Without question the four day event hosted by Lord March on his Goodwood Estate at the very start of July has discovered a truly winning formula. Not only has the Festival of Speed grown from slightly tentative beginnings a number of years to have become a major event in the global calendar, with tickets sold out well in advance and to which proud owners will ship their cars from around the globe, but the Thursday prelude event instigated a couple of years ago, the Moving Motor Show has found success where a generation of “British Motor Shows” failed, in putting the latest cars in front of potential purchasers and the public at large. Although I’ve always wanted to experience the Festival of Speed first hand, tales of huge crowds making it difficult to see what you really want and reports of long traffic jams to get in and out of the venue have always put me off. Last year I received some complimentary tickets for the Moving Motor Show (thank you, Ajay at Thames Motor Group!), but was unable to use them as work took me out f the country. The report that Dan posted convinced me, not that much persuasion was needed, that I really did need to keep my diary clear so I could attend in 2012 , and I have to say that I am very glad that I did. Not only were we blessed with one of the very few dry and sunny days of what laughably passes for the English summer, but we were able to experience a good 80% of the static content of the Festival of Speed, without the crowds. There was more than enough to see and the 10 hours we spent on site (with just a small rest for a refreshing pint of liquid revival mid-afternoon) were not really enough to do justice to everything that had been assembled. Here, then is a summary of what caught the eye and the camera.

MANUFACTURER DISPLAYSAlmost all of the major manufacturers who sell cars in the UK were represented, with the notable exception of Volkswagen, Fiat, Kia, Hyundai and a few of the minor players such as Mitsubishi and Proton. Some had a small presence in the “Moving Motor Show” hall, which comprised a very large marquee with display areas down each side and a central “roadway” which was the departure point for the test cars that were being taken up the hill. To get behind the wheel of most cars required a prior reservation through a sponsoring dealer, although I got the impression that there were a few slots available for which one could sign up on the day. Although a drive up the hill would have been a fun thing to do, we noted that there was so much else to see that we decided not to try to get a ride in some relatively unpopular device. Across the track there was a much larger area given over to “proper” display stands, with a wider range of cars on show, and this gave us the opportunity to inspect a lot of recently launched new models.

ABARTH

The very first manufacturer we came to in the Moving Motor Show was Abarth, and, as widely rumoured the revised 2013 range of cars was on show, with this being the first time that the 595 Turismo and Competizione were show in the UK. Both are based on the familiar 500, but with new standard features will effectively take the place of the Essesse models, as for a similar price, will represent better value. Several of my fellow Abarthisti were sufficiently impressed to reach for their cheque books, but whilst I liked the new Competizione (the Turismo is afflicted by the flappy paddle gearbox), I will happily keep the car I already have now, at least for now. There was also an example of the Punto based model, now called Abarth Punto rather than Punto Evo.

 

AC2012 is the 50th anniversary for the Cobra and to celebrate this, a number of these cars, ranging from early originals to recent recreations were on show.

ALFA-ROMEOWith a currently rather reduced of cars to sell, the Alfa area was relatively small, and comprised a couple of examples of both MiTo and Giulietta, and then tucked in the corner something far rare, a special bodied Giulia dating from the early 1960s. There were few details about this car, so research is required to discover more about a body shape I’ve not even seen in pictures before.

AUDIThe most prominent display was centred around a feature highlighting the new RS4 Avant, which launches later this year in the UK. It was joined by all its predecessors in title and the car that started it all, the RS2 Avant.

The new A3 was on show, and in the metal this is much easier to distinguish from its antecedent than the initial pictures suggested might be the case.Two concept cars were shown, the Urban Concept and the A3 e-tron Concept version of what will appear as a saloon version of the latest A3.There were plenty of other newly or recently launched Audis, with the S6, S7 and S8 on show alongside one of the 333 A1 quattro cars and the still available RS3 Sportback. BENTLEYI hesitate to use the word “Highlight” when describing the car that should have been the star of this stand, the hideously ugly EXP 9F “Falcon” concept car that got such a panning at Geneva. It is not quite so horrid in the metal as those pictures suggested, but it is still something which desperately needs a serious rethink before production is contemplated.

Other models from the current range also featured on the stand, including the newly announced W12 Continental GT Speed.BMWTwo classics starred in the Moving Motor Show: an M1 and a Touring Car M3. Both were utterly lovely.

This M5 was a popular car for rides around the track.Plenty of new vehicles to see here, though many of them were literally the same cars as had been shown at Cholmondley a few days earlier. Considering the foul state that they had got into, with mud on seats, carpets and all other surfaces, a remarkable cleaning job had been done to make them presentable again. There is no doubting that the 6 Series Gran Coupe is very elegant, but this display car had a lot of options fitted which took the price to well over £90,000, which means that it really is competing against the established luxury players.The M3 Chrome Bullet was staging another appearance, parked up alongside Andy Priaulx’ DTM 3 series car.

Other newcomers included the M135i and the X6 M50d.BRABUSAre words necessary?

CHEVROLETUnsurprisingly, the Volt had a prominent role here, and with no sign of stablemate Vauxhall and their Ampera, there was no in house competition to worry about .

In among the production Sonic and Orlando models was a BTCC Cruze.On Chevrolet’s larger outdoor stand we found a Camaro Convertible, which is a car I very much enjoyed when I drove around in one for a week at New Year. A shade large and thirsty for UK roads perhaps, but on a sunny day, what could look and sound better?A 1953 Corvette was the centrepiece of the stand.Almost un-noticed was this, the Cruze Estate, a very practical and neat looking mid sized estate making its UK debut.CITROENCitroen were putting more emphasis on the DS models than anything else, with several examples of the recently launched DS5 on display.

The DS4 has not been received with anything like the same level of enthusiasm as the smaller DS3, which is something that Citroen are hoping that a production version of this DS4 Racing concept will address.As well as the DS3, we found this lovely 1972 special Rally DS car on display.DACIAOne of the busiest display areas in the Moving Motor Show was where the Dacias were to be found. Word has clearly got out that the budget Romanian brand will launch in the UK in early 2013 with the Duster, and lots of people wanted to see if this car strikes the right balance between affordability and not being unduly “cheap”, My opinion, shared by most others, is that it seems to have found that balance, and I predict that the car will sell well.

DeMACROSSA new name, this Epique GT1 is a Korean supercar. Looks neat enough, but nothing particularly stand out.

FERRARIFerrari had an FF in pride of place in the Moving Motor Show. The 458 Spider was doing demo service and was one of the best sounding cars performing such service

FORDRight hand drive production of the eagerly awaited Focus ST has just started, and the first car off the line was in the outdoor display. To ensure that there was a fleet of cars available for people to drive, some of the press launch left hand drive cars had been brought over as well. Finished in the very striking yellow paint they made quite a sight.

Also new is the B-Max. which goes on sale shortly. Blink and you could swear that this is a C-Max or even a slightly re-proportioned S-Max. There was also a prototype of next year’s Fiesta ST.Rounding off the outdoor display was an early Series 2 Granada 2.8i from the Ford Heritage Collection.A separate display contained a series of Mustangs, with both classic Mark 1 cars joining the latest machines.GUMPERTHONDAInside the Moving Motor Show hall, Honda had some of the new Civics lined up for test drives. Outside they had a huge stand area, but it seemed to have only two cars on it, both Civics. The rest of the space was given over to some of the other products that Honda sell, ranging from motorbikes to garden machinery.

INFINITINewcomer here was the Vettel edition of the large FX50 SUV.

Other cars on show included the M sedan available with petrol, diesel and hybrid powerplants.JAGUARA representative sample of current models were in the Moving Motor Show.

In Jaguar’s larger display hall, the stars were an XJ220 at one end of the display and the new XF Sportbrake at the other. Both looked good. I predict that the Sportbrake will be a strong seller for JaguarKOENIGSEGGNo official presence, but we came across a couple of these Swedish cars, the Agera R and the “regular” CCR..

LOTUS2012 marks both the 50th anniversary of the Elan and the 60th of Lotus itself and accordingly it is the featured marque for the event. Lotus contributed to that with a huge stand which had plenty of interest.

Current production cars included the latest Elise and Coupe and Convertible versions of the V6 Exige, as well as Evora models.

Classics included an Elan Sprint as well as one of the Shapecraft Coupe Elans. Around 17 of the latter were made, with an aluminium top section that was resin bonded to the glassfibre body of the basic car. Although they did have a performance gain, they also had some luxury features, such as pile carpets evidencing that they were intended to make the car more of a grand tourer.Lotus’ racing heritage was not ignored with a couple of Formula 1 cars displayed in a prominent position – vertically! – as well as Elio de Angelis’ Type 91 and the LMP2 car.MAZDAInside the Moving Motor Show it was the new CX5 that was getting a lot of attention. After the almost negligible sales of the Tribute in recent years, this follow on product has really propelled Mazda into the core of the SUV market, with strong sales of the CX5 reported in many countries. It certainly is one of the better looking cars in its class.

There was a new twist on the familiar third generation MX5, with a GT Concept version being shown.Another great looking Mazda is this, the Takeri concept, rumoured to look very close to the impending new 6. I do hope so, as I think it would be just the sort of inspirational new design that Mazda so need to help increase their sales volumes.MERCEDES-BENZThe most striking – but not necessarily for the right reasons – car on this stand was a 24 carat gold plated G Class. Hmm!

Plenty of new models to see here, with a lot of attention paid to the A Class.I am not a fan of the new SL, which looks gawky and blobby. Such a shame when you contrast it with its antecedents such as the 1954 300SL.The Concept Style Coupe was making a UK appearance, though it was hidden in a glass case, which made photography difficult thanks to the reflections.Also recently launched were the Coupe C63 AMG Black Series and this ML63 AMG.Other cars on the stand included the SLS AMG in coupe and convertible guises, the E63 AMG and the latest Formula 1 machine.MINIThis event was the first official showing of the new Clubvan, which extends the MINI range to 7 different models, before you factor in the different engine and trim levels available in each. The stand staff were honest enough to admit that the Coupe really is a “marmite type” car, but said that it had been attracting a lot of attention. Everyone seems to approve far more of the recently launched Roadster and this had been the car that had generated most interest on the stand.

The Cooper JCW GP was also making its debut. Is this a MINI too far?MORGANThere’s a real air of confidence at Morgan these days, and with order books bulging for the new 3 wheeler as well as the other cars, who can blame them?

NISSANAn eclectic mix of vehicles on the Nissan stand, with the regular Leaf and a NISMO variant in prominent positions.

There was also a NISMO modified Juke.This GT-R had received some more obvious modifications from its road car base.PEUGEOTThe big news here is the UK launch of the 208 supermini, with an appearance of a prospective GTi version wetting the appetite that bit more. After the lamentable 207, this looks like a big step forward for Peugeot and the car appears to be selling strongly in those countries where it has been available for a few weeks.

We also had a good look at the 508 RXH and the 3008 Hybrid 4. The former is nicely presented, but will surely struggle in snobby badge-conscious Britain as it does not have a German branding even though the car appears as well put together as their similarly priced efforts and it is roomy, with a little loss in load area height going to house the batteries. The 3008 will never win prizes for its beauty despite what Peugeot tried to say when the thing was launched, but again appears practical and will doubtless meet the needs of many families.The HX1 Concept was making another appearance.PORSCHECentral attraction in the Moving Motor Show was the 918 Concept.

RENAULTRenault’s main display area was focused on the application of technology to motorsport, with exhibits ranging from the 1902 Paris to Vienna winning racer, all the way to the latest Zoe electric vehicle.

Sporting heritage was manifest in the A110, as well as the latest Megane RS 265 and Clio RS200, as well as the latest Red Bull Formula 1 car. Cabriolets were evidenced by the 1935 Viva Grand Sport and today’s Megane CCOne car I never even knew existed was this 1974 R5, one of about 100 all electric vehicles made at the time. It contrasts with the soon to be available Zoe, which is the modern day equivalent.The Twizy has really been an attention grabber for Renault, and there were lots of these at the event.ROLLS-ROYCEWith the Rolls-Royce factory a stone’s throw away, this is the local manufacturer. A number of the current models were on show, including the Ghost and Phantom Drophead.

SEATIt was the new Mii that was the centre of attention for SEAT.

SKODABest thing about the Skoda stand for me was not the cars – though they were good too, but the Sushi bar style conveyor belt that offered up bottles of water, milkshakes and very tasty cupcakes. Very welcome they were, too! Among the cars, the MissionL Concept was making another appearance and the recent UK launch of the Citigo meant that there were plenty of these diminutive cars on show.

STARTECHHmm!

TOYOTAGT86 was getting almost all the attention and rightly so, too. This car will surely do very well. I have to say that the interior fitted me perfectly, with a very comfortable seat and excellent driving position. Now I need to get behind the wheel to see what all the fuss is about!That said, my favourite Toyota was not the GT86, but this really fantastic 2000 GT from the 1960s. Stunning!There was also an example of the car which is said to have inspired the GT86, the rear wheel drive Corolla Coupe AE-86 from the mid 1980s.VOLVOAfter the glowing write up that Volvo’s new C-Segment car, the V40, received, this was one I wanted to see for myself.  Statically, it does not disappoint, having a beautifully finished cabin that rivals Audi in the quality stakes. Hopefully I will get to try one on the road before too long.

Volvo also had a number of the very clever V60 Hybrid models on showWEISSMANN

CARTIER “STYLE et LUXE” DISPLAY – ROYAL CARSIn honour of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, this display was focused on cars with a Royal Collection. Many had come from Sandringham where they are kept, but a couple were ones I recognised from the Gaydon museum, and several were sourced from overseas. Overall, this was a fabulous display.

1924 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost

In 1922 Lord Louis Mountbatten, uncle of the Duke of Edinburgh, received a Silver Ghost as a wedding present from his wife, Lady Edwina Mountbatten. He was so impressed by the car that he had this Silver Ghost designed to his personal specifications and used it as his official car when he oversaw the transition to independence of India, serving as its last Viceroy and first Governor-General, in 1947-48. The car bears Lord Mountbatten’s mascot, a sailor signalling in semaphore, and is normally displayed with the Royal collection at Sandringham. It is 18ft long, 8ft high, and powered by a 7.4-litre engine.

 

This Daimler 4.5-litre V32 Shooting Brake was ordered in 1937 to coincide with King George VI’s visit to Balmoral, It can accommodate 10 people and features drop-down windows to allow for shooting from inside the passenger compartment.A one off coachbuilt 1956 Ford Zephyr EstateAmong other duties, this 1961 Vauxhall Cresta Friary Estate was used to transport Her Majesty’s corgisThe 1974 Range Rover ‘State I Royal Review Vehicle’ was perhaps one of the more peculiar cars on display, It offered a more comfortable ride than the similarly specced Royal Land-Rover and featured a repositioned exhaust, to direct fumes away from passengers, plus two concealed umbrellas.1950 Lincoln Cosmopolitan Limousine ‘Bubbletop’US. President Harry S. Truman commissioned a stretched Lincoln Cosmopolitan Convertible with 145in wheelbase in 1950, and Ford supplied it to the Secret Service for a nominal fee. President Dwight D. Eisenhower had a large ‘bubble top’ canopy added in 1954, after realising during a rainstorm that with the top up no one could see him. The Bubbletop remained in Presidential service until 1965, when it was retired to the Henry Ford Museum. On October 17, 1957, The Queen arrived in Washington DC and rode in this car in a Presidential motorcade parade up Pennsylvania Avenue on her way to the White House

1953 Humber Super Snipe DropheadSoon after the Coronation, Her Majesty embarked on a Commonwealth Coronation Tour, which encompassed 13 countries and lasted from November 1953 to May 1954. This Humber SuperSnipe was created for that tour. Coachbuilt from a standard 4.1-litre saloon by Jones Brothers of Kilburn, London, this Super Snipe was fitted with folding B-pillars and a division. By special request of Prince Philip, it also had pull-out blinds behind the division to protect the Royal knees from sunburn in hot countries.
This car remained in Australia after that section of the Tour ended, passing into private hands.

1965 Mercedes-Benz 600 PullmanWhen Her Majesty made an official visit to West Germany in May of 1965 as a guest of President Karl Heinrich Lubke and Prime Minister Kurt Georg Kiesinger, visiting Bonn, West Berlin, Munich, Stuttgart and Hamburg, she was conveyed in this magnificent 600 Pullman. Still owned by Mercedes, it is made available to the Federal Government whenever it is needed. It is an armoured Special Protection version, with a high roof and provision for the occupants to stand up in the rear compartment. It’s fitted with a 241bhp 6.3L V8.

1972 Citroen SM OperaFor ceremonial occasions, the President of France retains two Citroen SM Presidentielle Landaulet models which were created for President Georges Pompidou by the coachbuilder Henri Chapron. Built for an official visit to Paris by HM The Queen in 1972, the cars have a standard mechanical layout with the addition of a special gear for low-speed parading. President Nicolas Sarkozy personally authorised this car’s appearance at Goodwood.

There were a number of other display cars with Royal connectionsA side display included a number of rather smaller cars which had been enjoyed by the Royal Children over the years.It was not just cars, as this coach from the Royal Train evidenced.SUPERCAR PADDOCKThere were a few spaces, with a sign above them tantalisingly revealing what would be parked up for the following three days and a few of the supercars were covered up under a tarpaulin, but the majority of the Paddock was populated and this area was attracting a lot of attention even before the quite incredible noise that resonated widely from the Lotus Evora GTE that was fired up.

There were 2 Alfa Romeos: the familiar but still lovely 8C Spider and the dramatic Zagato styled TZ3 Stradale

Audi R8 GT SpiderBentley Continental GTA pair of Bugatti Veyrons The new BMW M6 in both coupe and convertible formFerrari included the FF, the revised California and the 458 Spider Not sure about this Spanish supercar, the GTA Spano. It has a supercharged 8.3 litre V10 engine, thoughThere were a pair of the Infinti Emerg-e, one a working prototype the other a static show carLamborghini AventadorMercedes included the latest SL63 AMG as well as a Coupe C63 AMG Black SeriesThe recently launched Morgan Plus EightNissan GT-RSavage Rivale Roadyacht GTRRACE CAR PADDOCKThere was a lot of activity as vast race transporters were still unloading their contents, in readiness for track action scheduled for the Friday to Sunday.

ALFA ROMEOA couple of Alfas, the 1972 Tipo 33 TT3 and the 1983 183T

ARROWS1986 Arrows-BMW A9

AUDIThe S1 Quattro was joined by this year’s Le Mans winning R18 e-tron quattro.

BENTLEYThe 2003 Speed 8 which competed at Le Mans that year.

CHEVRONGR8 GT3

CITROENLOLAThe Lola-Drayson LMP electric racing car, which generates an impressive 850 bhp.

LOTUSWithout question the vast display of historic Lotus was one of the highlights of the day. I suspect that one would have to be very lucky ever to see quite such an impressive collection of cars in one place ever again.

This is a Type 2, a car based on Austin Seven components, with Colin Chapman’s magic worked on the chassis.This Elite had been in action at Cholmondley a couple of weeks earlier.As well as the regular Elan, there was this rare Type 26R. This car was made for racing , with a lot of weight stripped out, and the engine boosted by 40 bhp over the standard cars. Such cars are worth well over £100,000 these daysLotus CortinaThe 1966 Type 47 Europa “snorkel” car1963 Lotus-Ford Type 291971 Type 56B1974 Type 761976 Type 771981 Lotus-Cosworth 861983 Lotus-Renault 93T1986 Lotus-Renault 96T1986 Lotus-Renault 98T1990 Lotus-Lamborghini Type 102  As well as all the classics, Team Lotus were there in force with everything from the latest Formula 1 car to the racing Exige and Evora GTE..LEXUSMARCHOne of just three 6 wheelers ever made, the 1976 March Cosworth 761

MASERATIMC12

MCLAREN1972 Gulf McLaren M8MP4-12CMERCEDES-BENZAn impressive display included the 1937 W125, the 1952 300SL PanAmerica, the W196 and the more recent CLK GTR dating from 1997

PORSCHEThe diminutive 804 was parked up alongside a couple of 917s and the more recent 911.

RED BULLSHADOW1971 UOP Shadow III

TOYOTATwo separate displays contained the NASCAR Camry and the 2012 le Mans car, the TSO30-HVR

We also found some GT86 models modified for the track which sat alongside an 1980s Corolla Liftback.WILLIAMSThis very rare FW08C 6 wheeler was fully developed for the 1983 season, but at the last minute the regulations were changed to outlaw the use of more than 4 wheels.

THE SCULPTUREEvery year, an eye-catching sculpture features, right outside the house. This year’s creation, the work of Gerry Judah stands 28 metres tall, and is shaped like a figure of eight. In keeping with the theme of the 2012 event, six Lotus Formula 1 cars are anchored to the structure, including Emerson Fittipaldi’s championship winning 1972 car, Ayrton Senna’s 99T, Jim Clark’s Type 32B in which he won the 1965 Tasman Championship, the Type 49 in which Graham Hill won the 1968 Championship and the Ground Effect Type 79 in which Mario Andretti was successful.

OTHERALVIS

Red Triangle, who support and maintain the population of old Alvis cars in the UK had an impressive display of a variety of Alvis cars from the 1930s to some of the last 1960s cars, all of them for sale, with price tags that reflect the desirability of these well engineered motorcars.

There were two 4.3 Litre cars, the black one is a ‘continuation’, the dark blue one is one of only 3 1937 ‘Concealed hood’ DHC Vanden Plas cars produced, of which only two survive.  This one was for sale for £180,000.

1939 Speed Twenty Tourer – yours for just £160,000There were several of the last design produced, the TD to TF cars. These are available for less than £100,000, though if you want a nice Drophead there won’t be much change these days,BLOODHOUNDThis exciting project to try to break the land speed record had a display hall all of its own. Bloodhound is long and thin, so it’s not easy to photograph. Surround the car were a lot iof display panels outlining some of the technical challenges associated with the endeavour. One of the staff in this hall told me that they undertake something like 10,000 school briefings a year, so she postulated that the program is better known by the youth of the country than among adults. Part of the drive behind this is to try to persuade youngsters to consider a career in engineering and technology. Knowing how IT has also become “uncool” in recent years, I emphasised with the challenge!

CUMMINSThe world’s largest engine. It is huge!

ECO DISPLAYSA series of large tepees contained a disparate variety of cars, most of which had a clear “eco” theme, such as this pair of Jaguars: a concept Hybrid based on the current XJ and the Concept C-X75.

This Morgan is an all electric model, even though it looks externally just the same as the petrol cars.I saw quite a few of these MIA in France recently, but none quite like this pair.Other vehicles to this theme included one marked “Riverstation”, the Tata Pixel and several BMWs.One of the other tents contained a mix of vehicles from the Nissan Juke R, an Infiniti FX50 Vettel Edition, to a Panamera, the Astra GTC and the Toyota GT86.Ford were showing their Evos concept car.There was even all electric drift car based on the K1 Attack.RACE TO RECOVERY
MERCEDES SL It is 60 years since the launch of the first SL car, the W194 model 300SL. WIth the latest R231 just going on sale, a display of all six generations made for an interesting timeline through Gullwing (W194), the Pagoda (W113), the long running R107, the R129 and recently superceded R230.

TOP GEAR CARSThe same duo of Top Gear cars that were at Cholmondley were also at this event: the Citroen Ami that James May drove in Mallorca and the Z3 that starred in the “Three Wise Men” Christmas special

OTHER CARSThis Honda S800 was parked up just beyond the Cartier Lawn.

We found this fantastic car, a De Tomaso Innocenti Mini in among the race transporters. This is the car that BL should have built in the 1970s, but corporate stubborness meant that they could not accept that the Bertone design was just what was needed in the hatchback era of the 1970s. Innocenti did build them in reasonable quantity. Later cars were badge De Tomaso, and the final cars substituted the BMC A Series engines for the Daihatsu 3 cylinder 1 litre motor.There were a few “classics” on some of the trader stands, with variety ranging from a D Type Jaguar through a classic Mustang to a TR6.This Pagani Zonda was just about the first car we encountered during the day, parked up in a display before the main entrance comprised largely of boats and planes aimed at the better heeled visitor.IN THE CAR PARKAlthough there appeared to be hordes of people leaving at the same time as us, by the time we reached the carpark, it was clear that in fact the vast majority of attendees had already departed. Already later than planned in departing, we had to limit our scan of the carpark to be simply what we passed en route back to my car, and this yielded next to nothing particularly notable. These few cars were the only ones that caught the last remaining GBs of memory card on my camera.

A fantastic day, without question. That the tickets were free made it even better. Definitely one to block in your 2013 diary as soon as the dates are announced. 

2012-07-06 18:52:52