Been thinking about this for a while now. Just wondering how you go about getting into Historic rallying? What are the driver requirements and the car requirements? Historic rallying seems a little less competitive and more for the fun of it which is what attracts me to it. I've also come across a nice little 70s Vauxhall Viva that'd look well as a Historic rally car but I wouldn't know where to start. Does it already have to be a rally car or can you take any car and follow the rule book (cage/seats/safety requirements etc) to create your own car?
http://www.msauk.org/custom/asp/home/default.asp will have the blue book type regs for you to see i would be sure and if your thinking of competing to be top 3 then you need massive budget for the craic though on a budget it is probably a good class to be in even class 3 would be good craic, wee swift 1400cc 16v would be built for about £8k rallying isnt a cheap sport and dont let anyone tell you it is, Nazor has an entry level car (budget wise) and he could tell you how scary costs are thing with historic is you run 70 profile tyres etc so skinny wheels and all are regs which will likely keep costs down
As I said the competitive aspect isn't the main prospect - just for the fun. Good bit of promotion for the business at the same time too.
when you say historic rallying are you referring to stage rallying or the more affordable navigation rallying. We do the Circuit of Ireland Retrospective Rally each year in an MG Midget. If you want a guided tour and more info on classic rallying in that respect pop round for a coffee some night dude as i compete (as a navigator) and my missus is very heavily involved in the organisational side of all aspects of rallying.
do you want tarmac or gravel and if your only out for the craic and promotion a historic car will most certainly get more attention than most cars there was a big old porsche out at kirkistown which was well cool to see
First of all - are you mad?? hahaha. Rallying is thee best sport in the world in my opinion but no matter what kind of rallying you do its going to be expensive. My advice is if you can find a historic rallycar forsale your much better off rather than going to build a car. You can sit down and think about all the bits and pieces and add it all up and then x2 and you'll be nearer the real cost. Then the inevitable teething problems come and it can be very disheartening. A idea of one cost is your safety gear. A decent helmet - i recommend a Peltor/Stilo they are 300-400 quid plus your HANS device (which would be necessary for rounds in the south) another 400 odd quid and then your suit 150-300 (i bought my PeugeotSport race suit through the local Peugeot dealer) and then other bits like boots,gloves,balaclava's and underwear and thats another 120 quid plus to add to the pot so you are in a grand already and you havent even bought the damn car! Now i know some people will disagree with my figures - certain things more expensive and others less expensive. If your budget is healthy and you have a fair bit of disposable income then i say do it, do it, do it!
1 of my customers is into this - he's doing the whole british championship (8 rounds iirc) in his fully prepped mk2 escort . he was in having a natter yesterday ,and without giving away any figures to me , i get the impression its a rich mans sport! his mk2 stays in england and he just flies over for the events. but he said that the entries for the normal rally cars - ie grp n etc. are nowhere near as many as for the historics ,so you'd assume there'll be all different sizes of budgets too.?? saying that money doesnt seem to be an issue to him - a few months ago he sold his house to rory mcilroy
to build a competitive Mk2 you need £100k but has anyone actually found out yet if Bryan is talking about historic stage rallying or nav rallying?
Bryan, my advice would be to buy a car that’s already prep'd or hire one, building your own, whilst hugely satisfying, will cost £1000's and it's money you'll never recoup - we learnt this the hard way. Stage Rallying requires a huge commitment both on and off stage, but if you have the time and resources then definitely go for it
i mite take you up on your offer of some info. my dad has a 1968 tr5 sitting there, and i think he'd be better looking at doing something like this with it as i can remember the last time he polished his own car.
You've all put me off now... I thought there would have been less competition and more fun involved in this type of rallying - it seems it's the same as every other type!
youre welcome over dude, or next time im out your way ill pop in We were stupid enough to let a TR3a with Circuit of Ireland history slip through our fingers the 5 would be ideal for our stuff as there is room and comfort. Gimme a shout if you want and i can run you through almost every aspect of it, but i charge for navigation lessons
the guys out for fun are those with deep pockets and their idea of fun is kicking the living f**k out of their car to ensure they stay ahead of the next guy. Same as any form of competition, its down to those with the fattest wallet You could be out having serious good craic but you would be way down the field and most spectators dont stay long enough to watch the homebrew heroes. They just stay to watch a few Mk2's try and keep up with Camillus Bradley then back to the burger van.
Bryan you can still have the fun but you need to be aware of the potential pit falls. There is no real way round it, rallying is expensive. Like I said if your budget allows it go for it. Initial costs are the worst thing like the safety gear and obviously the car. Some nice sponsors too will go down very well and if your handy around a car that can help to lower costs. It's all about getting all the pieces to fit.
I remember getting ready to leave for the Bushwacker, got everything sorted the night before so I could stay in bed a bit longer, jumped in the car and got to end of the street and when I realised 2 of the trailer tyres had slow punctures. Wasn't a mission I'd get the sorted at 4am on a Saturday morning, we had to withdraw, so lost the entrance fee and had to pay to get the punctures repaired.
similar thing happened to me. Had invited a friend from Dublin to come up and go to Aghadowey one Saturday. She was going to sit in alongside me on the run. Turned the car with the trailer on in the yard and headed down the driveway. Was just about to pull out and then BANG! one of the hubs shattered into pieces! that was that we where finished. Just happy it didnt happen at any kind of speed as we could have been killed. Rallying - some of the best fun mixed with some of the lowest points
ermmm, how did that stop either of you the cars are road legal, so drive them as a worst case - end of the day they are a tool, to do a job, not a queen to sit on a trailer. Patrick, i thought higher of you, i really did
Lol - the car was not insured nor was it taxed or mot'd! Aghadowey isnt a MSA event so it didnt need to be legal