Even though it's titled "Etna Volcano Climb," the video above doesn't depict a theater of the absurd, but the meaning should be taken literally - a rally car actually climbed Sicily's Mount Etna, which is one of the most active volcanos in the world. The car in question is the Peugeot 208 T16 in rally guise, driven by national rally champion Paolo Andreucci. Obviously, part of the footage is a tribute to the famous "Climb Dance" cin ma v rit short film (click the name to see it), which featured legendary rally driver Ari Vatanen setting a record time at the 1988 Pikes Peak Hillclimb.
Not coincidentally, both films depict Peugeots, but Vatanen drove a 405 Turbo T16 GR hillclimb car, while Andreucci used a modern 208 T16 hatch built for rallying. Unlike the Climb Dance, the new Peugeot video is strictly a marketing ploy and doesn't feature any record-breaking attempt, but the footage is still mesmerizing.
Even though the CGI shots at the end are a bit tacky, the car going sideways up those volcanic roads makes for some pretty cool video action. Despite featuring a range of craters with intense and almost continuous activity, Mount Etna is one of Sicily's main tourist attractions. In Greek mythology, the forges of Hephaestus were said to be located underneath the volcano, so there is also a lot of history surrounding the area. That doesn't make Peugeot's stunt any less dangerous, since the volcano could have erupted at any moment.
Peugeot 208 T16 Rally Car Climbs Volcanic Mount Etna: Video originally appeared on topspeed.com on Monday, 16 March 2015 07:00 EST.
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