Competition greats lined up for Chelsea AutoLegends

| 31 Jul 2011

A mouthwatering display of Rally and Touring Car greats are set to star at Chelsea AutoLegends, held in the grounds of the Royal Hospital Chelsea on Sunday 4 September.

While a selection of Le Mans icons will again be the centrepiece, they will face a serious challenge from a brace of Group B Lancias – 037 and Delta S4 – Carlos Sainz's 2001 Ford Focus RS WRC, a 1993 Group N Escort Cosworth plus two all-conquering Audi quattros,  an A2 from the early 1980s and a dramatic Group B Sport quattro S1 from 1986. Boasting around 600 bhp, it is one of the most powerful rally cars of all time.

In all, some 13 genuine ex-works rally cars – as well as the Lancias, Fords and Audis there will be a Toyota Celica Turbo, MG Metro 6R4, Subaru WRC and an Opel Manta 400 – will be on display. The cars will be matched by the stars. Among the heroes of the stages expected at Chelsea AutoLegends are Russell Brookes and his regular co-driver Mike Broad as well as Yvonne Mehta, who co-drove for (and later married) Kenyan driver Shekar Mehta. 

A display of Group 1 and 2 touring cars will focus on the 1970s with BMW 3.0 CSL ‘Batmobile’ and 2002, an Escort RS1600 and RS2600 ‘Cologne’ Capri from Ford, Alfa’s handsome GTAm as well as the brutally fast Chevrolet Camaro.

Other themed displays include tributes to the Jaguar E-type and Mini Cooper – both 50 this year – and to some of the British ‘Patrons’, the private race team entrants who took on the factory teams… and often won.

Tickets are now on sale either via the event’s website or from the ticket hotline on 08445 810760.