Do the math. A typical SCCA or vintage race
covers around 30 miles. The standard length of
a four-day vintage rally or tour is 1000 miles. As
well-known vintage racer Richard Sirota puts it, “I spent
more time above 140 mph on one Texas 1000 rally than in
20 years of vintage racing.”
He’s not exaggerating. There are stretches on the Texas
1000, Copperstate 1000 and Colorado Grand where fast
cars can cruise at elevated speeds for hours at a time. In
other words, a vintage rally isn’t just a race—it can be
much more demanding than that. Want in on the action?
These tips will help you get there.
On the Market
Step one: Select the right rally car. One important
factor in your decision should be your navigator. You
and your car-crazy buddy may be perfectly happy
banging around in a prewar race car with no fenders,
mufflers, windshield or top, but a less adventurous
partner may think a Corvette or Porsche from the ’50s is
plenty sporty enough.
Assuming you’re not a billionaire collector
like Craig McCaw or Rob Walton, what car
should you buy to enter the vintage rally
world? Based on decades of experience, we
have a few favorites:
1957-’67 Corvette
1967-’74 Ferrari Dino 246
1948-’61 Jaguar XK-120/140/150
1957-’64 Maserati 3500 GT
1963-’71 Mercedes 230/250/280SL
1950-’68 Morgan Plus 4
1956-’65 Porsche 356
1969-’89 Porsche 911
1965-’68 Shelby Mustang
These cars have proved to be more reliable
than average, and parts and knowledge are
widely available—locally and online. For
rallying purposes, most cars built before World
War II are frankly too valuable, too slow, too
difficult to maintain, too uncomfortable or all
of the above.
Cars built since 1990 are either not accepted
by all rally organizations or are so fast and
sophisticated that they’re honestly not much
fun to drive at anything approaching legal
speeds. The sweet spot: sports cars from the
’50s and ’60s. They’re fun to drive, beautiful
to look at, easy to fix and eligible for just about
every event on the planet. The fact that most of
them are nicely escalating in value is a bonus.
Essential Equipment
Just like vintage races, vintage rallies are
won in the garage. You should prepare your
car thoroughly, paying special attention to
often-neglected areas—the cooling system,
electrical system, brakes, tires, shock absorbers,
wheel bearings and U-joints—plus any special
weaknesses particular to your model of car.
Unless you do all your own work, selecting
the right mechanic is crucial. Many classic car
“restorers” are only concerned with making
a car shiny enough to win a concours. Race
shops, on the other hand, are focused on
making it go as fast as possible for a short
period of time.
It’s all too easy to ruin a classic sports car
with “improvements” that may work fine on a
race track, but are counterproductive for safely
covering 1000 miles without trouble. Your
aim should be reliable performance with no
surprises, not ultimate horsepower you’ll never
use. You really need to find a mechanic who
understands what you’re planning to do.
The basic rule of thumb is to keep your
car looking vintage while updating hidden
safety and reliability parts. If your upgrades
don’t require any cutting of the original
structure, you can always switch everything
back to stock. Modern four-point racing
seat belts are not only safer, they’re more
comfortable. A pair of Recaro-style bucket
seats can take the sting out of a 1000-mile
rally and can always be swapped back for
the stock seats before the next car show.
Particularly in a roadster, a classic four-point
roll bar is a good idea, too.
No rally organizer is going to care if you fit modern
radial tires, Porterfield brake pads, Bilstein shocks and
a Tremec five-speed to your old Corvette. On the other
hand, outlandish graphics, aftermarket fender flares and
22-inch wheels will just get you laughed at.
For most American rally events, you won’t need a
suite of high-tech gadgets. Rally computers are typically
overkill; instead, teams use stopwatches, atomic
watches or iPhones. In addition to appropriate timing
equipment, your navigator should have at least two pens
and a set of different-colored highlighters. If you have
a particularly noisy sports car, invest in a pair of those
head-mount intercoms that touring motorcyclists use.
Some enthusiasts think it’s fun to invest in vintage
rally equipment, like a Curta “coffee grinder” calculator
or Halda Speedpilot. Some teams even try to replicate
similar cars that competed in the Rallye Monte Carlo
in the old days, fitting auxiliary driving lights, leather
hood straps, a map light for the navigator and lots of
mysterious extra switches on the dash.
At the very least, you should equip your rally car
with a fire extinguisher, spare tire, small jack, tool
kit, oil, brake fluid, coolant, spark plugs, wire ties
and first-aid kit. A cell phone could save your life, or
someone else’s. Also bring lots of clothing layers, from a polo shirt
and tennis shorts to a ski jacket and gloves. Old sports cars—even
closed cars—can be cold and drafty or hot and stuffy.
The navigator’s feet are especially vulnerable, and
there’s no misery quite like having cold, wet feet. Make
sure your navigator invests in warm boots.
In the Hot Seat
Most American old-car “rallies” are tours:
Organizers plan meals, book hotel rooms and prepare
rudimentary maps, while participants basically travel
around in a group. Other events are competitive
time-speed-distance rallies, which feature elaborate
route books full of instructions, checkpoints to
be zeroed and prizes to be won. This competition
element adds more twists to the trip: more gear and
more detailed planning.
Experienced vintage rally teams have learned a few
helpful tricks for participating in the event. If you can,
be one of the first cars out in the morning. Early cars
avoid rush-hour traffic and miss the afternoon school
buses, too. You’ll also gain time to enjoy the various
stops along the way, something that’s hard to do if you’re
always running late.
Always verify all route directions as soon as you can.
For example, if you’re supposed to cross a bridge half a
mile after a turn, make sure you cross that bridge when you come to it.
If there’s no bridge, stop before you get even farther off the route.
The chance of your 40-year-old Ferrari
odometer agreeing with the odometer of the
rallymeister’s new Porsche is virtually nil.
Figure out the standard deviation as quickly as
possible. The navigator should use a highlighter
to mark important route instructions ahead of
time, then check them off as they’re performed.
That's the Spirit
Most importantly, don’t take it all so
seriously that you spoil what should be a
wonderful and memorable vacation. Enjoy
your time driving your special car on special
roads with your navigator. Remember, if you
win a vintage rally, it’s possible that Roger
Penske will offer you a drive in the Indy
500—but he probably won’t.
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