This Swanky Limo Will Leave Your Jaw On The Floor (PHOTO)
I think there is one thing we can all agree on, nothing looks quite as good as a well-maintained classic, state-of-the art car.
And classic and vintage car enthusiasts will certainly be pleased to check out the latest entry into the upcoming Concours D’elegance
The star attraction will be from Uganda and it will be the 1937 Wolseley of Kalvins Kagwa which was ferried to Nairobi by truck. The three litre Wolseley was a popular limousine in pre-World War ll Britain and Kagwa’s machine will become the first example to appear at the competition.
Photo: The 1937 Wolseley
Among Kagwa’s rivals for honours in the class for pre-1940 cars will be the 1939 Ford Model Acoupe of Simon Fisher and Ramesh Gupta’s 1926 Ford Model which will be the oldest car in contention. The favourite“golden oldies” are Diccon Wilcock’s 1934 Railton and the 1928 Ford Model A Tudor of Phoenix Aviation which are both previous overall winners.
The Vintage Motorcycle Club of South Africa is represented by three impressive bikes which will pull spectators to the motorcycle enclosure. Professional heavy weight boxer Bevan Beckmann will be astride his 1946 Harley Davidson, Piet Maas has prepared a rare 1927 Raleigh and Gerald Roelofs is pinning his hopes on a 1925 Triumph. The South Africa contingent has been sponsored by the Galleria Shopping Mall and Jubilee has insured the valuable machines.
The classiest event on the motor sport calendar has a full field of 70 cars and 40 motorcycles which is the maximum allowed by the regulations. These limits have been set to ensure high standards of judging.
The list of Concours cars and motorcycles shows a happy mix of newcomers and regulars. Among the cars which spectators will see for the first time is a 1962 Triumph Herald which is being prepared by Magdi Riad to compete in the crowd pulling sports car class. His rivals include Jaspal Kalsi in a flame red 1972 Alfa Romeo Spider, a 1957 Mercedes 190SL prepared and entered by DT Dobie and Sati Gata Aura’s 1947 MG TC.
Sati Gata Aura recently bought this iconic British sports car from Brian Barton who was placed second in the class last year. Gata-Aura has won the overall prize in his 1977 Nissan 160J three times and has been on the podium 21 times. He is completely rebuilding the MG TC and is one of the favourites for an outright win on September 27th.
In past years Adrian Washika has shown a Volkswagen Beetle and he has now switched to a 1961 VW Karmann Ghia to compete in the up to 1,300 cc touring car class. He will be up against Paul Chemngorem who has taken home many prizes for his 1967 VW Karmann Ghia.
Working in his home garage at Gilgil Fergus Robley has been painstakingly turning a derelict 1967 Alfa Romeo sports coupe into an endurance rally car. The gleaming red Alfa will add interest to the class for competition cars. This also features a replica of the 1974 Lancer which the legendary Jodginder Singh drove to victory in the Safari Rally.
The classes for over 3,000 cc cars are always popular with Concours spectators who throng the Total Quartz inspection ramp and the judging line in front of the main Racecourse grand stands. The 1965 Jaguar E-type of Alec Davis has been rebuilt to new condition. This iconic British sport coupe will be greatly admired on September 27th. Phoenix Aviation’s 1951 Jaguar Mark V limousine is ranged against the Rolls Royce of Rajesh Lakhani made in the same year and Roger Tanner’s 1949 Bentley Mark VI which is the oldest car in the group.
For cars the assessment process starts on the Total Quartz inspection ramp where officials check the underside. Subsequently cars are driven in front of the Racecourse grandstands for officials to mark the paintwork, interior and engine compartment. Motorcycles are judged in a similar way in the parade ring.
Additional attractions to the main event include 28 motor trade stands, live band music, fly pasts, a free fall parachute drop and two grand finale shows. There will also be the Heritage Collection of old equipment and machinery which will feature a 1919 steam engine and a Ferguson tractor.
One of the overseas visitors attending this year’s Concours will be Marco Fazio who heads the historic section of the Alfa Romeo company in Milan and is in charge of the museum and liaison with Alfa Clubs around the world. He will be meeting with the Concoursorganisers before making an assessment of the event on September 27th.
When the founder members of the Alfa Romeo Owners Club (Kenya) gathered in the grounds of the Spread Eagle Hotel (which was the site of the present day Safari Park Hotel) to celebrate the first anniversary of the Club by holding an internal Concours d’Elegance, they never envisaged that the event would one day have an international following.
The impressive variety of cars and bikes contesting the CBA Africa Concours d’Elegance in recent years at the Nairobi Racecourse has attracted international attention. The Concours has been covered by BBC, SABC, Reuters, AFP, AP, EATV, UTV and DSTV giving Kenya favourable publicity.
