The Mission


The Peking to Paris Rally is a recreation of the 1907 challenge issued by Le Matin, "Is there anyone who will undertake to travel this summer from Peking to Paris by automobile?"
The 2016 version will follow a route of 13,695 Km (8,510 miles) and take 35 days. We are travelling in Rhubarb and Custard, a 1936 Buick. We know nothing about cars or rallying.

Tuesday 26 April 2016

What Does The The Peking to Paris Rally Cost?

I thought future readers possibly thinking about entering the rally might be interested to know what it costs to enter.

The basic entry fee is £40,000 per crew of two, which for a 35 day trip including hotels and support crew seems like very good value to me.

Unfortunately it doesn't end there. Among the additional costs are:

Fuel in Mongolia - depends on engine size but £1500
Fuel on the remainder of the trip £Not Known but probably another £3,000
Shipping  - depends on where you start but £3,610 for us to get the car to China and £840 to recover from Paris
Chinese Import Bond 1% of the value of the car (so for some of the participants this could be a very big number)
Chinese Stranded Tax 0.3% of the car's value
Insurance £2175 for us

On top of this there are flights out to Beijing and return from Paris and costs of extra tickets at various events in Beijing and Paris if your loved ones are joining you. There isn't much to spend money on during the rally but we are told to take $10,000 of emergency money and plenty of participants find they need this.

Finally there is the cost of the car and fixing up the car which is whatever you want it to be.  We know that some of the cars have had a £250,000 build on top of what they originally cost to buy.  Rhubarb and Custard has not been so privileged. You also have to carry a fair inventory of spares - probably £5,000 or £10,000 worth, but of course these will not be needed on the trip (ha ha!).

So it's impossible to say what it might cost - there will be people who spent a fortune and some who are on a shoe string.  Rhubarb and Custard is somewhere at the lower end of the middle I would guess.

Still what price can you put on the experience of a lifetime?


4 comments:

  1. £150 (Rainbow Sports Bar, Shoreditch High Street)

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  2. Not good value- we did the trip in an Austin Seven in 2007, on our own, and again in 2 Austin Sevens in 2011..cost for EVERYTHING for first trip was £7200, and for second trip £11300. Thinking of repeating the trip at cost of less than £10K...anyone interested for 2018...contact kipcarwaistell@hotmail.com

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  3. What are you looking for on the 2018 trip? When would it take place?
    Kevin
    Stayatmauidad@gmail.com

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  4. The 2018 trip is now open for entries. Contact The Endurance Rally Association for details. The link to their website is on this page.

    ReplyDelete