Auto Italia magazine organises three major events a year for owners and afficianados of Italian cars. Having enjoyed both the Gaydon and Brooklands events in the past, it was clearly a major gap in my experience of UK events not to have been to the third venue, at Stanford Hall. Billed as the largest gathering of Italian cars in the UK, this is the same event that was “attended” by Top Gear a couple of years ago, so it was clearly likely to be an experience that I would enjoy. That conclusion was one I reached even before I became the owner of an Italian car again. Having only found and joined the Abarthisti Forum a couple of days ago, it was equally evident that this would also be an excellent opportunity to meet some fellow forummers and Abarth owners, so that gave me two compelling reasons to attend. The third reason only became apparent later, as you will discover if you read on……….ABARTHThere was a huge presence for Abarth at the event, and I have to say that I felt very pleased and proud to be part of it. As well as all the Forum cars, there were several race equipped cars and a display set up by the local dealer. They were handing out Abarth flags, and I am now the proud owner of one. Be warned!
The first person I met when I arrived, a gent called Chris, is the one who had posted on the Abarthisti forum that he had seen my car at Prescott last weekend, so it was nice for him to see my car again and for me to meet him (it turned out that the lovely Plymouth Barracuda we saw at Prescott was his). I met many other of the Abarthisti, and I have to report that as well as being very friendly, they all shared an infectious enthusiasm for these little cars. Everyone I spoke to had taken no convincing to buy these cars, and all are just utterly delighted with them. Not that I ever had any doubt that I am going to enjoy mine. There were over 40 Forum cars at the event – more 500s than Puntos, and more of them in white than any other colour. A stunning turn out for a relatively small forum and a car that has only been on sale for just over a year. 
There were some historic Abarths on show, too.This little beast has been seen at a number of events in 2010. Today I learned that all the body work is pure steel. No glass-fibre add ons here. It has a 1.7 litre Alfa engine in it, and must surprise just about anyone who ever encounters it on the road.
This lovely little 1300TC is based on the pretty 850 Coupe from the mid 1960s.
This Abarth Simca is also a show regular.
ALFA-ROMEONumerically, there were more Alfas at the event than all the other marques put together. Even ignoring the Centenary celebrations, this is evidence of the massive affection in which this marque is held.
For me the star of the Alfa show was this, an Alfa Six. Now, I know that it was not held in particularly high esteem when it was new, but when did you last see one? This car, which the owner has had for about 15 years, was in stunning condition. It has done 63,000 miles and he does use it quite frequently, but he has looked after it. He did confirm that if you ever have to do anything with the carburettors, getting all 6 of them balanced again is almost mission impossible (the last models had fuel injection), but he loves the car, as its V6 engine sounds wonderful, and it is very nicely finished inside. I have to agree.
There were also three examples of the late 1970s model Giulietta on show, two of which I have seen at several recent events but one of which was not a car I had seen before.
From the earlier Giulietta/Giulia generation, there was this stunning Giulietta Sprint, a lovely mid 1960s SS Coupe and a very pretty Giulia Spider, as well as number of Giulia Berlinas.
This 2000 Spider from the early 1960s is one of only a handful of such cars in the UK. The front is lower on this than the later 2600 model, and the owner told me that this definitely makes it look better. I would need to study both to be sure, a task I would be happy to take on, as I think these are beautiful cars.
There were a few Alfasuds, too, and these were all different from the ones I saw at Burghley House in April.
There were only a couple of the 33 model that I saw, both of the late model cars.
This was a very original unmolested looking 75.
No Italian car event is complete without an SZ or two. Ultimately, there were 4 at this particular event, all finished in red.
The Montreal is also a staple of these sort of events, and there were some lovely examples on show.
There were a few 164s at the event, most of them less than original, but I did come across this lovely early model 2.0 TS. So elegant.
A lot of the Alfas were more recent cars, with plenty of all of the more recent models.145
147
155
156
166
GTV/Spider
GT
De TOMASOThis lime green Mangusta was elected Car of the Show, and it is not hard to see why. Simply stunning to look at, and to listen to.
A couple of Panteras. both in a lovely shade of maroon arrived late morning.
This late model Longchamp was recently featured in Classic and Sports Car.
FERRARIThere were a lot of Ferraris at the event, as you would expect, with just about every model type from the last 30 years on show.
The Enzo and F40 were attracting a huge amount of attention while static, and then when the engines were fired, you could guarantee everyone turned in their direction, with cameras pointed in readiness.
Lots of 360/430 models, of course
And also F355 models
And 348tb and ts cars
There were several of the latest California cars, too.
Plenty of 550/575 cars, including a SuperAmerica.
There were a couple of Testarossa cars, one more original than the other.
A few of the still relatively unloved Mondial cars, too.
308/328 GTB/GTS cars
Among the older cars, this 275 GTS was one of the most popular.
The mid 1960s 330 GTC
There were a couple of these 365 GT 2+2 cars, one of the least well known models, from the late 1960s.
This is a 365 GTC/4 – a car which makes frequent appearances at events like this.
FIATOne of the very distinctive vehicles that I saw drive into the site not long after I did was a Fiat 238 Camper Van. These are very rare anywhere, but in all probability there is only one in the UK, and it immediately occurred to me that I knew who I was likely to find driving it. Yes, a certain Chris Hendrie, well known to Forum regulars. It was great to catch up with Chris again, and to see one of his treasured vehicles. The cup of coffee was very welcome, too. Thanks Chris! He told me that a recent head gasket replacement job revealed that the 238 had at some stage received a 1585cc engine in place of the original 1438cc unit. With no rear engine, there is more space at the back of this van than in the similarly sized Type 2 VW, and anyway, you’re not likely to see another Fiat like this. Splendid!
There were plenty of other splendid Fiats, of course. Whilst still on the Van theme, this 900T Van has an interesting history, as it was discovered abandoned “round the back” at Maranello. The vehicle was used by the Formula One team to convey crew around the place. It has now been beautifully restored.
Not needing any restoration was this 850 Coupe. One of the earliest cars, it has covered just 14,000 miles in well over 40 years. It was a concours winner at the event.
Another worthy winner was this 127 Sport. Millions of 127s were made in the 1970s, but all bar a very few of them have long since been scrapped. The owner of this one told me has a pale blue Palio model as well, which is believed to be the only one of its type left in the UK.
Also dating from the 1970s was the little X1/9 sports car, and there were several of these cars at the event. Most of them were late model 1500 cars, but there was a lovely Lido model, which was in pristine condition.
Further 1970s models were the 128 3P and a couple of examples of the 131 Mirafiori.
There were several examples of the classic Nuova 500. Always a favourite, it was interesting to learn from a proud owner of the 500D model that he thought that the early cars were built from much thicker steel and had far more paint than later models. Worth knowing if you are in the market to buy one!
The little 126 never quite engendered the same affection, but there were a few of these cars on show.
This original Panda was absolutely stunning. A basic model 30, it looked factory fresh. Needless to say, it was accoladed with a Concours award.
Even in Italy, the Uno has all but disappeared, but there were a few examples of the model at this event.
The Croma never sold in large enough numbers for a disappearance to be something that you would notice, but there was an example of the first generation car on show.
The same could not be said for the Fiat Coupe, which became a classic almost before production had ceased. There is always a huge turnout of these striking cars at events like this, and today was no exception.
The Barchetta was also very quick to acquire collectible status. I always preferred the looks of this to its main rivals, the MGF and MX5.
The little Cinquecento and Seicento cars have long been popular, especially with the younger driver and there were plenty of them on show. No sign of Pete’s old “KUM-bucket”, though!
The latest 500 is equally popular and numerous of these were parked up.
With the Punto now well into the life of its third generation, there are a lot of these cars about, but the early models are starting to vanish from our roads. Several of them are clearly treasured and were on show at this event.
There were plentiful examples of recent Fiats, which augurs well for the continued existence of some of these cars as they age and the scrap yard beckons. For the mid-sized cars, the Bravo/a and Stilo, it is the three door models which seem to be the most popular at events like this.
INNOCENTI
This fabulous IM3 Coupe is one of the trio of Sprite-based Innocentis owned by the same lucky man. Having seen the red convertible last year and his white coupe at Brooklands last month, I have now seen the other model, this green coupe. Needless to say, he won one of the concours awards for this car.
ISOFive Iso cars were at the event: 2 x Grifo and 2 x Fidia and a Lele, though the blue Fidia did not arrive until well into the afternoon. All were nice, and with the exception of the late-coming Fidia, had been at the Brooklands event. I still enjoyed seeing them. The Grifos seemed especially nice to me.
LAMBORGHINIThere were just 4 Lamborghinis at the event: 2 Espadas, a Countach and a Gallardo.
LANCIAOldest Lancia at the show, and indeed the oldest car on display was this, the little Ardea. Looking like a shrunken Aprillia, this little car featured exquisite quality engineering and hence was quite costly when new. They are very rare now, but how lovely it is.
Even lovelier has to be this stunning Aurelia B24 Spider. These cars are worth around £0.5 million now, and it is not hard to see why. Gorgeous.
There was also an Aurelia GT Coupe, which is also fantastic.
I rather like the 2000 cars from the early 1970s and this 2000 HF Coupe show why. These cars are rare now, and this particular one will clearly need quite a lot of work to keep it alive. I hope it is treated to the restoration it needs.
There were representatives of all of the body styles for the once big selling Beta, including the now rare Berlina and Spider.
Several MonteCarlos in attendance, too.
The Y10 was sold as an Autobianchi in other markets, but was a Lancia in the UK.
Mainstay of the range in the 1980s was the Delta, with interest surging once the Integrale models came to the fore.
The Prisma was a three box version of the Delta, but never enjoyed the same success as its hatchback relative.
The Thema enjoyed moderate success as an executive sports saloon in the mid to late 1980s, but is now rarely seen in anything other than 8.32 guise. Today was one of those rare days!
This Thema Estate is a very rare sighting for the UK, as the car was never officially sold in the UK. Splendid!
MASERATILots of Maserati at the event, with representatives of most model types.
The Sebring was an evolution of the 3500 GT car, offered for sale in the first half of the 1960s.
The Mexico was the next offering, based on the same chassis, but with modified styling.
This Mistrale was singled out for a special Concours award.
The Indy – a stunningly pretty 2 +2 coupe from the late 1960s.
A lone example of the very rare Kyalami appeared later in the day.
The Biturbo generation lasted from 1982 until 1999 and a bewildering array of different models were produced in that time. Representatives of almost every type were at the event (no 4 doors and no Karif or Shamal, though)
The associated Quattroporte model was not well rated when new, but these cars seem to be enjoying more popularity as they age, no doubt helped by the fantastic reception afforded to the current generation model.
The 3200/4200 GT was the car that really brought Maserati back to prominence, and there were loads of these pretty cars on display.
There were plenty of the current model cars, too, mostly the GranTurismo, with a few of the beautiful and very desirable Quattroporte models.
TRIUMPH ITALIAThis stunning Italia, based on a TR3 chassis staged another appearance. It has been registered in the UK since I last saw it. Styled by Vignale, and built by Touring, the fact that there were Triumph mechanicals should quite correctly be no bar to it being shown at Italian car events.
The weather was a challenge, but the early drizzle abated, and the thunder and torrential rain only came minutes after I left, at 4:15, which was lucky. Even with this slight let down, it was an awesome day. Fantastic machinery, some very friendly people, with no trace of all the things which so alarmed us at a well-known and notorious “other marque” Gaydon event a few years ago. I’ll definitely be putting this one in my diary for 2011, and you should do so too!2010-06-06 19:38:59
