Austin 7 Club (S.A.) Inc.

Motorkhanas

What is a Motorkana?
Who can Enter?
What type of vehicle do I need?
Past Events
Upcoming events

What is a Motorkhana? 

MOTORKHANA is a low-cost form of motorsport , unique to Australia and New Zealand but similar to autotesting in the UK and Ireland and somewhat similar to autocross in the US. It involves manoeuvering a car through tight tests as quickly as possible - one car at a time - on either dirt or bitumen surfaces. This usually requires sliding and spinning the car accurately while maintaining speed through the test course. Some reversing is usually included.

Each test takes from 15 to 60 seconds to complete and is defined by flags. Hitting flags or going the wrong way incur time penalties which are added to the total time. A day's competition - an event - usually includes 8 to 12 tests. Vehicle speed rarely exceeds 60 km/h (37 mph) but the tightness of the tests ensures the driver is kept very busy.

Awards are made to the driver with the lowest total time in each class. Classes separate production cars from specials and large production cars from small production cars. There are often classes for female drivers, and for junior drivers as young as 12.

Most Australian motorkhanas are run to the National Motorkhana Code rules. Australian championship and state championship events use tests from the Motorkhana Test booklet which specifies test dimensions, required direction of travel and flag colours. Most championship motorkhanas are run on bitumen or concrete while club events are usually on dirt, grass or mud.

Competition licences and entry fees are cheap and vehicle maintenance is low so motorkhana is probably the most affordable motor sport for cars in Australia .

Who can Enter? (Top)

If you're capable of driving a car then you can enter a Motorkhana!

You don't need a Driver's Licence, but you do need a CAMS L2NS licence (or better). You can obtain a suitable licence at the venue before the event, or by visiting your local CAMS office or CAMS-affiliated Car Club (Such as the Austin 7 Club).

What type of vehicle do I need? (Top)

Most competitors use normal road cars but some use specially built vehicles (motorkhana specials) which are much lighter and have specialised braking systems to facilitate the spin turns. Some motorkhana specials use modified automatic transmissions to facilitate rapid gearchanges between first and reverse gears. They usually use racing slick tyres for bitumen and concrete surfaces.

Past Events (Top)

Tailem Bend, 10th April 2005. Results Here

Upcoming events (Top)

Another Motorkhana is in the planning stages. Check back for more information regularly!