- Classic Car Friday is the first event at the annual Simola Hillclimb, with a diverse range of cars from 1937 to 2000 set to compete this year for class wins, and ultimately vying for the overall Classic Conqueror title
- Illustrious brands and legendary cars from Austin, Jaguar, Porsche, Alfa Romeo, Shelby, Ford, Lotus, Chevrolet, BMW, Lola – and many more
- Franco Scribante is the man to beat, having claimed his seventh win last year in the 1970 Chevron B19
There’s less than two months to go before the scenic Garden Route town of Knysna wakes up to the sights and sounds of roaring race-prepped engines and screeching tyres when Classic Car Friday kicks off the historic 15th edition of the Simola Hillclimb.
While the competitive action for the 2025 Simola Hillclimb commences on Friday 2 May, there will be plenty of buzz and action around the Knysna Waterfront area during the public holiday the day before, as the cars can be seen undergoing the scrutineering checks followed by the exciting Classic Car Friday parade in the afternoon.
Then it’s action stations on Friday as the ‘Golden Oldies’ and their daring drivers take on the short, twisty and challenging 1.9 km Simola Hill course as they compete for victory in their respective classes and, ultimately, aim to make it to the final Top 10 Shootout for the 2025 Classic Conqueror title.
“Each year the quality of entry applications received for the Simola Hillclimb gets better and better, and we have very interesting cars and eager participants for this year’s 15th edition,” says Geoff Goddard, sporting director of the Simola Hillclimb.
“Our challenge is to ensure that we have a line-up of cars and drivers that make this iconic invitational event appealing and exciting for competitors and spectators alike. The Classic Car Friday entry list for this year certainly achieves this as it features many of the crowd favourites along with several exciting new additions,” Goddard says.
Classic Car Friday allows for a maximum of 65 entrants. The competitors have three practice runs in the morning to familiarize themselves with the course and fine-tune their cars, leading into three qualifying runs. The top three qualifiers in each class then proceed to the Class Finals with a single-run shoot-out. The event culminates in the Top 10 Shootout for the competitors based on the fastest qualifying times, and the driver with the quickest time in this last dash will be crowned Classic Conqueror. The winner receives the prized Jody Trophy, which is produced exclusively for the Simola Hillclimb in honour of Jody Scheckter who remains the only South African driver to win a Formula 1 title, which he achieved in 1979 with Ferrari.
One of the main changes introduced for the 2025 Simola Hillclimb is the separation of the open-wheel single-seaters and the sports/GT cars – each of which has its own class this year. Class H10 is for sports cars and GT cars up to 1985, featuring reigning seven-time winner Franco Scribante and his legendary 1970 Cosworth BDG-powered Chevron B19.
The Chevron is joined in H10 by a 1983 Lotus 7 driven by Bill Annetts, and an intriguing new rival that has a very short but fascinating history. Scott Temple, a former single-seater and GTC racing driver, will be competing in the little-known Davey 626 – a one-of-one GT sports car that debuted at the 1963 Kyalami Republic Day Trophy meeting. Designed and produced in Benoni by Brian Davey based on the extensive experience he gained working for Lola Cars in the UK, it featured a striking design matched to a variety of parts sourced from other manufacturers. This included a Ford Zephyr 2.6-litre in-line six-cylinder engine (hence the 626 name) with a Raymond Mays conversion comprising three Weber carburettors, a Triumph TR3 gearbox, various Jaguar parts plus a specially cast rear differential.
The Davey 626 reportedly only competed in four races, the first two with Ron Pollock behind the wheel, followed by two outings with Basil van Rooyen. “Unfortunately the Davey 626 was not allowed to race in the GT category at the Kyalami event because, being a prototype, it was not considered a production car,” Temple says. “Nevertheless, it proved to be a fast, good-handling machine and lapped under the GT lap record of the time before the left rear track rod broke, forcing its retirement.”
The car disappeared after its handful of outings in 1963, until Fritz Kleynhans bought it approximately 10 years ago and started bringing the car back to life. The Davey 626 is now owned by Nick Cetinich and has undergone a complete restoration in preparation for its return to action at the 15th Simola Hillclimb, with Temple set to do the driving duties.
Single-seaters
There has been significant interest this year in the open-wheel single-seater class H9 for cars up to 1985, with an impressive eight entries set to take on the Simola Hill. Andre Bezuidenhout, winner of Classic Car Friday in 2023, will once again be amongst the leading contenders for the class and overall titles. He was in the mix for the 2024 victory until his 1976 Lola T460 experienced gearbox trouble in the Top 10 Shootout.
There’s no doubt that he will be back with a vengeance this year, and fans can expect another thrilling Bezuidenhout-Scribante battle playing out. Several other drivers will be hot on their heels, though, including 2015 winner Charles Arton (1979 March 79A), Josh Dovey (1972 Chevron B20) and the formidable line-up of four InvestChem team entries, comprising Ian Schofield (1977 March 77B), Robert Wolk (1979 Van Diemen RF79), Rick Morris (1982 Royale RP31) and Simphiwe Mohlahlo (1981 Van Diemen RF81).
There will be lots of interest in Rodney Green’s fully restored 1957 Cooper Climax Formula 2 car too, which is powered by a 1.5-litre Coventry Climax FPF engine. This amazing car was raced in period – including at the 1960 South African Grand Prix in East London – by renowned Rhodesian driver Jimmy Shield.
Tin-top racing legends
Class H8 is for racing saloon cars (six cylinders and above) up to 2000. Among the top contenders are multiple class winner Rui Campos in his rapid 1974 Porsche 911 RSR, Craig Wessels in the 1983 Porsche 911 RSR IROC, former rally ace Enzo Kuun (1989 Ferrari 348), a pair of early-1980s Nissan Skylines driven by Brent Watts and Rane Berry, a 1988 Toyota Supra entered by Nico Nicolaisen, and Clinton Laurens in a 1984 Jaguar XJS.
It’s a return to the heydays of saloon car racing in class H7 for four-cylinder cars up to 2000. Motorsport and Speedy Car Sales legend Farouk Dangor will be returning in his stunning 1991 BMW E30 M3 touring car, while Craig Czank will be behind the wheel of Dangor’s 1991 Group N Opel Kadett Superboss. Reigning King of the Hill Dawie Joubert is also joining the classic car fray with a 2000 Lotus Elise.
The big-bangers in class H6 (rotary and six-cylinder engines and above, up to 1975) are led by the Shelby South Africa/Lindenberg Racing team comprising two 1965 Shelby Daytonas driven by James Temple and Djurk Venter, along with Paige Lindenberg in the mighty 1968 Ford Fairlane. There are also the two regular Porsche 911 entries of Kobus Brits and Gavin Rooke, Richard Evans in the spectacular 1969 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray, and Dave Kopke in a rotary-engined Mazda R100 Coupé.
The smaller capacity production car entries up to 1975 slot into class H5, comprising the Alfa Romeos of Trevor Tuck (1969 GTV), Ashley Baud (1974 GTV), John Bronner (1966 Giulia Super) and Derick Truscott (1971 Berlina 2000). They will be going up against a pair of Datsun GX Coupés driven by Ian Kilburn and Grant Cramer, and Chris du Plooy’s 1967 Volvo 122s.
Street-legal road cars that retain their full interior trim occupy classes H2 to H4 – the latter for cars with five cylinders and above, up to 1987, will include Ivan Lerm competing in a 1965 AC Cobra. The line-up in H3 for four-cylinder machines includes Simola Hillclimb co-founder Francis Cusens in a 1980 Fiat 131 Abarth, Gabriel Diedericks in a similar 1977 131 Racing, and Jandre Bezuidenhout in his father Andre’s 1985 Porsche 944 Turbo Cup car.
A broad range of road cars up to 1970 are grouped in H2, including two machines from the Parnell Bruce Collection in Knysna. Brian Bruce will be driving the sleek 1956 Jaguar D-type once again, while Peter MacPherson will be in the 1965 Ford GT40. Jacques Pickard joins them in a 1969 Porsche 911T, while Jennifer Abbot returns in her 1970 Porsche 914 GT. Other Simola Hillclimb regulars in the class include Hedley Whitehead (1964 Austin Mini Cooper S) and Dave van der Merwe (1965 Ford Anglia).
Class H1 is for cars from the pre-World War II era, and they compete on a handicap basis to ensure a level playing field. There are currently two entries in the class, comprising Margie White in her 1937 Austin 7 Special, along with motoring journalist Gero Lilleike in a 1946 Austin A40 Special which is also from the Parnell Bruce Collection.
The 15th edition of the Simola Hillclimb takes place from 1 to 4 May 2025.
More information and online ticket sales are available on the Simola Hillclimb website: www.simolahillclimb.com
