The purpose of the dampers on the Subaru Impreza WRC is to control vertical suspension movement, to smooth out the 'bouncing' effect associated with driving on an uneven surface and to maximise wheel contact with the ground to enhance car control. On rough rallies like Cyprus, dampers have a critical role to play in the car's handling, as they have to absorb the impact from constant pounding over especially rocky terrain.

The dampers fitted to the Subaru WRC are filled with oil and dissipate energy by forcing this fluid through small holes as the wheel moves up and down. The relentless pounding puts so much energy into the dampers that they become very hot; the oil inside them can reach temperatures as high as 200ºC.

High temperatures mean the oil's viscosity is reduced (it becomes thinner) and the dampers can become softer and less effective. A huge amount of work is therefore focused on cooling the dampers and maintaining their performance at elevated temperatures.

Each damper on the Subaru has four adjustments that the driver can use to tune the car from stage to stage. There are two adjustments for compression (high speed and low speed) and two adjustments for rebound (also high speed and low speed). The low speed adjusters tune the way the car reacts to small bumps and have an important role in the handling of the car, while the high-speed adjusters affect the way the suspension absorbs the big impacts from jumps and large rocks etc.

Dampers are one of the areas that are close to the heart of the drivers as they make a huge difference to the way the car feels to them. As a result, drivers spend a lot of time discussing damper settings with their engineers, and use this to alter the set up of their car's suspension.

As one of the hottest and roughest rallies of the year, Cyprus can be a gruelling event for cars and drivers alike. Drivers and co-drivers can spend up to 13 hours a day in the car and, contesting some of the twistiest stages in the Championship, they face an enormous physical challenge. SWRT's Driver Trainer John Mills explains how the drivers have prepared for the event and how they'll keep cool in such extreme conditions...

Since January 2004, the SWRT drivers have been following an increased training programme to improve their body composition, fitness and functional strength. A fitness assessment on 5 March showed that Petter and Mikko had become 10 per cent fitter and were more able to endure extreme conditions

A pre-event training camp was organised by the team's Human Performance dept. for the drivers, co-drivers and management to help their acclimatisation. This included a number of exercise sessions and challenges to identify each individual's weaknesses and strengths in the heat

The Subaru Team's Human Performance dept. recommend that whilst competing a driver should drink up to 1.5 litres per hour to combat the dehydrating effect of driving in temperatures of 30ºC. If a driver becomes thirsty, he has already lost 1 per cent of his/her body weight in sweat and suffered a ten per cent decrease in performance. Therefore, in Cyprus, a WRC driver is likely to consume 8 litres of water per day to avoid dehydration

The team has also devised a number of cooling strategies to help keep the SWRT drivers' and co-drivers' temperatures down once the event is underway. For Cyprus, both Subaru Impreza WRCs have been fitted with roof-vents, sun-reflective glass, white painted roofs and auxiliary fans, while each race suit will be cooled in the service area fridge before use

To help the drivers keep cool, portable flat pack showers will be erected in the Subaru service area. Drivers will also be able to change into fresh T-shirts at the end of each stage