How to enter the Mercedes-Benz Classic Car Rally in Mumbai

If you own an old Mercedes-Benz in India and want it on the lawn at the Mercedes-Benz Classic Car Rally, there is no online entry form. Autocar India, which runs the rally with Mercedes-Benz, asks owners to write to mbccr@haymarketsac.com if they have, or know of, an eligible classic, and it has warned in the past that slots are limited and fill fast. Eligibility published for the tenth edition covered all Mercedes-Benz passenger cars built up to 2002, with named extensions beyond that cut-off. If you only want to watch, the 2026 edition is listed on District for Saturday 21 November at Taj Lands End in Mumbai, with tickets from ₹749.

What the rally is, and what the 2026 listing says

The rally began in 2014 as an Autocar India event in association with Mercedes-Benz, and it is now the largest single-marque classic gathering in the country. The 2025 running drew more than 100 cars, of which 89 were appearing at the rally for the first time, and it closed at Taj Lands End on 16 November 2025.

The District listing for 2026 gives 21 November, an 11 am start and a ₹749 starting price, with tickets needed for anyone aged 12 and above. It is an open-air standing display with no seating and no parking at the venue, and the listed highlights include a 300Sc, one of 49 built, and a 630K that has won at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance. In 2025 the format ran over two days, a static display on 15 November from 10 am to 6 pm and a convoy drive the next morning that left Bandra at 9.30 am, crossed the Bandra-Worli Sea Link and the coastal road, turned at Nariman Point around 10 am and was back at Lands End by about 10.25 am. Public ticketing for the display has been part of the event since 2024.

Getting your car in, step by step

1. Check the year. The eligibility list issued for the 2023 edition took in every Mercedes-Benz passenger car built up to 2002, then added the pre-facelift R230 SL up to 2006, all R170 SLK, all A208 and C208 CLK, all W220 S-Class, W210 E-Class and W203 C-Class, the W463 G-Class and W163 ML up to 2002, the SLS AMG and the Maybach 57 and 62.
2. Write early. Send the car's model, year, chassis details and photographs to mbccr@haymarketsac.com and ask for the current year's eligibility and entry status, because the list has been revised edition to edition.
3. Expect a class, not a free-for-all. Past editions have grouped cars into classes such as E-Class, S-Class and SL-Class, a Bruno Sacco class, a Supercharged class for the 1930s Kompressor cars, a Superlimousine class, a class for the 124 series, a Tribute to Motorsport class and a Mile Muncher class for cars driven in from cities such as Goa, Lucknow, Kochi and Rajkot.
4. Plan the logistics. If you intend to drive in from outside Mumbai, the Mile Muncher class exists precisely for that, and the convoy day in 2025 used public roads on a published timetable.

Why it matters for Indian owners

The 2025 field included a 190SL once owned by Maharani Gayatri Devi, a 300Sc Roadster from the Pranlal Bhogilal collection and an SLS AMG, and curator Perseus Bandrawalla told Autocar India that the rally pioneered the modern classic movement in India, with values of some cars rising sharply over five years. For an owner, a rally entry is also provenance on record, which is the part that outlives the weekend.

Sources

• Book tickets to Mercedes-Benz Classic Car Rally (MBCCR) 2026, District
• Mercedes-Benz Classic Car Rally to be held in Mumbai in December, Autocar India
• All you need to know about Mercedes-Benz Classic Car Rally 2025, Autocar India
• Mercedes-Benz Classic Car Rally 2025 route map and timings, Autocar India
• Mercedes-Benz Classic Car Rally 2025: rare icons and record turnout, Autocar India
• Mercedes-Benz Classic Car Rally gears up for its biggest edition yet, Autocar India