"RAID" is synonymous with long-distance driving. The RAID Suisse-Paris is itself a veteran of the classic car rally scene. For 22 years, rally teams have been driving from Switzerland to Paris, on ever new routes and with ever new difficulties. The RAID Suisse-Paris has blossomed into one of the largest classic car rallies in Europe and now attracts participating teams from nine countries. In 2012, 46 different brands were represented, truly a museum on wheels.
Festive start with the prologue in Zurich
For several years now, the RAID has been heralded by the prologue in Zurich. In 2012, a colorful mixture of rare automobiles gathered at Bürkliplatz to first show off in the Concours d'Elegance and later tour to Paris in the form of a small rally.
The prologue was ultimately won by Theo and Olga Imhof in a 1964 Ford Mustang, followed by Monika Roell with co-driver Linda Kuhn in a 1962 Alfa Romeo Giuliette 1300 Spider. Andreas Schoelkopf and Barbara Hofer crossed the finish line in Basel in third place in a majestic 1961 Rolls Royce Phantom V.
The RAID company
A RAID event requires around 1.5 years of preparation. Routes have to be selected, negotiations conducted with hotels and towns, road books written, etc.
Forty volunteer helpers accompany the RAID, timekeepers, tow-away attendants, etc. need to be organized.
And then, of course, the 130 to 140 participating teams have to be recruited, registered and informed every year.
Prehistory in Basel
While the participants prepared for the start, which was scheduled for just after midday, and completed the technical inspection, an extensive exhibition of classic and modern automobiles tempted visitors to stroll around. Over 60 vehicles competed in the Concours d'Elegance in Basel, sorted by pre- and post-war. The Mercedes-Benz Nürburg 500 from 1931 was voted "Best of Show". The pre-war category was won by the Rolls-Royce Springfield Silver Ghost from 1926, which was also honored with the audience award. In the post-war category, the Talbot Lago Record T26 Grand Sport from 1949 received the winner's trophy.
Colorful field of vehicles
Cars from 1925 to 1992 gathered at the start in Basel. 19 pre-war vehicles were entered, 28 teams competed in the Sport category, 10 exclusively women's teams competed for the women's classification and three young teams (drivers under 35 years of age) competed for the Young RAIDER's Trophy.
The vehicles included well-known classics such as the Porsche 911, Mercedes-Benz 190 SL/300 SL and VW Beetle, as well as genuine rarities such as the DeLorean DMC-12, the Maserati 3500 GT Vignale Spider and the Lancia Flaminia Coupé Pininfarina. Even the most "popular" classic cars/youngtimers did not appear more than two or three times in the field. Unfortunately, the Ferrari 212 Inter Berlinetta ininfarina from 1953, which was still present at the prologue in Zurich and which Rossellini once gave to his enchanting wife Ingrid Bergman, did not take part in the rally.
Let's go
The RAID is a regularity rally, with three categories (Tourisme, Sport, Vétérans) competing for the lowest possible deviations from the target speeds. The average speed is less than 50 km/h, but that does not mean that it was possible to drive slowly.
Several stages were scored on each day, and special stages had to be completed within the stages.
Colorful route through three countries
Immediately after the start in Basel, the road book took the teams on a short detour to Germany and the beautiful landscapes of France. The Sundgau region was visited for the first time. Some of the route was completely new. On the first evening, the participants reached Besançon, the next day the route took them via the Château de Thenissey to Troyes, where the sports class was called up for the challenging night stage. On Saturday, the road book took the participants to Montlhéry, after which the RAID 2012 came to a festive conclusion in Paris.
With the exception of the rain on Friday, France turned out to be dry, sometimes even dust-dry.
The participants praised the route: "Great ride!". The route mostly led along remote side roads and through unfamiliar terrain.
Not a coffee ride
900 km (1,000 km for the Sport category) is an impressive distance for a classic car, especially in view of the short travel time and the fact that the route was mostly on minor roads. Definitely not a coffee trip.
It may seem somewhat paradoxical that the target times in the special stages were usually easily achievable, at least for the modern vehicles, while the overall stages could not always be completed in the specified time because too much time was lost waiting in front of the special and tube stages.
The "Sport" category worked overtime, as a night stage of over 100 km had to be completed on Friday evening.
Everyone won
As always, all participants won in terms of impressions and experiences, but of course there were also points winners.
Overall winner, winner of the Grand Prix and winner of the Tourisme category were Andreas Locher and Manuel Uhlmann in a 1967 Jaguar 420.
Christian Gurtner and Mariann Guldimann in a 1937 Packard 120 SIX Convertible won the Vétéran category.
In the Sport category, Regina Fischer-Tschudi and Andreas Fischer-Tschudi crossed the finish line as winners in their 1972 BMW 3.0 CS.
In the RAID Ladies' Cup, Monika Roell and Linda Kuhn received the coveted trophy in an Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint from 1962.
And in the Young Raider's Trophy, Isabelle Grumbacher and Sabina Schneider in the original 1973 VW Type 27 ambulance were the best-placed drivers.
The start list and the results
The list shows the participating vehicles, including the nationalities of the teams. The first three places in the rankings are added as comments.
| Start no. | Make | Type | Year | Nat. | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sunbeam | 20/60 | 1925 | CH | |
| 2 | Studebaker | Commander Big Six | 1927 | CH | 3rd place Vétérans classification |
| 3 | Rolls-Royce | Phantom I | 1928 | CH | |
| 4 | Rolls-Royce | Phantom I | 1928 | CH | |
| 5 | Ford | A Sedan | 1929 | CH | |
| 6 | Talbot | K78 | 1931 | CH/GE | 2nd place Ladies' Cup classification |
| 7 | Ahvis | Speed 20 | 1933 | CH | |
| 8 | Ahvis | Firefly Speciale | 1933 | CH | |
| 9 | Riley | Nine Ulster IMP | 1934 | CH | |
| 10 | Riley | TT Sprite | 1934 | CH | |
| 11 | Bentley | Saloon 3.5 | 1934 | CH | |
| 12 | Rolls-Royce | Phantom II | 1935 | CH | |
| 14 | Bentley | 4 1/4 Open Tourer | 1936 | CH | |
| 16 | Maybach | SW 38 | 1937 | EN | |
| 17 | Packard | 120 SIX Convertible | 1937 | CH | Winner Classification Vétérans |
| 19 | Rolls-Royce | Phantom III | 1937 | USA | Place 2 Classification Vétérans |
| 22 | Riley | Monaco Special 1500 cc | 1936 | CH | |
| 23 | Mercedes-Benz | 300 SEL | 1969 | CH | |
| 24 | Cadillac | Club Coupé | 1942 | D | |
| 25 | Citroën | 11 BL | 1949 | CH | |
| 26 | Jaguar | XK 120 OTS | 1951 | EN | |
| 27 | Citroën | 11 BL | 1952 | CH | |
| 28 | Bentley | Park Ward MK VI | 1952 | CH | |
| 29 | Mercedes-Benz | 170 S | 1953 | EN | |
| 30 | BMW | 327/2 | 1953 | CH | |
| 31 | Ferrari | 212 Inter Europa Pininfarina Coupé | 1953 | EN | |
| 32 | Porsche | Speedster 356 | 1954 | CH | |
| 33 | Austin-Healey | 100/4 BN1 Le Mans | 1954 | EN | |
| 34 | Jaguar | Mark 2 | 1967 | CH | |
| 35 | Jaguar | XK140 DHC | 1955 | CH | |
| 36 | Mercedes-Benz | 300 SL | 1955 | IT/EE | |
| 37 | Austin-Healey | 100 M | 1956 | CH | |
| 38 | Jaguar | XK 140 DHC Convertible | 1956 | CH/DE | |
| 39 | Jaguar | XK 140 DHC | 1956 | CH | |
| 40 | Jaguar | XK 150 | 1957 | CH | |
| 41 | Jaguar | XK 150 | 1957 | CH | |
| 42 | Continental | Mark 2 Cabriolet | 1956 | CH | |
| 43 | Buick | Special | 1957 | CH | |
| 44 | Ford | Thunderbird Convertible | 1965 | CH/UA | |
| 45 | Cadillac | De Ville Convertible | 1963 | CH | |
| 46 | Cadillac | Eldorado Biarritz | 1957 | CH | |
| 47 | Oldsmobile | Sedan | 1957 | CH | |
| 48 | Mercedes-Benz | 190 SL | 1958 | CH | |
| 49 | Jaguar | XK 150 S | 1958 | CH | |
| 50 | Chevrolet | Corvette | 1958 | CH | |
| 51 | Bentley | 4 1/4 Open Tourer | 1949 | CH | |
| 52 | Jaguar | XK 150 S DHC | 1959 | CH | |
| 53 | Jaguar | E Type Series 2 FHC | 1959 | CH | |
| 54 | Austin-Healey | Sprite "Frog Eye" | 1960 | CH | |
| 55 | Cadillac | Series 62 Convertible | 1960 | EN | |
| 56 | Mercedes-Benz | 190 SL | 1961 | CH | |
| 57 | Mercedes-Benz | 190 SL | 1961 | CH/DE | |
| 58 | Rolls-Royce | Phantom V James Young | 1961 | CH | |
| 59 | Affa Romeo | Giulietta Sprint Cabriolet | 1962 | CH | Winner Ladies' Cup classification |
| 60 | Porsche | 356 BT6 | 1962 | EN | |
| 61 | Jaguar | MK2 | 1962 | CH | |
| 62 | Rolls-Royce | Silver Cloudll | 1962 | CH | |
| 63 | Fiat | 600 | 1963 | CH | |
| 64 | VW | Convertible 1300 | 1963 | CH | |
| 65 | Peugeot | 404 C | 1963 | CH | |
| 66 | Dahiler | SP 250 | 1963 | CH | |
| 67 | Chevrolet | Corvette | 1963 | CH | |
| 68 | Ferrari | 275 GTS | 1965 | CH | |
| 69 | Pontiac | Bonneville | 1965 | CH | |
| 70 | Opel | Rekord B Coupé | 1966 | CH | |
| 71 | Ford | Mustang | 1966 | CH | |
| 72 | VW | Karman Ghia Cabriolet | 1967 | CH | |
| 73 | Mercedes-Benz | 230 | 1967 | CH | |
| 74 | Mercedes-Benz | 250 SL | 1967 | CH | |
| 75 | Lancia | Flaminia Coupé Pininfarina | 1967 | CH | |
| 76 | Mercedes-Benz | 190 SL | 1958 | CH | |
| 77 | Jaguar | 420 | 1967 | CH | Overall winner, winner of the Tourisme classification |
| 78 | Austin | Mini Cooper S | 1968 | CH | 2nd place Tourisme classification, 2nd place overall |
| 79 | Excalibur | Roadster | 1969 | CH | |
| 80 | VW | Karmann Ghia | 1968 | CH | |
| 81 | Ford | Mercury Cougar V8 | 1968 | CH | |
| 82 | Ford | Mustang Shelby GT 500 | 1968 | EN | |
| 83 | Citroën | 2CV | 1970 | CH | |
| 84 | Mercedes-Benz | 280 SL | 1970 | CH | |
| 85 | Porsche | 911 S | 1971 | CH | |
| 86 | Mercedes-Benz | 280 SE 3.5 | 1971 | CH | 3rd place in the Young RAIDER's Trophy classification |
| 87 | VW | Beetle 1302 | 1972 | CH | |
| 88 | VW | Beetle Cabriolet | 1972 | CH | |
| 89 | MG | B Roadster | 1972 | CH/DE | |
| 90 | Alfa Romeo | Spider | 1972 | CH/DE | |
| 91 | Porsche | 911 2.4 S | 1972 | CH/DE | |
| 92 | Affa Romeo | Montreal | 1972 | CH | |
| 93 | Mercedes-Benz | 450 SL | 1972 | EN | |
| 94 | Cadillac | Eldorado Convertible | 1972 | CH | |
| 95 | Cadillac | Eldorado Convertible | 1976 | CH | |
| 96 | VW | Type 27 | 1973 | CH | Winner classification Young RAIDER's Trophy |
| 97 | Porsche | 911 Targa | 1973 | CH | |
| 98 | Jaguar | E-Type | 1973 | CH | |
| 99 | Jaguar | E-TypeV12 | 1973 | CH | |
| 100 | Jaguar | E-Type Roadster | 1973 | CH | |
| 101 | Jaguar | E-Type | 1973 | CH | |
| 102 | MG | B | 1974 | CH | 3rd place Tourisme classification |
| 103 | Ford | Mustang | 1966 | CH | |
| 104 | Jensen | Interceptor lll | 1974 | CH | |
| 105 | Ferrari | 308 GTS | 1978 | CH | 3rd place Ladies' Cup classification |
| 106 | Porsche | 911 Speedster Cabriolet | 1989 | CH | |
| 107 | Aston Martin | AM V8 Saloon | 1976 | AT | |
| 108 | Peugeot | 504 Convertible | 1978 | CH | |
| 109 | Affa Romeo | Spider 2000 | 1980 | CH | |
| 110 | DeLorean | DMC-12 | 1981 | CH | |
| 111 | Bentley | Turbo R | 1989 | IT/CH | |
| 114 | Jaguar | SS 100 | 1936 | EN | |
| 116 | Jaguar | XK120 | 1951 | CH | |
| 117 | Bentley | Special Donington | 1951 | CH | |
| 118 | Jaguar | XK120 DHC | 1953 | CH | |
| 119 | Porsche | 356 | 1955 | EN | |
| 120 | VW GOLF | Golf 1 | 1976 | CH | |
| 121 | Austin-Healey | 100/6 | 1958 | CH | Place 2 Classification Sport |
| 123 | Maserati | 3500 GT Vignale Spider | 1960 | EN | |
| 124 | Mercedes-Benz | 300 SL | 1961 | CH | |
| 125 | Saab | Sonett III | 1972 | CH | |
| 126 | Porsche | 356 | 1964 | CH | |
| 127 | NSU | 1000 TT | 1967 | CH | 2nd place in the Young RAIDER's Trophy classification |
| 128 | Austin-Healey | MK3 | 1967 | CH | |
| 129 | Mercedes-Benz | 280 SL | 1968 | EN | |
| 130 | Jaguar | E-Type V12 | 1969 | CH | |
| 131 | Mercedes-Benz | 280 SL | 1970 | CH | |
| 132 | Lotus | Elan S4 Sprint | 1971 | CH | 3rd place Sport classification |
| 133 | MG | B | 1971 | CH | |
| 134 | Affa Romeo | GTV | 1972 | CH | |
| 135 | BMW | 3.0 CS | 1972 | CH | Winner of the Sport class, 3rd place overall |
| 136 | BMW | 2002 Si | 1973 | CH | |
| 137 | Mercedes-Benz | Pagoda 230 SL | 1964 | CH | |
| 138 | Citroën | CX 2200 | 1975 | EN | |
| 139 | Lotus | Turbo Esprit | 1980 | CH | |
| 140 | Ferrari | GTSi | 1981 | CH | |
| 141 | Ferrari | Mondial Convertible | 1992 | CH/FR |
