“Probably the finest gathering of historic, modern, and futuristic vehicles ever seen on the African continent.”
That’s the verdict on the displays registered for this year’s Knysna Motor Show sponsored by Sanlam Private Wealth, which takes place on 30 April.
“The line-up is incredible, with everything from very rare veteran and vintage cars and bikes to a selection of supercars that’ll be competing in the Jaguar Simola Hillclimb - and to a car that can drive 6,363 km on a single, 50 litre tank of fuel,” said Peter Pretorius, the chairperson of the Garden Route Motor Club and the organiser of the show.
He named a 1926 Hispano-Suiza – the only one of its kind in the world – a 1937 Bentley Drop-head Coupé, a 1929 Packard Super Sport, a 1929 Bentley, a 1927 Bugatti, a 1916 Maxwell Tourer, and a selection of 1915 Model Ts as being among the rarest on the list of more than 400 vehicles (“including fifty awesome motorcycles”) that’ll be on show.
“We’re also very honoured that we’ll be hosting a number of GSM Darts and Lotus 7s (both of which are celebrating their 60th birthdays this year), as well as vehicles from local private museums like the Motorcycle Room - which will be exhibiting for the first time this year - and the Brian Parnell Bruce Collection,” said Mr. Pretorius.
“Every vehicle on show this year has a story to tell - and none more so than the 1954 Tony Ferguson Cooper 500 Mk9 now owned by Dickon Dagitt.
“Tony Fergusson was known as a thorough gentleman, and also as a top-class driver (the British press called him the ‘Ace from Africa’) who gave so much back to motorsport - including running a school for aspirant race drivers, and being one of the people behind the establishment of the Kyalami Race Track.
“The Cooper 500 was one of the cheap, post-war, alloy-bodied Formula-3 race cars that were fitted with motorcycle engines.
“Dickon’s example was originally built for a Norton Manx engine, but now sports a Triumph
Tiger 100 engine. And interestingly it has no diff - which means a solid back axle - and its front and rear brakes work independently,” said Mr. Pretorius.
Two marques celebrating their 60th anniversaries this year will be represented at the Knysna Motor Show: the GSM Dart and the Lotus Seven.
“The GSM Dart was a truly South African sports car that was pioneered, developed, and manufactured by local engineers Bob van Niekerk, Willie Meissner, and Verster de Wit, who produced 116 of them between 1957 and 1965.
“The Darts were very successful in local motor sport, and some examples still turn out regularly for historic motor racing events,” said Mr. Pretorius.
“The Series 1 Lotus Seven was also first produced in 1957.
“Designed by Lotus’ founder Colin Chapman, it reflected his philosophy of performance through light weight and simplicity, and much of its success came from the design of its tubular steel space-frame chassis and its stressed aluminium body panels.
“Although it’s a road-legal car, it’s always been a highly successful clubman racer.
“Most of the Lotus Sevens that we’ll be seeing on the Show were manufactured by Birkin Cars in Pinetown, KwaZulu-Natal,” said Mr. Pretorius.
“For anyone who’s interested in seeing into the future through the eyes of the young people who’re shaping it, one of the most exciting displays at this year’s show will certainly be the NMMU Eco-Car.
“Designed and built by students of the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, it’s an ultra-light, fuel efficient, carbon-composite vehicle powered by a 125 cc, fuel-injected, 4-stroke engine that boasts a measured fuel efficiency of 127.86 km/l of ordinary unleaded petrol – which would make it capable of travelling 6,393 km on standard 50 litre tank (or about the distance from Johannesburg to Cairo),” said Mr. Pretorius.
“It won the prototype gasoline category in the 2016 Shell Eco Marathon: South Africa (the local version of an established worldwide event with annual competitions in the Americas, Asia, and Europe),” said project manager Clive Hands of the Renewable Energy Lab in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at NMMU.
“This qualifies it as the most fuel efficient internal combustion-engined vehicle on the African continent.
“The current team is now on a light-weighting programme and a fuel efficiency programme in preparation for this year’s Marathon, when they hope to extend this distance even further,” he said.
“The Knysna Motor Show has become known as a fun day out for every member of the family - both for the quality of the displays, and for its unique country-style atmosphere with an excellent food court, a beer tent, and undercover seating,” said Mr. Pretorius. “And this year, we’ll have Algoa FM broadcasting live from the showground - which will add to the festivities.”
The Knysna Motor Show sponsored by Sanlam Private Wealth takes place on Sunday, 30 April, 2017 on the Knysna High School Fields (Waterfont Drive). Gates open from 09:30 to 16:00; tickets cost R40.00 for adults, and R10.00 for children 12 to 18 years of age (children under 12 accompanied by an adult enter free of charge). Dedicated parking will be provided for motorcycles, and for the disabled.
Proceeds from the show will benefit Hospice Knysna, FAMSA, E-pap, and Knysna Animal Welfare.
(Statement and Pics:Supplied)
