The twenty-seventh George Old Car Show will be held at Eden Technical High School, in Union street, George, on February 10 and 11, with more than 1 000 classical cars expected. Entries, thus far, have come from Thabazimbi, in Limpopo, Upington, in the Northern Cape, from Gauteng and the Free State provinces, as well as Windhoek, in Namibia.

The line-up of cars will showcase a sweep of time in South African motoring history that dates back to more than 100 years ago, up to modern cars that have achieved instant classic status. The show will open to spectators from 08:00 each day, until 18:00 on the tenth and 14:00 on the eleventh.

Cars, trucks, motorcycles and tractors will be on show, as will stationary industrial engines. The oldest cars on the show will be well over 100 years old. These old cars, in the Veteran and Vintage category, will be arriving in George on February 9, after a traditional pre-show tour that, this year, starts from Calitzdorp.

Different car marques will also be present, from Alfa Romeos to Zephyrs, based on the early entries received for the 2024 show, the organisers said on January 23.

An interesting entry this year is from Wessie van der Westhuizen from Thabazimbi. In 2019, he saw a genuine 1904 De Dion-Bouton at the George Old Car Show owned by Tom van der Vyver. Working only from photographs, Wessie has since created a replica of the De Dion, and will be showing this car in George this year.

“The main show day will be on Saturday, February 10, while the Sunday has been designated as a family day with entertainment provided by the International Oompah Band to add a German feel to the proceedings, as this year’s show has been given a special German theme.

“Traditionally, there are no shortages of German-built machinery at the George Old Car Show, and once again there have been strong entries featuring BMW, Borgward, DKW, Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen machinery,” the organisers said.

“Owners of pre-1985 classic cars should note that only cars pre-entered for the show will be allowed into the show area for display purposes,” they noted.

Spectators can pre-book discounted tickets for the show using the iTickets website, which will make access to the grounds much easier. To further ease congestion, the organisers are establishing extra sales points to the show at the high school venue this year.

Meanwhile, support from car clubs for the event has been impressive, and the organising club, the Southern Cape Old Car Club (SCOCC), will field an impressive entry of members’ cars.

“Club participation is vital to this event, as this is the only car show in South Africa where car clubs take centre-stage and conduct drive-by demonstrations of their cars throughout the event,” it said.

The show has attracted notable entries, including from the MG Car Club and the Kombi Owners Club, in the Western Cape, the Rover Motorcycle Club, in Hogsback in the Eastern Cape, the Mercedes-Benz Club of South Africa, and a massive entry from the Concept Crew Car Club from the Despatch area, in the Eastern Cape.

Further, a contingent of ten cars from the Morris Minor Owners Club will be travelling to the show from the Cape Town area.

“The drive-by component of the George Old Car Show is an on-going highlight of the event and makes our show stand out. It enables showgoers to find a comfortable seat and experience all the cars as they drive by in groups on the main show field,” said SCOCC chairperson Waldo Scribante.

The SCOCC's public address team also interacts with all the car owners during the drive-by sequences to provide a running commentary of each and every car, he noted.

At the other end of the motorised spectrum, there are several interesting 50 cc motorcycle entries from the Eastern Cape. From Gqeberha comes a collection of Zundapp and Kreidler 50 cc bikes that were the toast of the town in the early 1970s. Further, Italian bikes from Garelli and Maserati, which is a sister company to the famous sports car maker will be travelling to George from Port Alfred.

Additionally, a number of classic motorcycles have also been entered, including Ariel, Douglas, Francis-Barnett, Norton and Velocette. There will also be a strong entry of Vespas from the George area, the SCOCC said.

CAR MAKERS
Mercedes-Benz will have a massive representation at George Old Car Show 2024, headlined by no less than eight original 300SL machines, which are the all-time classics sports cars built between 1954 and 1963.

The Mercedes-Benz Car Club stand will have iconic examples of these famous German machines harking back to 1913, whilst including examples of modern Mercs, such as the SLS Gullwing and AMG GT supercars, the club said.

BMW will also be well represented by some unusual examples of the Bavarian marque, including a Bauer Cabriolet version of the 323 model from the 1980s, a highly desirable 35iS Shadowline from the 1990s and more modern examples of M3 and M5 performance sedans.

British sports cars ruled the roost in the early 1950s through to the early 1970s, and there will be a massive turn-out of MGs, ranging back to the late 1940s TC examples to the more modern MGs from a decade or so ago.

At least one example of the famous MGA Twin Cam model will be on display, as well as many variants of the famous MGB, which sold here in great numbers in the 1960s and 1970s. Other classic British makes, such as Austin Healey, Triumph and Morgan, will also be on show.

“American makes from the likes of Ford, General Motors and Chrysler will also be represented through many eras, including those of the Fabulous Fins decade from the 1950s,” the SCOCC said.