Back in the day

Talbots and TR4s are no strangers to international rallying. Before the war, the Coupe des Alpes was the most formidable rally of Europe. The Talbots' powerful engines and slick pre-selector gearboxes ate up the miles over the mountain passes. In 1932 a team of four Talbots won the Alpine, accumulating a combined penalty points total of zero. Car BGH 23, pictured here in the 1934 event in which Talbots again triumphed, is still rallied in historic events today.

A Triumph works rally team of four TR4s campaigned in the premier international road rallies in 1962 and 63, achieving creditable performances in the Tulip Rally, the 3,500km Liege-Sofia-Liege, and the Monte Carlo. But rallying then shifted to special forest stages, front wheel drive and the Mini Cooper. And big budgets: cash-strapped Triumph could no longer hold its own.

The cars are on their way

Scrutineering in Auckland isn't until 13 Feb, but we waved bye-bye to the cars back in Nov for their six weeks on a container ship. Joe 90 was collected from Scotland while Mario trailered Daphne over to the shippers in Suffolk. We’ve stashed the cars with packs of carefully-curated spares (except the ones we’ll actually need, obvs.), favourite tools, and requisite fix-its: like WD40 (for things that should move, but won’t), gaffer tape (things that do move, but shouldn’t), and Starburst sweets (nothing better for plugging a fuel tank leak).

The motors

Joe 90 under reconstruction in 2019

Twenty five cars have been entered for NZ. Serious ERA competitors’ weapons of choice include 1920s 4.5 litre Bentleys, 1960s Volvos and Mercedes 280 ‘Pagodas’, and 1970s Porsches.
Peter and Penelope are rallying a 1935 Brooklands Special Talbot, known hereinafter as Joe 90 (no, I don’t know either). The 1930s Talbots were racing thoroughbreds. The 1665cc engine is mated to an advanced Wilson pre-selector gearbox. This  example was re-born from a bare chassis in 2019 in Peter’s workshop, emerging with a scratch-built ash frame and aluminium coachwork. A joy to behold and topped with a hood stitched by Penelope her good self. 

Daphne - now rally-ready and raring

SuperMario and Rita are fielding Daphne their 1962 Triumph TR4. Lightly rally-prepared with a Stage 2 tuned 2.1 litre engine (mainly for the lovely sound effects) and other tweaks faithful to the Triumph works rally team cars, such as a sump guard: TRs are low-slung. Best of all she is Signal Red, the only proper colour for a TR4. As a concession to NZ's gravel roads she has period Minilite alloy wheels in place of her wires. Both cars have the permitted rally nav equipment, limited to calibrated rally trip meters and stopwatches.

What's an endurance rally?

Of all the motor rally disciplines, endurance events involve the most miles driven and consequently the most beer consumed. The NZ event covers 4,300 miles starting in Auckland and ending at Christchurch 23 days later. Each driving day includes one or more ‘regularity’ sections involving stopwatch timing to the second, based on varying average speeds. There are also short special tests on closed circuits. The rallies are run by the Endurance Rally Association (ERA), whose flagship event is the gruelling Peking-to-Paris: we're hoping NZ will be rather 'softer'...

Prologue

Talbot 'Dom' on the Baltic Rally back in 2017

Spurred on by their dismal failure to come last in the 2017 Baltic Classic endurance rally, Peter Perfect (driver) and Penelope Peestop (nav) recruited a new pair of contenders for that honour, on the New Zealand Classic event in Feb-March 2020. So Peter and Penny will be joined for the event by SuperMario and Rita Regularity, both complete novices to international rallying. Fresh meat.