This weekend’s (6/7 June) Coventry MotoFest Classic is a free annual motoring and motorsport festival that celebrates Coventry’s status as the historic heart of the British motor industry. It’s held across the city centre and among the classic and modern vehicles on display, an autotest event will be taking place in an arena created under Coventry’s famous Ring Road near Gosford Street.
Autotest is one of the most accessible forms of grassroots motorsport in the UK. With accuracy and control just as important as speed, it’s a fun, safe and inexpensive way to compete.
Competitors tackle a carefully designed course marked out by cones with tight turns and designated stopping points. Drivers must memorise the course and navigate against the clock and with time penalties for clipping or missing cones, good car control is essential to success.
With short courses and a firm emphasis on car handling, almost any car is capable of being competitive on an event, whether powered by petrol, diesel or electricity. Many autotest events run under MotorsportUK’s StreetCar initiative, in which you can compete in motorsport events with your road car.
Autotests are also a fun activity for spectators as the action is fast-paced and frequently exciting as drivers of all abilities tackle the course – and unlike most race circuits, fans can follow every moment of the action from a single viewing area.
The Coventry autotest is also a round of the MotorsportUK British Autotest Championship. Combined with the city centre backdrop it will be a unique spectacle but similar events take place across the UK at a variety of venues from farmland to car parks on industrial estates. With entry fees costing as little as a meal out with friends and just a free RS Clubman licence required to compete, it’s a truly accessible form of motorsport open to all.
Useful links
Entries for the Coventry autotest are open until 4th June and spectating is free of charge. Click here for more information on how to compete and here for more information on Coventry MotoFest Classic.
For more information on autotest, click here for the MotorsportUK British Autotest Championship, here for the discipline and here for StreetCar.