Last night I popped up to the Saab Museum, which was the start and finish point for the Grense Rallyt, a smaller regularity rally.

There were only 18 vehicles in the field, but it was nice to see them come back to the museum and cross the finish line. I thought I’d share some of the photos from the event with you here.

I have to confess that I don’t know much about this event and where it fits into any larger schedule of historic rallies here in Sweden. It felt like it was part of a larger series, however, given the number of officials and sponsorship that was present.

Regularity rallying is not your full-tilt type of rallying. Regularity involves completing stages as close as possible to a designated average speed. It requires precision calculation and communication between driver and co-driver, rather than flat-out speed and handling. That’s why you’ll see some cars below with minimal modification.

It’s fantastic that a sponsor like Teknikens Varld magazine was able to support the event and I hope there were more people there in the morning to see the vehicles and the level of support provided by Teknikens. Motorsport needs this kind of sponsorship to survive, so it’s great that they were able to help out. The white Porsche is a Cayman R that they’re currently road testing.

Click the pics to enlarge.

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My first correspondence with Bertil Sollenskog was last year (2010), when he had a failed first attempt at Bonneville. He had some mechanical issues last year that couldn’t be sorted out at the flats themselves, so he brought the car home to fight another day. He wasn’t discouraged, however. Having been told that it usually takes at least two failed attempts before people can get close to a record, Bertil vowed to himself that the second time would be charm.

And so it was.

Bertil is an expat Swede living in the US and he runs his own engine-building company, preparing competition engines for various VW and Toyota racing formulas.

He saw a Saab Monte Carlo for sale 4 or 5 years ago, bought it, and has been playing with it ever since. After helping out a friend at Bonneville Speed Week in 2007, Bertil got the speed bug and decided it was time to make the Monte Carlo sing for its supper.

Last year’s run might have failed to produce a record, but it did a lot to teach Bertil about the harsh conditions on the flats and how well prepared you need to be in order to have a realistic chance of setting a record there. Consequently, Bertil took a team of five along to the flats this year, as well as two engines.

I’ll let him take up the story:

About 400 cars and 100 motorcycles come to Speedweek every year, representing many different classes. My 1966 Saab Monte Carlo is entered in class JPRO, which means it has to be stock on the outside and modified for safety on the inside. Engine tuning is “free”, but all basic engine parts must be from the Saab family.

The engine is 750 cc, water-cooled, 3 cylinder and 2 stroke. It is now tuned to 97 hp at 6500 rpm. (The standard is 52 hp at 4500rpm.)

The salt flats are unique, with temperatures up to 110 F, humidity down to 11% and altitude of 4500 ft. This makes it difficult to adjust the fuel mixture properly ahead of the time trials! Luckily there is up to 2 hours wait between runs, which allows for adjusting.

After many runs, never breaking 100 mph, the first engine melted a piston. The second engine was installed and modifications were made on the car (i.e. lowering the ride height).

After several more runs and tweaking, the Saab averaged 107.5mph on two runs with a flying start. The previous record of 103.9 mph was broken! I thought the engine could produce more, so we kept on trying. Ultimately, we reached 110 mph, our final record for 2011 Speedweek.

Bertil already has plans for a return with a faster car next year. The engine is strong enough, but gearbox and suspension modifications are in the works.

Note – the salt flat photos below are from this year, but the engine and interior photos are from 2010 and the engine is his ‘street’ engine with three downdraft carbs. The engine used at the flats has three side-draft carbs and delivers 20hp more than the street engine.

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Following is a video from the historic class, the flat-out version of the rally that doesn’t feature quite so many Saabs, but does feature a lot of action.

Enjoy your viewing.

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My apologies to a few of the Saab drivers that I missed. My camera was running so low on battery power towards the end that I was turning it off between cars. Sometimes it didn’t start up again quickly enough. There were at least two Saabs that I missed – a 99T and one or more 96′s.

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Going to the Midnight Sun Rally was a ton of fun. You’d need to be well organised to get to spectator points on a number of different stages, but once you’re there it really is like old-time racing.

People spill out and walk along the track in between cars. They’re gathered on the hills, some of them having picnics.

And then there’s the driving, which as you can see is pretty exciting stuff. Many of Sweden’s top drivers were there, including Kenneth Backlund from the Saab Performance Team, former Saab champ Stig Blomqvist as well as eventual winner, Kenny Bräck.

If you have an opportunity to get along to one of these historic rallies in the future, I recommend that you do. You’ll see some outstanding machinery, some ace driving and you’ll have a whole lot of fun doing it.

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Most of the Saabs at the event competed in the Regularity Class. This is not full-tilt rally driving as you might know it. Regularity, as the name suggests, is all about driving to a regular schedule and being consistent in that. In the case of the Midnight Sun Rally, this meant driving to achieve an average of 50km/h over every stage of the event. Cars incur penalties for being outside the 50km/h average target.

This video shows most of the Saabs competing in Regularity this year. Because I was filming on some longer, straighter sections, this is more like a chance to see and appreciate the vehicles than to see some sideways action (that’s coming in another video a bit later!). Regularity is more about teamwork and precision than it is about flat out speed. It’s also less expensive than flat-out rallying, allowing greater access to a wider group of people.

Enjoy the cars! You’ll see a great range of Saabs here from the Saab 92 right through to late model Saab 99s (entries in the rally have to be at least 30 years old).

I’m not sure if I got everyone, but I got a lot of them! Here’s a selective collection of larger images, with a more complete gallery below. Click to enlarge.

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This blue 99Turbo is the latest car built by the Saabs United Historic Rally Team. It’s a replica of Stig Blomqvist’s 1981 car from the Swedish Rally.

Many of you heard that would-be Saab investor Vladimir Antonov was entered for the race, which would have been the second year in a row for him. This is the team he would have driven in.

The three cars were prepared by Historic Rally Racing Service in a record time of just three months. All three cars feature sports suspension but are running non-turbo, single-carb engines. There’s scope for more performance in them, but for this build (in this timeframe), reliability was the goal. Also, competing in regularity, reliability is more crucial than performance.

The insides of one the cars, complete with chequered flag trim

Mr Antonov’s place was taken by a friend, Alex Fogilev and the Saab Museum’s Peter Backstrom was drafted in as co-driver.

This Sonett II certainly looked (and sounded) the part. I’ve always wondered why there aren’t more of these in historic rallying, but I guess their relative rarity and fibreglass bodies might have something to do with it. Should still be good for regularity class, though.

Lasse and Sibylla have competed in the last four Midnight Sun rallies. They always compete in period costume. The regularity class is at relatively slow speeds and there is no requirement for racing suits or excessive safety modifications (which is why they can carry suitcases on the roofracks and dolls as passengers in the back seat!). This is the first Midnight Sun they haven’t finished, suffering with a broken driveshaft on the final day.

This early Saab 96 was one of the most immaculate racing vehicles I’ve ever seen. You could eat your dinner off any surface you looked at. Incredible.

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Below is a larger gallery, featuring all the photos above and a bunch more (a few non-Saabs, too. How often do you get to see not one, but two Lancia Stratos?)

Click to enlarge.

Coming soon we will have some video of the Saabs in regularity class, plus all the other vehicles (and a few Saabs too) in the full-tilt historic class.

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The car, a Saab 900, was finally used for it’s new purpose on the weekend in a hillclimb event called Climb to the Clouds. Here it is, being driven by Pascal. It looks like a good run, especially for a first up event for a car that’s just been completed.

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I have a very personal love for watching Saabs participating in motorsport events. As many of you know, Saab built their reputation in the 1950s, 60s and 70s on the back of multiple rallying successes, back before rallying turned into a mega-budget event.

Today, old Saabs are riding a wave of popularity in Sweden and other parts of Europe as historic rallying gains more and more prominence around the continent.

Later next month we will cover the Midnight Sun rally in Sweden, where there are dozens of historic Saabs entered in the event. It’s going to be an absolute blast.

Congratulations to Pascal and Marcel (and team) for their efforts at Mt Washington last weekend!

For the 2011 edition, Saab brought three 93s to the Brescia starting line. The #331 car was driven by Mats Fägerhag, Saab Automobile’s Vice President Vehicle Product Development, with Peter Bäckström, Manager of the Saab Car Museum, sitting alongside. The #332 car was driven by Hans Hugenholtz, Chairman of Saab Automobile owner Spyker Cars N.V., and his wife Laurence. A third #333 car was entered and driven by long-time Belgian Saab importer Jacques Beherman, assisted by Umberto Stefani, External Affairs Director for Saab Belgium.

In preparing the Saab 93s for the event, the cars were kept as close as possible to the specification of the cars that competed in the old days. “We restored them to original condition, as near as possible, with the same materials and components that were used at that time,” says Peter Bäckström. “We’ve had to refurbish some of the interior trim and that was an interesting project for our colleagues in the prototype workshop at the factory. They were working with materials and build techniques that are no longer used, but they enjoyed the challenge.”

Click to see a feature on the restoration of the #331 Saab 93.

Keeping the cars in original condition also meant not improving them beyond their original trim. “For instance, with the technical knowledge we have these days, it would be quite easy to get some more power from the two-stroke engines, but that is not what we wanted to do,” says Bäckström. “In standard trim they produced about 33 hp and for competition use this was raised to about 50 hp. And that is what we had on the Mille Miglia.”

As in previous events, the 2011 Mille Miglia produced a long cavalcade of priceless and exotic cars. And while the Saab 93s may not have been as glamorous or prestigious as some, they did attract a lot of interest and curiosity because of their uniqueness: with front-wheel drive, great aerodynamics and built-in crash safety, they were ahead of their time. Passing through small Tuscany towns or past packed roadsides, the 93s proved to be a true crowd pleaser as the characteristic, one-in-a-million sound of the two-stroke engines filled the air.

Hans Hugenholtz really enjoyed the unique atmosphere of the Mille Miglia. “Along the route, we visited many Italian towns for Time Controls, and each time we were escorted into the town square or some other important place, like the new Ferrari Museum being constructed in Modena,” says Hugenholtz. “The typical sound of the Saab two-stroke racing into town at high revs made spectators turn their heads; every time we could hear the public yell out “Saab” and several Saab Clubs had banners along the road wishing us a good rally.” He adds that arriving in Rome on Friday night was a highlight as well: “We had thousands of enthousiasts cheering us on, and we spent a long time signing banners, photographs and posing with the cars for the Saab fans.”

During the three days of competition, the Saabs hardly experienced any trouble. The #332 car had a slight problem with the rear brakes early on in the event which was solved quickly, but apart from that the 93s proved to be highly reliable.

According to Hugenholtz, the 93s showed their worth in the event. “Our team of three Saabs drove the full 1.600 km rally without any problems and were mixing with, and passing, much faster Porsches, 1.600 cc MG’s and other cars on the beautiful Italian roads. It was the living proof that great handling of a light car can overcome the fact of having a small engine.”

Fägerhag agrees: “I was impressed with what we did with the cars. The 93 was an impressive car back in the day, and it still is. What we lacked in horsepower compared to much stronger cars, we managed to compensate by the 93’s excellent handling.” And, with a wink: “Peter and I finished more than 100 places ahead of two-time Formula 1 world champion Mika Häkkinen in his Mercedes 300 SLR. That says it all!”

With 375 competing cars, many fast service vehicles and all sorts of car clubs following the rally, arriving on time at the various controls was a challenge for the drivers. With the route existing of virtually only local two-lane roads and many mountain sections, overtaking was vital to keep the average speed up. “The compact size of the 93 and the excellent acceleration gave us the chance to beat many faster cars on the road,” explains Hugenholtz, “while in the mountain sections, rich with both sweeping and tight corners, we used the Saab’s excellent handling to out-run other competitors.”

In the end, all three cars arrived safely in Brescia with very good scores on the regularity sections. Leading the Saab pack was the #331 car of Mats Fägerhag and Peter Bäckström, which finished 175th overall, closely followed by Hans and Laurence Hugenholtz in 187th place. Jacques Beherman and Umberto Stefani did finish the race, but were removed from the final classification on an administrative technicality.

The Mille Miglia is a unique and fantastic event, says Fägerhag. “There was one thing that particularly struck me. When you are competing in this event, everywhere around you see these fantastic and incredible cars: Porsche, Ferrari, Bugatti, Mercedes-Benz… and Saab. It shows the fantastic history we have as a brand. In Mille Miglia, you don’t see every car brand. You see only the really special ones. And Saab is one of them.”

Click to enlarge the images below….

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Today, though, I’d like to draw your attention to an absolutely brilliant collection of photos from the Mille Miglia, taken by some Saab fans in Italy.

Saabnews.it is an Italian Saab fan site and it’s typical of why Saab enthusiasts are the best automotive enthusiasts in the world. The dedication of the average Saab fan is without peer and the collection of photos from this event by the moderators at Saabnews.it is a prime example.

I’ve posted a few photos below with their permission, but please head on over and view the full collection for yourself. You’ll be AMAZED by the number of shots there:

2011 Mille Miglia at Saabnews.it

Click to enlarge.

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That strategy has worked for the second consecutive year, with all three cars in the 2011 Mille Miglia finishing the event in fine style.

Brescia, Italy: The 2011 Mille Miglia contest ended on a high Saturday night, as all three competing Saab 93s safely returned to the enthusiastic crowds in Brescia. The number 332 car, piloted by Spyker Cars Chairman Hans Hugenholtz and his wife Laurence, was the first Saab car to finish the third and final leg of the 2011 event. Earlier on Saturday, the classic Saabs had departed from the Castel Sant’Angelo in Rome, after which they made their way back to Brescia over a course that brought them past Viterbo, Siena, Florence and other highlights of the Italian landscape.

Here are some more photos from the final day. Click to enlarge. We’ll get more information and stories from the guys as they come back into Trollhattan and regain their senses after a hectic week’s driving.

Congratulations to all three teams on the successful completion of the event. I can’t wait to see the full set of photos and video.

Coming soon!

Until then, here are some photos from Day 2 of this beautiful event through the Itlian countryside.

Click to enlarge.

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We’re also thankful to the Saabway Club, from Italy, who had members present to shoot a fantastic video of all three Saabs at the beginning of the event….

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