We have been through it all here in South Africa and over the years a strict
regimen has been developed for judging of all cars. Covering originality,
authenticity, condition and cleanliness it gives a very good comparison
between cars whoever is judging and is generally accepted as fair. As a
result, I think, we have encouraged the strict maintenance of the breed as
far as restorations are concerned. Modifications that are visible will be
penalised as non-original and non-authentic. Replacement tyres, though, will
be 'authentic' but will not be penalised as being unoriginal (they would be
'original' if they were the actual ones that were fitted when the car left
the factory). The judges, of course, must have an intimate knowledge of the
model they are judging. This type of competition is our Concours d'Etat.
Last year we (in the Cape Town Centre of the MGCC) introduced a new
category: the Concours d'Voyage for cars that are not pristine but are used
very regularly. Annual mileage is taken into account as well as the level of
participation in club meetings, outings and competitive events. The detail
of judging from a technical aspect is at a much lower level then for the
d'Etat. This means that those who use their cars regularly do not
necessarily have to go to extremes to get the evidence of road dirt out of
all the nooks and crannies - and you know how many of those there are on a
T-type!
We have not had the profusion of mods that have been referred to in recent
messages: Volvo engines, disk brakes, etc. There are the Datsun steering
boxes on TCs (even a Morris Minor steering rack on one which fits in very
nicely and effetively) and MGA diffs in TDs but, in general, the purity is
there.
At our major meets, we also have a Concours d'Elegance and a Concours
d'Comique, the titles being self explanatory. There is something for
everyone.
///
/// mg-t@autox.team.net mailing list
///
|