Concours Judging Criteria
The purpose of this page is to help provide you with an indication on what the judges will be looking for when they judge our vehicles at our Concours event.
We have prepared this list of notes, and hopefully have provided you with some useful advice to ensure your Porsche is in tip top condition and ready to shine at the next the Porsche Club Cape Concours event“.
TAKE IT EASY
- The Porsche Club Cape Concours is a relaxed day out with your fellow members. It is NOT a “Concours de Elegance”.
- Ours is a Street Concours, a Shine and Show event.
- You do not have to invest a small fortune into the preparation of your vehicles. Just remember though, you will get out what you put in.
- Some basic cleaning and following the tips below, will put you in a great position to enjoy the day and stand a great chance at winning an award presented at our Annual Year-End celebration dinner.
SILICON
- Besides the cleanliness of the car, you will be penalized for using too much silicon. It must not come off on one’s hands. You can lose points per section.
DRIVE THE CAR TO THE EVENT
- Cars must be driven to concours. If it is not, your car will be penalized, and you will not get any points.
MEMORABILIA
- If you have any tools or memorabilia or information relating to the car, and it is displayed in the car, you will get an extra point.
CLEANLINESS
- Cars will be checked thoroughly for any dirt.
- Pretty much any dirt, dust, grease or lint, anywhere in the judged area will result in a deduction…if it looks dirty…it is!
PREPERATION
- Surfaces should not only be clean, but they should be prepared similar to how they came from the factory.
- Vinyl surface should look just like they did from the factory. Clean, not faded and not too shiny.
- The exterior paint work should be clean, shiny and free from swirl marks.
INTERIOR & EXTERIOR MAINTENANCE
- Your car should be free from damage. Ripped/torn interior will result in a deduction, as will scratches and stone chips
AFTERMARKET PARTS
- If there are any aftermarket parts (not original) you will be penalized 1 point.
ARRIVAL AT THE VENUE
- Your car must be in the judging area on time. No late arrivals will be permitted.
JUDGES POINTS ARE FINAL
- Don’t interfere with the judges. If anyone is found near their car while judging, they will get zero points.
START EARLY
- The best way to prep a car for a Concourse event is to start with a clean car.
- The following is a list of things you can do several weeks before an event:
PAINT WORK PREPARATION
- It’s time for her to shine with claying, polishing, waxing etc.
CLEAN THE ENGINE
- For the most modern 911s, all Boxsters and Caymans, this is no longer relevant. All modern 911s, Caymans and Boxsters get the same score for clean engine.
- For the models where Judges can look at your engine, they will be looking into your engine bay for a clean engine.
FULL LEATHER SERVICE
- You don’t want to be looking at 5 years of neglect the day before the event! Getting dirty leather concours clean may take several attempts and the need for different products. This is best done several weeks before an event.
CLEAN AND RESTORE
- Interior clean and dressing of plastics/vinyl.
- Cleaning of battery and adjacent area.
- Restoration of cabrio top plastic window.
- Initial clean of storage areas (trunks) – these are typically neglected and although they will need to be cleaned again before the event, it’s best to get a head start.
- Restoration of rubber trim – full cleaning with rubber cleaner, followed by dressing.
- Cleaning of door jams including polishing and waxing them. This may sound like over-kill, but door jams are a key area that judges look at. They must be immaculate. The best way I have found to ensure they are, is to fully clean, polish and wax (or seal) them several weeks in advance. This way the final prep is just a simply wipe down.
- Alloy wheels also need to be immaculate. The same applies to these as to door jams.
- Get them clean, then use a wax or sealant on them. This will make prep the day before and, on the day, much easier
- Clean all the strange places in the interior…. under the seats, seat belt recesses, under the dash, in the air vents etc. These are areas that are unlikely to get dirty quickly but do collect a surprising amount of dirt over the long term.
- Clean things you don’t normally clean – The things that matter are the things we don’t normally clean!
TO DO THE DAY BEFORE
- Washing the car
- Cleaning windows
- Dressing external rubber and vinyl
- Final interior vacuum
- Final vacuum and inspection of storage areas
- Final wipe down of engine
MOST IMPORTANTLY
- Come and enjoy the day with your fellow members. After all, it always a great day out with friends and family and you never know who you might meet.