Thousands walked through the historic gates and on to the lawns of London’s beautiful Honourable Artillery Company gardens
Around 100 vehicles, from ‘The Lost Marques’ to ‘The Pursuit of Speed’ gathered in the five-acre oasis of green
The London Concours presented by Montres Breguet has crowned a stunning Ferrari 330 GTS as its ‘Best in Show’, following another enormously successful event. The HAC Artillery Gardens, a five-acre oasis of green close to Bank, played host to a world-class collection of vehicles, covering million-pound Aston Martins, vintage Hot Rods and a display dedicated to the Ferrari Dino.
In total, over 100 cars were on display across nine classes and three major features. The main concours event classes include ‘Speed of Sand’ –dedicated to the world of hot rods – ‘Convertible: The Golden Era’, ‘The Pursuit of Speed’ and ‘Lancia Legends’. Each of the classes was packed with rarities, including a line-up of four Lancia 037 competition cars, one of just 54 Lamborghini Silhouettes ever built and an ex-Stirling Moss Jaguar XK120.
The London Concours’ expert committee of judges picked an extraordinary Ferrari 330 GTS. In November 1967, this 330 GTS Spider was shown at the Torino Motor Show, before going on to be displayed at various venues until it was eventually sold in 1969 to Jamie Wyeth in Pennsylvania, US. It was moved on in the mid-1970s to Carl Cantera of Wilmington, Delaware, a client of Ferrari dealer FAF Motors in Tucker, Georgia. Carl owned and very successfully showed it for over two decades, during which time the body was restored to concours level.
The judges, led by members of the London Concours Steering Committee, not only awarded an overall winner, but a winner of each class, too.
These are the winners:
The Pursuit of Speed – Jaguar XK120 FHC
Convertibles: The Golden Era sponsored by Montres Breguet – Ferrari 330 GTS
Great Marques: Aston Martin sponsored by Nicholas Mee – Aston Martin DB2/4
Great Marques: Lamborghini – Lamborghini Espada
The Era of the Supercar sponsored by Drivers Union – Lamborghini Diablo VT
Lost Marques sponsored by Footman James – Facel Vega HK500
Speed of Sand sponsored by VHRA and Ace Cafe – Ford V8 Streamliner Flathead V8
Lancia Legends sponsored by Thornley Kelham – Lancia Stratos HF Group IV
Octane & evo Public Choice – Lamborghini Espada
Best in Show – Ferrari 330 GTS
Outside of the main concours event, there were plenty of other astonishing cars on display. A special feature, ‘The Dinos sponsored by Foskers’, celebrates Ferrari’s V6-powered mid-engine sensation, the Dino. In total, 10 different examples are on display, each finished in a different shade, from Grigio Titanio to Viola Metallizzato.
‘The Collector’ feature this year shone a spotlight on the personal car collection of famed automotive designer Ian Callum CBE. Having presided over the design of modern-day icons such as the Aston Martin Vanquish and Jaguar F-TYPE, nearly all of Ian’s cars have been subtly modified by the man himself to reflect the beauty of their individual designs. Among them was Ian’s favourite Jaguar, the XJC – fitted with larger wheels and lower suspension – a lowered Alfa Romeo Giulia GTV and Ian’s favourite Porsche design, the 911 (993).
The Octane and evo Paddock, meanwhile, was crowned by the Hispano-Suiza J12 Vanvooren Cabriolet. In the 1930s Hispano-Suiza decided to create the ultimate V12 engine for the ultimate luxury car. That model is the J12; less than 130 were built in total, and this Vanvooren Cabriolet is believed to be just one of eight open-top examples. As with many cars of the era, Hispano-Suiza simply sold the customer the engine and chassis, and the vehicle would be bodied elsewhere – the chassis alone would have cost the same as around 130 Renaults
As well as the automotive displays, visitors were able to browse a number of other attractions, including a fine timepiece boutique courtesy of Montres Breguet.
Guests were also treated to a range of luxury food and drink options, including a champagne tent courtesy of Veuve Clicquot and a new COVID-safe hospitality offering, delivered by Searcys.
