Free-to-attend St James’s Motoring Spectacle to celebrate Fiat, Renault and Volkswagen anniversaries – alongside dream machines
With glittering displays of more than 140 of the world’s most exciting and significant cars of the past, present and future, the newly announced St James’s Motoring Spectacle – taking place on Saturday, 2 November – will boast eye-catching highlights to inspire every kind of enthusiast.
Organised by the Royal Automobile Club, this specially curated display will take over most of London’s prestigious Pall Mall, which will be closed to through-traffic during the day so the public can enjoy the festivities in a relaxed and safe environment.
Rubbing door handles with state-of-the-art supercars and pioneering veterans dating back to the dawn of motoring, the Spectacle will celebrate major milestones in the history of Fiat, Renault and Volkswagen.
Almost every driver alive today will have owned or driven one of the hundreds of different models from these three giants of European car-making.
Both Fiat and Renault cars were first launched 125 years ago at the very end of the 20th century. Meanwhile, it is exactly 50 years since Volkswagen’s best-selling Golf was first introduced in 1974. From Fiat Uno, Punto and 500 to Renault 4, 5 and Clio, and on to the pioneer hot hatchback itself, the Golf GTI, they have produced some of the best-loved cars of all time.
Since its humble origins as Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino (F.I.A.T.) back in 1898, Fiat swiftly became one of the world’s greatest car manufacturers, and the largest single company in the whole of Italy. Almost simultaneously, Société Renault Frères was established by in Boulogne-Billancourt to the west of Paris, and it too flourished to become one of today’s major international manufacturers.
With such long and successful pedigrees, early Fiat and Renault models are always well represented on the annual RM Sotheby’s London to Brighton Veteran Car Run, taking place on the Sunday immediately after the St James’s Motoring Spectacle.
Indeed, the Italian company’s special anniversary will be celebrated in awe-inspiring style when the legendary chain-driven Fiat 130HP racer makes its first-ever UK appearance on this year’s Run. This follows a meticulous, three-year restoration at the Museo Nazionale dell’Automobile in Turin.
The monstrous 16.2-litre Fiat 130HP will also be one of the star attractions in the Fiat display on Pall Mall alongside a not-to-be-missed collection of past and present Fiat icons. These include much-loved models such as the Nuova 500 from the late 1950s and a mid-engined X1/9 sports car from the 1970s.
These eye-catchers will line-up alongside several of Fiat’s latest hybrid and all-electric offerings, among these a very rare Fiat 500 Collezione, a striking new collectors’ edition with just 1957 units produced.
Also embracing the past, present and future theme of the Royal Automobile Club-organised St James’s Motoring Spectacle, the Renault showcase – with enthusiastic support from the Renault Owners’ Club – will span the ages from a pre-1905 veteran car right up to its latest retro-styled, all electric Renault 5, sales of which will commence early in the new year.
In comparison to Fiat and Renault, Volkswagen is a relative upstart – it can only trace its history back to 1937. But over the past 50 years few cars have been more significant than VW’s seminal Golf hatchback.
Over eight, best-selling generations, more than 37m Golfs have been sold since the first one rolled off the Wolfsburg production line in 1974, equating to 2,000 sales every single day over the past 50 years!
Honouring that incredible five-decade journey, the comprehensive Pall Mall showcase will be bookended by one of the first Mk1 GL hatchbacks and one of VW’s latest facelifted drive Mk8.5 R all-wheel-drive trailblazers.
“The St James’s Motoring Spectacle has been introduced to celebrate motoring through the ages as well as into the future,” explained Duncan Wiltshire, Chairman of the Royal Automobile Club. “These three extraordinary milestones will not only be an integral part of that automotive timeline but, importantly, provide an intriguing insight into more sustainable motoring in the years to come.”
The three carefully selected Fiat, Renault and Volkswagen anniversary collections will be highlights in the Heritage Display, one of five dedicated Zones on Pall Mall.
The four other Zones will be dedicated to Modern Design with stunning state-of-the-art supercars; Education; the RM Sotheby’s London 2024 auction; and the much-loved St James’s Concours featuring around 70 of the pre-1905 pioneers participating in the following day’s Veteran Car Run.
The family-friendly St James’s Motoring Spectacle, set right in the heart of Westminster, is a free-to-attend event with activities and interests for all ages. No tickets are required and the event will run from 10am to 3pm on the Pall Mall road-space that is closed to traffic throughout. Surrounded by popular shopping and tourist destinations such as Regent Street and Buckingham Palace, the Motoring Spectacle is sure to attract significant interest from those visiting the area as well as from enthusiasts seeking a memorable day out in central London.
Full details of both the St James’s Motoring Spectacle and the RM Sotheby’s London to Brighton Veteran Car Run are available on the official veterancarrun.com website.
