Some interesting comments yesterday from various quarters reagrding suspensions in rallies. With my extensively vast 4 rallies participation experience :P, I must also chime in!
For starters leafspings up front are the least desirable to put it mildly. They were simply not ever meant for high speed off-road driving. You simply cannot have a balanced front end for twisty uneven surface for race conditions compared to other setups. The independent front suspension is far more forgiving and easier to drive fast. I have never driven a front leaf spring setup in race condition, but I have driven a standard RKR and trying a fast turn in it was eye opener for me (it just wanted to go straighter!).
Anyway longer wheel base 60 series stripped to the bone may behave better, but only marginally. Having used both LC100 with IFS and solid rear coiled setup vs Nissan Patrol Pickup solid front axle with coils and rear with leafsprings in rallies, the drive is remarkably different. In Jhal like rough terrain the solid front axle did not make as much of a difference, but in sand / desert racing the IFS is superior hence faster.
Mitsuman's and Suhaibs point regarding rear weight and setup to flip or not to flip a vehicle are both valid. There have been plenty Evo flips despite their fully independent suspension in the best of hands, and than there are the others who haven't flipped despite seeming the most un-stable. A lot of flips depend on drivers error, when he braked, where he braked or not, turned in too fast, misjudgement of speed or bump etc.
Finally power, a 1JZ may make the vehicle fast in straight line speed on the road, but translating that onto rallies scenario is very difficult. Power is nothing without control, what is needed is drivability. 1JZ will give you sudden surge of power which can be difficult to control in turns specially when traction is reduced. Suhaib can tell more, but 1UZ may be a better choice comparitively for TLC 60, or a 2UZ vvti would be ideal.
Whatever one does, the first rally or two are purely for gaining experience and safety should be the priority, give it a good whelly when you get approriate track and try to bring it back safely in one piece. Enjoy the event and if one falls in love with rallying, than setup improvement can be done bit by bit!
And now can we have some more pics and vdos of the rally!