HISTORIC RACING CAR ASSOCIATION OF IRELAND – TECHNICAL REGULATIONS

(AS AMENDED BY NOTICE OF MOTION UP TO AND INCLUDING THE ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING HELD ON 7th November 2022)

Dated: 28th February 2022

DEFINITIONS

1. In these regulations-

a. The term “vehicle entered” shall refer specifically to any vehicle used in HRCA competition, and which these rules, where relevant, apply,

b. The term “original production model” refers to the make, model, series and variant of car from which the vehicle entered is stated to be derived, and against
which their historical authenticity and period propriety shall be judged. With regard to the original production model that the vehicle entered is based on, the scope of variation shall include in-period modifications consistent with any use as a race car. Where a contentious modification is presented, evidence of valid historical modification being in use at the relevant times, such as works modifications, shall be required as evidence of historical propriety,

c. References to period of manufacture shall refer to the period between the commencement of manufacture and the cessation of manufacture of the make, model, series and variant of original production car, and is without prejudice to later reconstructions or replications such as continuation cars except where stated, such as a certified continuation car or extreme restorations, and

d. A continuation car is a fully faithful imitation of a period-correct sports racing car with the relevant FIA papers validating its authenticity,

e. An area of modification being referred to as “free” shall entail absolute freedom of modification without restriction in periodicity, materials, or form except where
otherwise entailed by the relevant section or where it contradicts some other section.

f. The term modsport shall refer to singular specific vehicles which are of noted and recorded historic relevance and were built and developed within the period
leading up to the 31 st of December 1983 to compete in events of the period.

ELIGIBILITY

2. It is the is the intention of the HRCA to operate five distinct race groupings for the purposes of technical distinction. They shall be:

a. The “open class”, which shall refer to cars:

i. whose period of manufacture had commenced before December 31 1983,

ii. which are subject to the basic regulations outlined in sections 10 to 22,

iii. which have had modifications made to them which are outside the historic regulations outlined in sections 23 to 40,

iv. which shall comply with any and all Motorsport Ireland Technical Regulations as they pertain to the HRCA, and

v. whose eligibility for competition shall be at the discretion of the class principal in accordance with section 53,

b. The “Pre-83 historic class” which shall refer to cars:

i. whose period of manufacture had commenced before December 31 1983,

ii. which are subject to the basic regulations outlined in sections 10 to 22,

iii. which are subject to the historic regulations outlined in sections 23 to 40,

iv. which are subject to section 4, and

v. which shall comply with any and all Motorsport Ireland Technical Regulations as they pertain to the HRCA,

c. The “Pre-74 historic class” which shall refer to cars:

i. whose period of manufacture had commenced before December 31 1974,

ii. which are subject to the basic regulations outlined in sections 10 to 22,

iii. which are subject to the historic regulations outlined in sections 23 to 40,

iv. which is subject to section 4, and

v. which shall comply with any and all Motorsport Ireland Technical Regulations as they pertain to the HRCA,

d. The “Pre-55 historic class” which shall refer to cars:

i. whose period of manufacture had commenced before 31/12/1955

ii. which are subject to the basic regulations outlined in sections 10 to 22 except where exempted by sections 42 to 47,

iii. which are subject to the regulations outlined in sections 42 to 47,

e. The “Pre-War historic class” which shall refer to cars:

i. whose period of manufacture had commenced;

A. in the case of Veteran cars, before 01/01/1905,

B. in the case of Edwardian cars, between 01/01/1905 and 31/12/1918,

C. in the case of Vintage cars, between 01/01/1919 and 31/12/1930,

D. in the case of Post Vintage Thoroughbreds, between 01/01/1931 and 31/12/1936.

ii. which are subject to the basic regulations outlined in sections 10 to 22 except where exempted by sections 42 to 47,

iii. which are subject to the regulations outlined in sections 42 to 47.

f. Cars which do not comply with subsections a, b, c, d, or e however may be permitted to race within the series exclusively at the invitation and discretion of the of HRCA committee, and they shall be referred to as the “invitation class”. They shall however remain bound by sections 5 to 9 and shall not be eligible for any championship. Acceptance into the invitation class is on a strictly race by race basis and shall not be taken as any sort of reliable basis upon which to ground any later legitimate expectation of acceptances.

3. For the avoidance of doubt, where the basic regulations outlined in sections 10 to 22 and historic regulations outlined in sections 23 to 40 appear to contradict one another, the latter shall supersede the former in determining whether an entrant shall be classed as a “historic” entry.

4. Where the entrant is a modsport, the vehicle in question must be the actual and specific original vehicle which itself was raced with documentary evidence proving such, and the normal rules around replications of original production models referred to in section 1 do not apply. Acceptance of these vehicles is, notwithstanding this, at the discretion of the class principal.

GENERAL REGULATIONS

5. For the purposes of safety, entries must comply with Motorsport Ireland Appendix 2 Regulations.

6. All cars must be presented at scrutiny in a clean and tidy condition, with presentable body and paint work, ready to compete.

7. Championship sponsor decals and logos must be fitted to all cars in the designated position, and all other sponsor logos must not-

a. obscure the championship sponsor decals and logos, or

b. violate any other MI regulations.

8. Regarding the interior of the entrant vehicle-

a. No radio communication devices are permitted on cars during practice or racing, and

b. No data logging systems are permitted during practice or racing.

9. The interior must otherwise comply with Motorsport Ireland Appendix 2 Regulations.

BASIC REGULATIONS FOR THE OPEN CLASS, PRE-83 HISTORIC CLASS, PRE-74 HISTORIC CLASS, AND EXCEPT WHERE STATED THE PRE-55 AND PRE-WAR

HISTORIC CLASSES

10. An entry shall only be permitted if the original production model was a standard car, saloon car, sports car, racing car, a modsport or rally car homologated to HRVIFF specifications,

TYRES

11. An entry shall only be permitted if it uses tyres which are-

a. E-rated,

b. Listed in sections 1a, 1b, or 1c of Motorsport UK’s list of permitted tyres, published yearly, or

c. Among the following-

i. Historic Dunlop CR65 tyres,

ii. Avon Historic wet tyres,

iii. Avon All-Weather tyres,

12. For the avoidance of doubt, slick tyres, cut slicks, or any variant thereof are expressly prohibited.

BODYWORK

13. Regarding the bodywork of the entrant vehicle-

a. It is permitted to replace the front and rear wings, spoiler bonnet and boot lid with panels of either aluminium or a plastic composite, but no other materials, where doing so does not fall foul of any other rule contained herein,

b. Front and rear bumpers may be removed where doing so does not fall foul of any other rule contained herein,

c. The wheelbase of the vehicle entered must be unchanged from the original production model,

d. The original designed monocoque must be retained or otherwise kept as per the that of the original production model, and

e. The floor plan of the original production model must be retained or otherwise kept as per the original design.

EXHAUST

14. An entry shall be regarded as having an appropriate exhaust system if-

a. That exhaust does not pass through the bodywork of the car unless such was the arrangement on the original production model,

b. The exhaust must exit at the side or rear of the car beyond the periphery thereof, and most not go one inch beyond the outer apron,

c. The exhaust may not produce a noise exceeding the decibel limits prescribed in the Motorsport Ireland yearbook,

d. For the avoidance of doubt, the exhaust system is free except where regulated by this section.

GEARBOX

15. An entry shall be regarded as having an appropriate gearbox if-

a. There are no more than five forward gears, though overdrives are permitted where they are fitted as standard on the original production model,

b. Any modifications thereto are period appropriate,

c. It is not a sequential gearbox or any derivative or variation thereof.

WHEELS

16. The wheels of the vehicle entered cannot protrude beyond the bodywork unless such was already the case on the original production model, however wheel flares may be added and such flares will constitute part of the body for the purposes of determining whether a wheel protrudes therefrom.

BRAKES

17. Brakes are free, and for the avoidance of doubt drums may be replaced with discs in the avoidance of safety.

IGNITION

18. Regarding the ignition-

a. Electronic ignition is permitted,

b. The distributor is free provided it retains its original drive and location with a maximum of three control wires and provided that it uses internal ignition advance technology exclusively,

c. Throttle, camshaft and crank position sensors are not permitted,

d. Shift warning lights are permitted, and

e. Rev limiters are permitted.

GENERAL

19. An additional cooling radiator is permitted provided that it does not protrude beyond the bodywork,

20. Any modifications made to the entrant car must be of the period and materials used in that period except where such an area of modification is listed as being free,

21. In cases of period modifications, the onus of proving a modification as being period correct rests with the competitor who must submit documentary evidence to the class principal,

22. For the avoidance of doubt, superchargers and turbochargers are specifically banned under these regulations as add on modifications.

HISTORIC REGULATIONS FOR THE PRE-83 HISTORIC CLASS, PRE-74 HISTORIC CLASS, AND EXCEPT WHERE STATED THE PRE-55 AND PRE-WAR HISTORIC CLASSES

ENGINE

23. Regarding the engine-

a. The engine block and cylinder heads must be of the original make, type, trademark, design and material, however where a post-production example has been produced, the original material and schematics must be used,

b. It should have the same number of cylinders and camshafts and be driven by the same method as the original production model,

c. The capacity of the engine shall not be increased to beyond 15% greater than the capacity of the original production model,

d. The internals of the engine are free.

e. While the material of the elastic part of the engine mount and transmission mounting are free, the number of mountings, the positions thereof, and the pickup points must remain as they were on the original production model.

LIGHTING

24. The front and rear lights of the entrant vehicle must be retained in the position they were in the original production model if it had them.

25. All lighting must comply with the Motorsport Ireland technical regulations as appropriate.

WHEELS

26. The wheels of the entrant vehicle may not be any more than two inches wider and two
inches larger in diameter than that of the original production model.

27. Where this is in dispute, the judgement shall be with reference to the wheel dimensions of original standard base model of the vehicle entered rather than the original production model, except where a car was homologated with larger tyres, however in this instance the vehicle entered cannot go beyond the tyre dimensions of the homologated vehicle.

28. The method and number of fastenings used to secure the wheels to the vehicle must remain as per the original production model.

RADIATOR

29. Changing the position of the radiator from that of the original production model beyond a tolerance of two inches is prohibited, however the radiator, the radiator fan, and the switching mechanisms are otherwise free.

FUEL SYSTEMS

30. Injection systems are not permitted unless fitted to the original production model, however where injection systems were fitted, they must retain the original mechanisms and functionality.

31. The original production models carburettors may be replaced with Weber or Dell'Orto side draft or down draft carburettors.

32. Mechanical fuel pumps may be replaced with electric fuel pumps.

33. All fuel systems must comply with the Motorsport Ireland technical regulations as appropriate.

SUSPENSION

34. Modifications to the suspension are not permitted except for the following-

a. The ride height is free

b. Anti-roll bars may be fitted or removed

c. Lever arm shock absorbers may be replaced with telescopic type

d. Camber is free

35. For the avoidance of doubt, changing the position of the suspension mounts from that of the original production model is prohibited.

AXLE

36. Modifications to the axles and associated systems are not permitted except for the following-

a. Final drive ratios on the driven axle are free

b. Limited slip differentials may be fitted

c. Anti-tramp bars may be fitted to axle castings and bodywork

d. Panhard rods may be fitted to axle castings and bodywork

e. Wheel spacers may be added up to a maximum of 10 millimetres in width per side

37. The original axle casting must be retained.

38. Turreting of the rear axle is prohibited.

BRAKES

39. Brakes are free, and for the avoidance of doubt drums may be replaced with discs in the avoidance of safety.

CLARIFICATION

40. For the avoidance of doubt, any modifications made to the entrant car ought to be with reasonable reference to a historical example from the original production model or in the demonstrable or self-evident interests of safety.

PRE-WAR AND PRE-55 REGULATIONS

41. Cars captured by section 2(e) are exempt

a. from the requirement of having a minimum distance between the top of the seat and the top of the adjacent body side of 152.5 mm, or having all seats facing forward,

b. from the requirement of ensuring the seats cannot tilt, hinge or fold,

c. from the requirement to have a protected oil tank when it is situated outside the main chassis and may have the oil tank to the rear of the gearbox casing,

d. from the requirement to have steel wheel nuts of a minimum length,

e. from the requirement to fit a safety rollover bar unless it was required by the original Formula Regulations,

f. From the requirement to fit a safety harness,

g. during speed events only, from the requirement to have a rollover bar.

42. Cars captured by sections 2(d) and 2(e) are exempt-

a. from the requirement of having the exhaust terminating behind the mid-point of the wheel base.

43. Subject to circuit/venue owner’s requirements, cars captured by sections 36 and 37 will be subject to noise testing carried out with the engines run at two-thirds maximum rpm.

44. Cars captured by sections 2(e)i(C) and 2(e)i(D) are exempt from any requirement to be fitted with sprung suspension if the original production model did not have such.

45. Cars captured by section 2(e)i(A) must have brakes on all four wheels, however cars introduced prior to 31/12/1934 are not required to have 25% minimum braking effort applied to each.

46. Remoulded or re-threaded tyres may only be used on cars built prior to 1940.

47. In races, sprints and hill climbs, historical entrants captured by sections 2(d) and 2(e) are strongly recommended to have an external circuit breaker switch. When a circuit breaker is mounted on cars captured by sections 36 and 37, the mounting point may be approximately vertically below the line of the scuttle on the driver’s side. Cars captured by sections 36 and 37 may have the ignition components located in the cockpit.

SCRUTINY

48. Competing cars may be sealed or checked by the Eligibility Scrutineer at any time or place convenient to him in order to ensure compliance with these Technical Regulations at the expense of the competitor concerned.

49. Eligibility scrutineering may take place pre-season, during the season or post season depending on the scrutineer.

50. Cars which are contrary to these regulations shall be deemed ineligible, and more particularly-

a. The penalty for a car who purports to be part of a historic entry who, at scrutineering, is found to not satisfy the historic regulations outlined in sections 23 to 40, but remains within the bounds of all other elements of the technical regulations, shall be subject to the removal of their accrued points in the HRCA Championships which pertain to historic entries exclusively and their prospective exclusion therefrom until they have demonstrated that the entry satisfies the regulations as appropriate. For the avoidance of doubt, they shall continue to accrue points in the open categories and shall be allowed to compete.

b. The penalty for a car which violates the basic regulations outlined in sections 10 to 22 shall be subject to the removal of their accrued points in all HRCA Championships and their prospective exclusion therefrom until they have demonstrated that the entry satisfies the regulations as appropriate. For the avoidance of doubt, they shall not be allowed to compete.

c. The penalty for a car which violates the rules around advertising shall be docked points for the races where the infringement occurred.

d. Any car deemed not to be sufficiently well presented and judged by the scrutineer to be such as to bring the HRCA into disrepute can be deemed ineligible to compete.

e. The penalty for a car which violates any other section shall be adjudicated on by the class principal and class scrutineer, with the nature and severity of the penalty to be defined by them.

51. Eligibility shall, notwithstanding anything in these regulations, be governed in accordance with MI Regulations.

52. In the event of a dispute over eligibility, the decision of the class Eligibility Scrutineer as to what constitutes an eligible part or car shall be final.

APPLICATION OF REGULATIONS

53. As a general principle, if these regulations do not speak to a specific modification, it shall be presumed, subject to the discretion of the class scrutineer, that such modification shall be prohibited. However, it shall be possible for any entrant to request clarification from either the class scrutineer or the committee for the purposes of requesting advice or the exercise of reasonable discretion in the spirit of fair performance, accessibility, and class balance so as to be allowed to compete in the open class. The class scrutineer shall have the final, ultimate, and unappealable determination and discretion on the matters so described. However, this principle shall never create exceptions to allow entry into the historic class, except with regard to section 4.