powerful and ten times more expensive.

Shrugging off the danger of ice-laden roads around the Charnock Richard theme park, Furber and his Accrington-based co-driver Liam O'Kane produced a string of top ten times to finish three minutes behind winner Gwyn Thomas in a four-wheel-drive Ford Puma Cosworth!

Said Furber: "I always enjoy this rally. It's usually very slippy and is a mixture of dangerous and easy, a combination that either frustrates or intimidates the drivers who compete.

"It's also brilliant fun, attended by thousands of spectators and is the most sociable rally I know.

"I wanted to deliver a creditable result to show that a 205 Challenge car could be competitive, but I made it more difficult for myself by entering with a sick engine.

"The car actually belongs to Liam, who bought it before Christmas for £800. It has a proper roll cage, sump guards and a few competition parts, but just looks a bit tatty.

"Nevertheless, it ran reliably, and on the few icy early morning stages we set some very competitive times that shot us up the leaderboard.

"I must confess to taking pride in beating the only Peugeot 106 Super Cup car entered. They are extremely fast and it says volumes that an old 205 still has the legs to beat a car 15 years newer!"

Further down the field, there were other creditable performances from other East Lancashire crews who braved the notoriously difficult stages.

Father-and-son team Colin and Mark Blunt, from Clitheroe and district motor club, finished first in the novice class and 14th overall driving their standard Peugeot 205 road car.

Club colleagues Rob Brown-Kenna and Chris Campbell came home 19th overall and seventh in class in their immaculate Vauxhall Nova.

Marathon rally specialists Mark Bowie and Peter Swire made a surprise appearance on a 'sprint' event, driving a RVL Motorsport of Accrington Vauxhall Astra.

"We weren't out for any heroics, especially in the conditions, the aim was just to finish, and get the signatures on our competition licences needed qualify for marathon events this year," explained Mr. Bowie, chairman of Vantage, the East Lancashire-based Vauxhall and Toyota dealers.

"We needed to get the signatures on our competition licences so that we can qualify to compete on marathon events this year."

And despite one slide up a grass banking, the pair got their hire car safely home in 23rd place.

Results: 1: Gwyn Thomas/Phil Harrison (Puma 4x4) 41min 27secs; 2: John Hardman/Neil Pridding (Fiesta 2.4) 41.43; 3: Duncan Taylor/Stephen Graveson (Escort Cosworth) 42.04; 4: Rob Barry/Shelley Rogerson (Mitsubishi Evo) 42.46; 5: Kevin Furber/Liam O'Kane (Peugeot 205) 44.10; 6: Stephen Henty/Andrew Ball (Peugeot 106) 44.17.