V Costa Atlántica Classic Rally

Eduardo Mariz 13 June 2008 2 min.

Last Wednesday we arrived late in the afternoon at the town of Bayona, in the province of Pontevedra. This picturesque coastal village, just a few kilometres from Vigo, had the good fortune of hosting the start of this year’s V Rally Costa Atlántica Classic; let us remember that in previous editions the honour went to Santiago de Compostela.

Unfortunately, we arrived in time to see only a little less than the total number of participants on display in a small fenced area in the Parque de La Palma, close to the marina and to the slopes of the hill where the Parador Conde de Gondomar stands, one of the accommodations for the participants as well.

Nevertheless, we were lucky enough to see some of the best entries under the brilliant sunshine that accompanied us. The great star was -in my opinion- the imposing Excalibur Roadster [header photo]. This American convertible deceives like no other when it comes to its chronology: the Excalibur brand was founded in Milwaukee (Wisconsin) in 1963 and is the first manufacturer to produce neoclassic models -if we may call them that- in history.

Also exclusive, since only some 3,500 units were produced in its more than 40 years of existence, the Excalibur in question is a 1988 Series III in Roadster specification. Imported from the Americas, of course, as its owner explained. I have not found much additional information about this model, only that it appeared briefly in the film Ocean’s Eleven.

But beyond that, a number of other models that are by no means to be dismissed made an appearance there: a red Mini 1275 with the top down, a red MG A, an R-5 Turbo tuned up to 200 horsepower, a Morgan Plus, a MG B MK II, an Jaguar XK 120, a dazzling red Corvette Sting-Ray, a Porsche 944, a MG TD and a ’88 Corvette. A Lancia Stratos and a Mercedes 280 SL also made brief appearances; in any case, many of these models had also taken part in earlier classic rallies that we have covered here at Highmotor.

The Rally will finish today in Sanxenxo, another town in the Galician Rías Baixas, after spending these days with Bayona as the starting point to tour northern Portugal (including the Braga circuit) as well as the interior of the province of Ourense. And of course, as it is a classic car event, it will be a regularity rally.

Below is the customary photo gallery, perhaps with a somewhat high number of shots, but what can I say… it isn’t easy to hold a casting of such beauties.