09-07-2025
Lombard Rally Festival returns to Craufurdland Castle this August
Visitors will be able to see cars ranging from ex-works cars from the 1960s through to early World Rally Championship cars.
The Lombard Rally Festival returns to Craufurdland Castle this August for a bigger and better weekend of historic car action.
Running for the second time, the Festival showcases classic cars and historic rally cars in a way not seen in Scotland before last year's event.
The festival will take place on Saturday, August 23 and Sunday, August 24 at the Ayrshire estate.
Organsiers are looking forward to bringing around 60 historic rally cars to be demonstrated on a specially constructed period-style rally stage.
Visitors will be able to see cars ranging from ex-works cars from the 1960s, from the 1970s such as Ford Escorts, Vauxhall Chevettes, Hillman Avengers and Triumph TR7V8s, from the 1980s such Talbot Sunbeams, Opel Mantas, Ford Sierras, before moving onto the Group B era of Audi Quattros, Ford RS200 and MG Metro 6R4, through to early World Rally Championship cars.
Event organiser Tim Nash said: "This year we are joined by rally champions, Dai Llewellin from Wales and Harald Demuth from Germany, who were both factory drivers for Audi in the legendary Quattro back in the 1980s.
"From Finland we are bringing Harri Rovanpera, factory driver for Peugeot, Toyota and Seat and Harri Toivonen who was, like Dai Llewellin, a driver of the iconic MG Metro 6R4 in 1986.
"Taking part in period cars at Craufurdland, the drivers will put on a great spectacle and be happy to talk to spectators and tell stories of their past successes."
The Lombard Rally Festival series of events recalls a period when the Lombard RAC Rally was the largest attended sporting event in the UK. More people came out to watch over its November weekend than watched every football league match added together during the season.
In addition to the Rally Car action, the event kicks off on Friday, August 22 with a meet and greet hosted by one of the event partners, Andrew Dodds Autocare in Ayr.
On Saturday, August 23 a Scenic Tour will start in the morning from Balloch, on Loch Lomond, before finishing later in the afternoon at Craufurdland Castle, where people taking part in the Tour will be able to join spectators to see the Rally Cars in action.
The Rally Cars will start running from 11.30am on Saturday. The traditional social will follow in the evening, with the featured drivers telling a few stories.
On Sunday, August 24 the Rally Cars are joined by a static display of classic and sports cars in front of the Castle, with the Rally Car action again starting at 11.30am.
The drivers are brought to Lombard Rally Festival Craufurdland Castle with the assistance of Nykku Air Conditioning, in addition other event partners are Hamilton Tarmac and as in 2024.
Tickets are now available to buy here.
