Tim O'Neil

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Tim O'Neil
Nationality	American
2008 Rally America
Début season	1986
Current team	Team O'Neil
Previous teams	Mitsubishi, Volkswagen
Previous series
	SCCA ProRally
Championship titles
1989, 1992	SCCA ProRally Group A Champion, GT Champion

Tim O'Neil is an American rally racing driver, and the winner of five North American rally championships.^[1] He has driven both as a privateer, and as a factory driver for Volkswagen and Mitsubishi.^[2]

Contents 1 Racing Career 1.1 1980s 1.2 1990s 1.3 2000s 2 Rally School 3 Sources

[edit] Racing Career

[edit] 1980s

O'Neil's first rallying experience was in 1986, racing a Saab 99 he had prepared, winning Canada's Novice of the Year.^[3] Prior to this he had raced stock cars, receiving rookie of the year honors in 1982.^[4] In 1987, he won the New England Division Championship.^[5] He was recruited by Volkswagen in 1988 to drive the Group A Golf GTI.^[6] During that year's Press On Regardless Rally, he led for over two days before getting stuck in a ditch on the last stage.^[7] He achieved his first overall victory at the Tall Pines Rally, clinching the Canadian Group A title.^[8]

He formed Team O'Neil Motorsport in 1989 as Volkswagen moved from Group A to the Production Class.^[9] He won six of the first eight SCCA National ProRally Championship Events, locking up both individual and manufacturer's championships by midseason.^[10] As North American Production Champion, he also became the first Production class driver to win overall at an SCCA national event.^[11]

[edit] 1990s

In 1990, O'Neil drove the AWD, supercharged Rallye Golf prototype to three overall wins and then became the first American in years to compete in Finland's 1000 Lakes Rally, a World Rally Championship event.^[12] In the same year, he used the car to set a record time of 7m, 45s in the Mount Washington Hillclimb Auto Race.^[13] In 1992, O'Neil was signed by Mitsubishi, and drove a Galant VR4 to win the National GT Championship.^[14]

[edit] 2000s

O'Neil drove a United States Air Force Reserve sponsored 2002 Ford SVT Focus in the 2002 and 2003 SCCA ProRally Championship seasons, which was featured in the game Sega Rally 2006.^[15] At the end of the 2003 season, he announced his retirement from competition to focus on his Rally School.^[16]

He began competing again in 2006, driving a Subaru WRX STI, in several events in the Rally America National Championship in 2006 and 2007.^[17][18][19]

[edit] Rally School

O'Neil started the Tim O'Neil Rally School in 1997, after having spent several years coaching other rally drivers on techniques, most notably, the skill of left-foot braking.^[20][21]

[edit] Sources