Merits of Royale PR24 and RP31?

[Craig Jones]

There are two Royale Club Fords for sale in the Cars For Sale section. An RP24 and an RP31. What are the relative merits of those two models? How do they stack up against other Club Fords? What about the RP26 and RP33? Is the RP33 Club Ford legal? I get the sense that there are quite a few differences between these models of Royales, with Royale having so many different designers during this period.

Here is what Steve Nickless has to say: "In '74, Cornock hired yound South African designer Rory Bryne who came up with the RP21. This delightful car was big hit, Englishman Geoff Lees using one to win all three major British championships and the Festival in '75!

"Byrne's follow-up RP24 was also good, but he left suddenly for Toleman in '77. His successor was ex-Ford engineer Pat Symonds whose boxy '79-'80 RP26 proved to be the best-selling Royale FF of all time -- 104 produced! But in that time period, Van Diemen's "Brazil Connection" really took hold and in the tally of championships, Royale was left behind.

"Though Symonds graceful RP29 was a solid machine, Royale sales crashed to earth: fewer than three dozen examples were sold. Original Royale designer Bob Marston was brought back to try and salvage the marque's FF fortunes, and he made some headway: Forty RP31M's were produced in '82 and 26 RP33M's in '83."

[John Robinson]

Craig,

The rp33 is not CF legal as it has inboard rockers on both ends. The 24 eventho it is a solid car is built for short people. It has a short driving compartment. The car in the for sale section will be parted out as it was rolled this past weekend at Savannah.
I currently race a 31. It is an excellent short course car and I am trying to develop it to a long fast track car as the SARRC championship is at Savannah which is a very fast track with sweeping corners.

The 31 that is in the for sale section has been modified somewhat. If it is the one that I was told about at the winter national at sebring then some major changes to the rear suspension has been performed. If it is not the same car then I stand to be corrected.

Both cars can be competitve with most of the CF cars, it just depends on how much you want to work with them as it is with all the CF. The driver/engineer is the most important part.

If you would like to call me and I will discuss this further. 407-467-9847

John

[EACIII]

I have driven the RP31 that is listed for sale and can report that it is a fine handling machine. I turned competative CF times with it at Lime Rock the first time in the car before we even dailed in the setup. Lime Rock is a short but fast track.

[James Hakewill]

The RP31 can be a little floppy on the rear end - it seems like Royale ran out of chassis rails by the time that they reached the rear bulkhead.
My '79 Crossle 35F certainly seems a lot stiffer than my RP31.

Watch out for cracks around the front engine mount tubes, around the lower wishbone mounting tabs, and on the rear uprights.

You'll also need to ensure that the rear beam and cross-piece are properly attached to the chassis (i.e. the bolts are solid in the chassis).

James

[Craig Jones]

Thanks for the helpful responses!

[David P]

Interesting views on the Royales mentioned. I race an RP26 in the UK and the performance is extremely good compared to the competition of the era. The car regularly outperforms later popular VD models.

It is also very easy to drive on the limit.

Regards
David