Judging Criteria

Concours d’Elegance and Display Day 2008
Sunday 21st September 2008
Parramatta Park

A major purpose of the Concours d'Elegance is to recognise and reward owners who have done the most outstanding job of care and maintenance of their Mercedes-Benz vehicles. A panel of judges will inspect all cars to determine those most worthy of awards. There will be three categories: Concours Classes, Road Class and Champion of Champions.

1. The Concours Classes (1-16, 18) where the highest standard; originality or restoration to ‘show room condition’ is being sought.


2. Road Class (17) is available for cars that are driven on a regular basis, with over 8,000 km or 5,000 miles travelled annually.


3. Champion of Champions (19) where outright winners from the previous three years, Class 1-17 winners from previous two consecutive years (excluding Class 16 from 2005 to 2007) and previous years Champion of Champions compete for this coveted award.

In order to maintain a high standard and to allow the earliest possible finish, five judges are to be selected for the Concours Classes. All will be very knowledgeable on matters relating to the Mercedes-Benz marque. These judges will evaluate the field of cars for competition according to specific criteria relating to the condition of the vehicle on the day. Naturally, the judges will take into consideration the age, mileage and originality of each vehicle (i.e. degree of difficulty, use and authenticity). The judges will be looking for:

1. Detailing and presentation


2. Condition of vehicle and components and


3. Originality or authenticity of restoration. (I.e. cleanliness, completeness, originality and functionality).

Last minute touch ups
Jim Kofinas gives a final polish to his wheels
Concours 2007

Five areas will be judged : Interior, exterior, engine bay, under-body and boot (including tool kit, keys, accessories etc).

1. Interior: items such as dash, steering wheel, doors, headlining, seats, upholstery, floor mats and pan, trims, visors, instruments, original to the vehicle (except seat belts fitted to earlier vehicles for safety). Non-original items such as car phones, alarms, speakers, air-conditioners may attract deductions of marks, as will leather cracking through colour, worn or torn carpets, etc. The car should be emptied of extraneous items for judging.


2. Exterior: panels: paintwork, chrome, trim, glass, lamps, grille, rubbers and numberplates for example will be assessed. Body panel dents, rust, poor finish, over-spray, worn or perished rubbers, excessive glue will attract deduction of marks. Non-original sunroofs will also incur a penalty.


3. Engine Bay: everything seen and ‘checkable’ with the bonnet up (including batteries, v belts, hoses, firewalls, and wiring for example). All should be clean but not excessively polished; points will be lost for corrosion, oil and water leaks, wrong or worn/frayed/stained hoses, clamps, batteries etc


4. Under-body: mudguards, wheel arches, drive train, suspension and exhaust components should be clean and free of oil leaks and rust.


5. Boot: including interior colour, spare tyre, and accessories. It also needs to be emptied of extraneous items for judging. However, original items such as the spare tyre, safety triangle, logbook, owner’s manual, and tool kit should be included for display. NB. It is essential that the owner is available to open the boot (which you may wish to lock to secure valuables during most of the day) for inspection by the judges.

Class winning cars will always be very clean and very original. This is not to say that restored vehicles are unworthy of a prize. They must, however, be restored in a manner sympathetic with the car’s original appearance. A well-restored vehicle will have an appearance of never having been used from new, rather than being obviously overdone with parts highly polished or chrome-plated that originally would not have been. Wherever possible, original parts and finishes should be used. In general, the judges frown upon modifications, non-original or non-genuine parts and accessories and of course visible damage, dirt and fluid leaks.

Where possible, accessories such as sheepskin seat covers, chrome wheel arch trims, should be removed. They detract from the originality of the vehicle in the event of a tight competition. Mercedes-Benz Club radiator or bumper-bar badges however won’t detract points as long as they are mounted in a neat and discreet manner. Cars should be presented as they would be picked up from a show room, for example seat belts should be placed flat against seats, accessories such as first aid kits should be in place.

Roadsters and Cabriolets may be presented with or without a top in place.

Barry Grindell with young admirer
Concours 2007

All cars will be scored. Scorers will work to assist the judges in compiling results class by class. Entrants should not approach them while they are compiling results. The Concours Director will be available to discuss judging results after the announcements have been made.

Summary

The standard you are trying to achieve is ex-factory condition and originality.

• Clean and detail the car. No Mercedes left the factory with dust, dirt or grime.


• Non-original items detract from the originality of your car, as do the use of non-genuine parts under the bonnet. In a tiebreaker situation, these may cost you a position.


• Bring all original documents and accessories for display on the day.


• Listen for announcements to make sure your car is available and accessible for judging during the day. If it is locked at the time of judging of that class, it may not be judged.

Concours entrants must complete the entry form and mail together with entry fee (cheque made out to the Mercedes Benz Club (NSW) Inc.) to arrive no later than COB Friday, September 12 th 2008 to:

Paul Fail
17 Peter Close
Hornsby Heights NSW 2077

To download an entry form for the 2008 Concours d'Elegance and Show Day, as a pdf file (934kb), click here, or use the entry form included in the club magazine. Indicate on the entry form the class you wish your car to be judged in.

To download the classes for the 2008 Concours d'Elegance and Show Day, as a pdf file (16kb), click here. The clases are also on the back of the entry form in the club magazine.

To download a location map for the 2008 Concours d'Elegance and Show Day, as a pdf file (183kb), click here

To download the advertising poster for the 2008 Concours d'Elegance and Show Day, as a pdf file (1.1mb), click here