Preparing your car - mandatory requirements

Fire Extinguisher

To participate in a Supersprint event you must have fitted into your vehicle a fire extinguisher. There are a number of requirements with respect to the fire extinguisher:

The fire extinguisher must comply with Australian Standard AS 1841. Note carefully that many fire extinguishers comply with another Australian Standard AS 1841.2 – these do not meet Supersprint requirements and will not be accepted by scrutineers;

The fire extinguisher must be of at least 900g capacity;
It must be restrained on a metal bracket, not a plastic bracket;
It must be removable by the driver from the metal bracket without tools; and
It must be not older than 3 years from the date of manufacture as stamped on the extinguisher.

….. In terms of handy hints, therefore:

Hunt through the stock of extinguishers at your favourite auto parts retailer for the youngest date on the fire extinguisher so you get the most life out of it – they
are rarely used;
Check your extinguisher before each event to make sure its indicator is in the green section of the gauge – if not, buy a new one;
At the expiry date, buy a new extinguisher as it is not worth having your old one recharged or tested – it costs about twice as much as purchasing a new one.

Battery Location Indicator

To participate in a Supersprint event you must have a blue triangle with sides measuring 150mm, usually a sticker, stuck on the outside of the body of your car to indicate the location of the battery.

Do not use the blue triangle with a lightning bolt in it – this indicates a “kill” switch, not the battery! (It is not necessary to have a kill switch or associated sticker on the car for Supertsprint events).

Competition Numbers

To participate in a Supersprint event you must have your competition number displayed on the front door of both sides of the car. The numerals must be black and 280mm high and must be stuck on a white background at least 50mm long by 360mm high.

There is a register of competition numbers maintained for the Inter-Club Supersprint Series in which AROCA participates. If you do not have a Supersprint competition
number, you must apply in advance of the event to the AROCA Competition Secretary at compec@alfaclubnsw.org.au.

Please note carefully that if you are allocated a Supersprint competition number, this is only valid for the Inter-Club Supersprint Series. Other groups, including the Veloce Racing Association, the Festival of Sporting Cars and so on, maintain separate competition number registers for other motor sport events (racing).

While you may be lucky enough to be able to use the same number in other motor sport events, do not assume that to be the case – check it out!

The converse is also true – a “race” competition number allocated by another body is not valid for use in the Inter-Club Supersprint Series unless it has been allocated to you by the Competition Secretary.

Once you’ve been allocated a competition number, standard sized adhesive numbers can be purchased individually from motor sport retail outlets.

If your car is road registered, consider using magnetic number patches with the number affixed using black race tape. These still need to be taped in place (masking tape is
kindest to the paintwork, but falls off in the rain!), otherwise they will blow off on the track. Keep them clean and they will not damage the paintwork.

Permanent patches and numbers can be painted on, or affixed using white contact with black contact numbers. To remove them, use a hair dryer to prevent lifting the paint underneath.

You are strongly encouraged to remove your competition numbers prior to driving on a public road as they can lead to unwanted and unwarranted attention from some sections of the community. If you do not want to remove your competition numbers after each event, at least put a line of tape through the numbers.

Brake Lights and Windscreen Wipers

Brake lights must work. If the weather threatens rain, you may also be asked to show that your windscreen wipers work.

Headlights

Headlights must be covered or otherwise secured to prevent glass falling out in the event of impact.

Clear contact is one of the easiest ways to achieve this, especially on road registered cars, and can last the season without replacement if your car is garaged and kept out of
the weather.

Headlights that have plastic lenses as standard are exempt from this requirement.

Secondary Bonnet Restraints

For Supersprints, secondary bonnet restraints need only be fitted to cars that are both manufactured before 1 January 1973 and that have front opening bonnets (rear hinged).

For Alfas, therefore, this rule affects only Guilias and Berlinas.

If your car requires secondary bonnet restraint, they must be of limited extensibility (so no octopus straps!).

Carburettor Second Return Spring

Cars using carburettors must have a second return spring fitted on each carburettor.

Windscreen

For Supersprints your car must be fitted with a laminated windscreen. Check especially in older cars – most modern cars have them already.

Towing hooks

Towing hooks must be fitted to both the front and rear of your vehicle to allow for the speedy recovery of the vehicle by the rescue team if required. Many modern cars
already have them fitted, so check first. Towing hooks do not have to be rigid, but must: