ATC UPDATE: Dawn of a new day

Yesterday dawned bleak with dark clouds and persistent drizzle summing up the mood of Feann and me, as we realised the events of the previous evening weren't a dream. The Renault was gone and it looked liked our hopes of finishing the event went with it.

The initial prognosis was not good; sourcing a replacement for the seized starter motor was going to take four days. That was until we got in touch with our contact at Renault Australia headquarters in Dandenong, Julie. She wasted no time jumping into action when she discovered our predicament -- to try and get us back in action.

Before we knew it a Renault technician from Sydney had pulled a starter motor from another Clio and was racing to Newcastle to install it in the ATC racer. Feann and I secured a hire car and headed back down the highway to Newcastle to collect it.

After checking in with the workshop we decided to relax and take in a famous pie at Harry's Café De Wheels on the Newcastle foreshore for lunch. Before we'd even finished eating we received the call that the car was almost ready for action.

We got back to the dealer just in time to witness the finishing touches of the repair and after a quick test drive the R27 was ready to roll. After the disappointment of the previous evening and earlier in the morning, we felt like celebrating.

However, by this time it was after 2pm and with over 400km of distance to travel to catch up we needed to put the celebrations on hold and get moving. Just before 5pm we passed Taree where we had begun the day some 10 hours earlier!

But bleary-eyed and in desperate need to get out of our cramped hot hatch we rolled into Coffs Harbour at just after 8pm and checked into the hotel to official rejoin the field.

Although we missed all of Friday's competition, which included sprints around a go-kart track in Raleigh, a hill climb at Mt Cooperabung and auto tests in Taree and Coffs Harbour, we are ecstatic to have the car back on the road in time for the final day's competition.

Today we'll tackle a hill climb in Grafton before hitting the Casino airstrip for an auto test and then the big finale at the WRC special stage.

Big thanks to everyone who helped us get back in the event, especially Julie, so we'll do our best to make sure the Carsales-Renault is on the pace.

Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at www.carsales.mobi