August 27, 2013

50 years ago: Eugen Böhringer drove the ‘Pagoda’ to victory in the 1963 Spa–Sofia–Liège rally



From Belgium to Bulgaria and back, 5,500 kilometres in 90 hours: from 27 to 31 August 1963, Eugen Böhringer drove the red Mercedes-Benz 230 SL (W 113) day and night, hurtling through narrow passes and along distant motorways.

Together with co-driver Klaus Kaiser, he secured overall victory in the ‘Marathon de la Route’, the renowned Belgian long-distance rally. Böhringer had already won the ‘Liège–Sofia–Liège’ event in 1962, the year in which he became European Rally Champion, driving a Mercedes-Benz 220 SE (W 111) with Hermann Eger as his co-driver.