Checks and Scrutineering at the  Tuileries Gardens

For this 18th edition, the Tour Auto Optic 2ooo will travel the Eastern and Northern parts of France, discovering new circuits and regions of France, even of Belgium.

In France, the rally will visit the circuits of Dijon-Prenois, Bresse, and Chenevière, where the access  is open and free of charge. At Spa Francorchamps in Belgium, the Tour Auto Optic 2ooo will be the opening race of the RMU Classic show which entrance fee is €.10 for the whole meeting.

After 5 days, 4 circuit races and 8 road stages, the finish will be in Deauville on Saturday 25 April.

Checks and Scrutineering take place in the Garden of Tuileries, where cars are on display. Hint of a first Salon de l'Automobile which took place there in 1898. The public will have the opportunity to discover, from 7am to 8pm this short lived museum formed by the 200 cars entered in the Tour Auto Optic 2ooo.  

The entrance is free of charge and the access to the gardens can be made either from the "rue de Rivoli", or through the main gate, Place de la Concorde, leading to the gardens where these dream cars can be seen from the other side of their safety fences.

Tribute to the Jaguar Mk 1 & 2  and to the Ford GT40.

Between 1951 and 1957, Jaguar wins five times the 24 Hours of Mans, firstly with the C Type then with the D type. This successful experience opens the way to the developement and tuning of the XK 3.8L engine block delivering 220 hp. The result is a fantastic automobile, a masterpiece of elegance and power, the fastest Sedan car in the world.

Bernard Consten, 4 times winner of the Tour de France Automobilewith this car, from 1960 to 1963, in Tourism class is back again this year, as front runner, at the wheel of a 1961 Mk2.

The Jaguar pays tribute to its ...tribute, with 8 Mk1 or 2 representing the production range from 1960 to 1964.

Another tribute is paid to Ford's icon GT40

Queen of Le Mans, when Ford challenged Ferrari on European playgrounds, the GT40, particularly efficient on circuit, did not hesitate to take up the challenge of long distance races such as the "Tour de France Automobile". Two participations, in 1969 and 1970: the furtive shape of an icon running along the French roads.

Forty years later, the GT40 makes its come back in the VHC classification of the Tour Auto Optic 2ooo. A winning come back?