2013 marks the 20th anniversary of the Goodwood Festival of Speed. What started out as a relatively small scale event, held on just one day, where the organisers wondered “if people would even come” has grown into something of world renown, held over three days, where capacity crowds can enjoy seeing some of the world’s rarest, most beautiful and fastest cars along with a number of past and current motor sport heroes and other celebrities. A couple of years ago, the event was further augmented by the addition of a fourth day to the schedule, the so called Moving Motor Show, which as well as allowing manufacturers to showcase their latest products, also provided an admittedly small number of attendees to get the chance to test the cars around a specially created circuit. There is an added bonus that attendees at this event get to see many of the cars that will feature for the rest of the Festival, albeit as static exhibits rather than in action, without having to contend with the huge crowds that now characterise the weekend. Having enjoyed my visit to the Moving Motor Show in 2012, there was no way that I was going to miss it in 2013. That the event happened to take place during a period of genuine summer weather was a bonus. In nearly 12 hours on site, I managed to take 600 photos, and to avail myself of hospitality which ranged from cold drinks (thank you, Audi), to freshly made ice cream (delicious, Skoda), ice lollies and a free torch for answering 5 easy questions (Ford) and a cup of coffee from Peugeot. Had time permitted, there was so much one that I could have done. As it was, I know that despite seeing a lot, there was plenty I missed, and some things I vowed to return for better photo opportunities when the sun had moved round, and yet never did. Here then is what I did manage to see.
THE SCULPTURE
One of the many highlights of the Festival of Speed is the annual creation of a crowd-stopping sculpture on the lawn in front of the house. Gerry Judah has been applying his creative talents to this on an annual basis since 1998, and always manages to come up with something which is not only different, but very striking. Although the theme selected for the sculpture is widely known well in advance of the event, the actual creation is a real surprise, only seen once the Festival opens. This year it was the Porsche 911 that got the star billing with three different models from the 50 years of production, a 1963 911, a 1973 911 2.7 RS and the latest 2013 991 model all suspended 35 metres up in the air on some tall and relatively thin looking supports. This structure was at least as striking as those in previous years. Although you could see where holes had been dug into the ground to secure the metal work, we did wonder how on earth the cars are secured into position quite so high in the air. The whole construction weighs a not inconsiderable 22 tonnes.
A phenomenal achievement in its own right, but although gazing at this in awe for some time really does seem appropriate, there is plenty more to see. Read on.
THE NEW CARS
With no UK Motor Show any more, this event is probably the nearest thing that we have in Britain, so it was no surprise that there were plenty of UK and even global debuts taking place. Most of the manufacturers were present, with the major notable absentees being Vauxhall, Fiat and Kia among the volume sellers. As last year, there were two parts to the new car displays: a large hall near the main entrance gate contained relatively small display areas on either side of the area where test cars were collected to set off around the track; and then on the other side of that test track, there were a number of much larger display stands, many of which were elaborate and complex constructions. Some manufacturers were present in both areas, others only in one, and which one depended on whether they had cars available to test or not. Most of them had concentrated their displays on a subset of the range, generally with a focus on the more sporting models, so this was not as complete a showing as you would find at a traditional Motor Show. In what turned out to be the right strategy, we decided to visit the indoor display area at the end of the day on the way back to the car. This meant absolutely no crowds and more or less complete access to the cars, as well as meaning that early in the day while everyone was crowding around this area near to where they had come in, we got less obstruction in viewing some of the other exhibits.
ABARTH
No chance to look at the Abarths, as they were moving cars around when we arrived back at their area very late in the day, but as I am very familiar with the current range, and unlike last year, there was nothing that was brand new to see, I contented myself with a few photos.
ALFA-ROMEO
Just two cars were inside the large Alfa exhibit, a Tipo 33/2 and the new and eagerly awaited 4C Competizione. Alfa are still being somewhat coy about some of the details of their new sports car, but with production starting soon, it cannot be too long before all is divulged. A second 4C was in one of the other tents.
Outside the main display, there were both a Giulietta and a MiTo.
AUDI
Audi’s huge stand must have taken some considerable time to construct. This year all the exhibits were outside, even though there was a substantial indoor area as well. With their vast range, they had picked out mostly the newer models for people to see.
Yet to go on sale in the UK is the A3 Saloon and the new S3. The former makes an interesting contrast with Mercedes’ similarly sized CLA. Far less stylised, so some will see the Audi as dull (though as I do not like the CLA at all, I may see the neat lines as infinitely preferable), the real difference is that 4 people can actually get in the Audi and they will be comfortable once inside it, neither of which feats are possible with the CLA. According to the German press, the Audi is the better car in almost every respect, unless you happen to like its contrived styling.
There were a couple of RS6 Avants, one outside and one indoors to inspect. Very nice, I have to say.
Other models on show ranged from the S4 Avant to the RS5, the S7, the S8 and the regular A1 and A6, as well as the RS Q3 and SQ5.
I also liked this R8 V10 Plus.
BENTLEY
Examples of the road cars were on show outside, but were always crowded, so defied photography. I could get to the Continental GT3, though.
BMW
Newest car on the stand was an example of the 3 Series GT. Although less ungainly than the larger 5GT, I still do not find this a particularly elegant car from all angles, but there is no denying that it is spacious, thanks largely to the fact that it is based on the long wheelbase Chinese market 3.
Elegance certainly is the word for this one, though, the lovely Pininfarina Gran Lusso Coupe concept. Heaven knows how expensive it would be were BMW to build it, but given the positive reactions to its styling, I am sure it is being given serious consideration.
Among the M cars were one of the last ever M3 Coupes, an M5 and the nice, but oh so expensive at £97,500 M6 Gran Coupe. Another of these was in one of the tents.
In the Moving Motor Show tent, centre piece of the display was Andy Priaulx’s DTM 3 Series racer.
BRABUS
Tucked away at the back of the stand, hidden behind the Brabus modified Smart forTwo and the CLS Shooting Brake was a lovely “pagoda” W107 230SL.
CATERHAM
Latest offering here is the 620R, a £50,000 version of the long-lived Seven design that will replace the R500 with an even more extreme and focused sports car.
CITROEN
Centrepiece of this stand was the DS3 Racing Cabrio. Officially still a concept, and the only example in existence, which is why the stand staff were being so protective of the car, I can’t see why this will not go into production, especially since demand for the hatch version was such that 2400 cars were produced instead of the initially planned 400! Be warned, though, all indications are that there won’t be much change out of £30,000 if its does.
The stand also featured regular DS3 hatch and cabrio cars.
Upstairs was a 2CV.
In the Moving Motor Show, we came across the new C4 Picasso. Distinctive, for sure.
DACIA
An assembly of Sandero and Duster were available to test out.
Making its UK debut was the Logan MCV.
FERRARI
Three models were to be found inside the Moving Motor Show, a 458 Italia, a California and the all new F12 Berlinetta.
FORD
Ford’s outdoor stand was unmissable. A huge three storey construction, it had an extensive sun lounge on the top deck, which was the perfect place to consume the ice lolly that they had given me on the ground floor!
That was after looking at a pre-production example of the new Mondeo, a very elegant looking large family hatch which is still at least a year away from European showrooms.
Coming before that will be the European version of the EcoSport, a slightly gawky looking small SUV that I suspect will sell quite well. I understand that the first models are due to arrive in 4th Quarter and that the range will gradually be expanded in 2014 with a choice of engines and different trim levels.
Other examples of the range featured, including several of the highly praised Fiesta ST and the Grand C-Max.
Inside the Moving Motor Show, there was a fabulous Fiesta XR2, a low mileage car which had recently been offered to Ford to join its historic fleet.
HONDA
With a presence solely inside the Moving Motor Show hall, the emphasis here seemed to be on the Civic, with numerous of this rather gawky and sometimes very pricey C-segment hatch available for inspection and test drives.
HYUNDAI
Only represented in the indoor display, there were several of the slow selling Veloster available to test, along with the i40 and the latest Santa Fe.
They also had the ix35 Fuel Cell prototype on show.
INFINITI
Big things are expected of the new Q50 when it launches later in the year, and I noted that the two cars on display both sported 2.2 Diesel badging which should give them a huge head start over dread rivals Lexus. The cars were attracting lots of interest which is probably why I have no photos and had to content myself with the other models from the range that were displayed.
The stand included the concept Emerg-e which is said to give us a clue as to what we might see in the forthcoming Q30 premium hatch model.
JAGUAR
Needless to say, the focus here was on the new F Type, with both complete cars as well as a cutaway and a sculpture version to see. Just lovely!
Other models on show included the new XJR as well as XF and XK models.
In one of the tents there was an XFR and an XFR-S. Lovely!
LAND-ROVER
Land-Rover had erected a vast stand and an adjoining off-road course, and the new Range-Rover Sport was available for people to put through its paces. This is a great looking car, but may be ruined by the image created by the people who will buy it.
The rest of the range was well represented, too, and there was an early Series 1 car on the approach to the stand.
LEXUS
The new IS model goes on sale within the next few days, so the stand here was proudly showing it off. From the inside, all appears well, and I was intrigued by the party piece of being able to move the main speedo display from the centre to the right of the instrument cluster. Very clever. The rest of the interior is quite neat, too. But the outside. Oh dear. My suspicion is that in Europe this car will sell as well, or rather as badly, as its predecessor.
That’s what appears to have happened with the GS, launched a year ago. In absolute terms, apparently, it’s quite a good steer, but a 2.5 litre petrol or an expensive hybrid as the only available models shows that Lexus just don’t care about Europe at all.
The familiar RX and CT were also on display.
LOTUS
A confident display for a manufacturer whose future looks anything but. There were Exige V6 Coupe and Roadster cars on show.
MASERATI
To celebrate 50 years of the Quattroporte, Maserati had arranged a line of cars showing the evolution of the model through the ages, with the latest car taking is place at the end of the line.
Lovely though they all are, it was the new Ghibli, added to the end of the row which I really wanted to see. And now I have, and have sat in it, I am even more convinced than ever that this car could – corporate Fleet Management policy willing – be a serious contender to replace the S5 in 2016. It really does feel special inside, with a lovely standard of finish, and all the press reports suggest it will drive pretty well, too. My interest is logged with Maserati and I look forward to receiving more details as they become available. A second example was on show in one of the tents.
MERCEDES-BENZ
The large stand, the first we came to on crossing the track, contained only AMG models. The stand lady I spoke could not understand my problem with the CLA, even though I showed her not only how difficult it is to get in the back, but that my head was so unpleasantly jammed into the roof lining that I hope I never have to travel in one for any distance. I told her it was a pity that this car promised so much but that it really is not designed for anyone bigger than teenage kids to sit in the back seats. that’s before we get to the dash which looks like someone stuck an iPad on it (but that seems to be the latest fashion, so Mercedes are far from the only culprits).
There was an A45 AMG alongside it, and this suffers none of the packaging problems of the CLA. It is a very pricey car indeed, though.
Far more costly, but probably worth every penny is the SLS AMG GT, which was the stand centrepiece. Still a stunning car to took at.
Other AMG cars included a C63 Coupe, a CLS 63 Shooting Brake
This latest GL 63AMG was on show indoors and there was a regular GL 350 CDI model parked up by the entrance to the Moving Motor Show when we finally left in the evening.
The W222 S Class was on the stand, and was attracting a lot of interest. I regret the droopy rear end styling, but inside, it is very luxurious and comfortable, just as you expect an S Class to be.
Mercedes also had one of their Formula 1 cars on display.
Another A45 AMG was to be found in one of the tents.
MICHELIN
Reflecting the enormous contribution that this tyre giant has brought to motor sport over many years, Michelin had an interesting assembly of cars on this stand, as well as plenty of information about this famous tyre maker’s products. Attention was grabbed by a Sport Quattro S1 on the front corner of the display.
Head further onto the stand, and as well as as Fiesta WRC, there was Fernando Alonso’ Formula 1 championship winning Renault, the 2012 Le Mans Audi R18 e-tron and deeper inside the stand, the Exagon Furtive e-GT and others.
MINI
A large stand, with examples of every different body style, as well as classic Mini. Had an interesting chat with one of the stand staff who said that a surprising number of people are buying the top spec Paceman, even though this can mean £30,000 or more. Indeed one of the cars on show had a price tag of £36,000. 36 grand for a MINI. Gosh!
NISSAN
Nissan are putting a lot of effort into establishing the Nismo brand and judging by the sales success of Juke Nismo, it would seem to be paying off.
Upstairs, along side an example of the familiar Leaf, there was an example of what Nissan called “the future of motor racing”, the all electric Zero Emissions On Demand Zeod RC. What surprised me was just how tiny it is.
The new Note was making its UK debut. Nissan want us to think of this as a true Fiesta rival (tacit admission that the Micra. which used to fulfil that role has moved to some other position in the market where it is justly and rightfully shunned). It still looks awfully like the old car and more of a contender for the older Meriva (before it got big), Fusion, Modus type of customer, despite what any marketeer says. At least shown of the stupid body kit that the press launch cars had, it does look quite neat if rather bland.
PEUGEOT
With the UK debut of the RCZ-R, Peugeot were no doubt hoping to make a big splash. And they were doing so, but far more of the splash came from the centre of their stand, where they had erected a massive tank, and those who wanted to cool off could have a go a trying to stay upright on a surf board for as long as possible before the powerful jets of water knocked them off their feet and sent them hurling upwards to the top of the tank. On a hot day, this was a guaranteed winner of an attraction for those who wanted to cool off, with quite a queue of willing volunteers even late in the day.
The RCZ-R was there, too, and there was a second one which was rather easier both to inspect and to photograph in one of the tents.
The stand also featured a reminder of Peugeot’s long standing presence in motor sport.
In the Moving Motor Show, there were several 208 GTi models, as well as the recently released 2008.
PORSCHE
Highlight of the Porsche area in the Moving Motor Show was this, the Semper Vivens, dating from 1900. Amazing!
Also featured was the Cayenne and the latest Panamera S e-Hybrid.
RENAULT
Renault seem to have polarised the interesting bits of their range into the driver focused RS models and the ZE electric cars. Both genres were on show. The electric cars were outside and the array of Twizy were providing lots of entertainment for people to clamber in and out. Most recent addition to the range is the Zoe, a purpose designed electric car that certainly looks neat and with a realistic price tag could do rather better than Nissan’s Leaf.
The Captur is just going on sale, too.
Half under cover were the rather disappointing new Clio RS200 along with its larger Megane brother and the much loved Clio Williams as well as one of Alain Prost’s Formula 1 cars
Most splendid of all was this, though, which looked like the same vehicle as I had seen at RetroMobile back in February.
In the Moving Motor Show tent there were several new Clio models, along with the Twingo.
ROLLS-ROYCE
Star of this stand was the new Wraith.
SEAT
After struggling for a few years, Seat suddenly look to have a strong rage, with the new Leon a particular highlight. This sharply styled hatch has a very neat interior and is by all accounts very Golf-like to drive. A real star of 2013.
The outdoor stand included an Ibiza and a Mii as well.
Indoors, there was an example of the rather low-key Toledo. I suspect that this car will do far better in southern European markets than in status snobby Britain.
SKODA
Dominant in the large Skoda stand was the new Octavia vRS. Retaining all the strengths of the old model, but incorporating the latest technology and features, this is one of the best cars in “the real world”, in my opinion.
This stand was also worth visiting as they were making fresh ice cream, which I have to say was delicious.
STARTECH
Startech specialise in modifying the whole Land Rover range, and there were several examples on show.
TOYOTA
No sign at all of all the boring Toyota models, which rather limited the options to a stand full of GT86s. And so it proved to be.
The FT86 Cabrio Concept was staging another appearance. Surely this will go into production.
Nicest Toyota for me, though was the lovely GT2000.
There was also a historic AE86 Corolla Coupe on show and the le Mans car.
TWISTED
A trio of these much modified Land-Rover Defenders.
VOLKSWAGEN
Highlight of the main VW display was the amazing XL1. A second car was in one of the display tents.
Also attracting plenty of attention were the new Golf GTi and GTD.
Also on show were the Up! and the WRC Polo.
VOLVO
An arctic theme applied here, complete with offerings of refreshing ice shavings to the stand visitors. There were examples of all the current range, with the facelifted S60 and XC60 joined by the new V60 plug-in Hybrid and V40 and XC40 hatchback cars.
Doing sterling service on the track was the PoleStar version of the S60. This car sounds epic!
VUHL
A new Mexican two seat mid-engined sports car, powered by a 285 bhp Ford 2 litre Ecoboost engine. The chassis is claimed to be three times more rigid than an Elise, and although the car is intended to be used on the track, the design is also suitable for road use. Planned sale price is around £60,000. Looks promising.
THE CARTIER “STYLE et LUXE” CONCOURS
For many, me included, this element of the event would prove to be a real highlight. Every year there is an assembly on the lawn to the side of the house of all manner of fabulous machines, many of which are rare and/or one off designs. Some were more familiar than others. Many are shipped in from literally all around the world so they can take part.
One of the oldest of the Rolls Royce 40/50s built, this 1908 model is called “The Silver Dawn” has original Roi de Belges coachwork built by Barker.
This Vauxhall 30/98 is a relatively late model from the car’s 10 year production run. 2013 marks the centenary of this well regarded sporting Vauxhall.
1930s style and luxury, French style. This is the 1934 Renault Reinastella. Who says that La Regie cannot make convincing luxury cars?
1939 Delage D8120 Cabriolet with particularly elegant body work by Henri Chapron.
Among one of the highlights for many people was the one-off Phantom Corsair. It first came to Goodwood in 2006, when I understand it proceeded gently to move across the lawn by itself in the middle of the night with the engine off, the car in gear, and the handbrake firmly on. A car shrouded in mystery, the aptly-named Phantom was a six-seater coupe designed by Rust Heinz of the famous Heinz 57 Varieties family. Built in 1938, Heinz lost his life in a car crash the following year and this curse has repeated itself with future owners who have met their demise in mysterious circumstances. Nonetheless, despite its morbid reputation the Phantom remains a stunning thing to behold.
This 1939 Lancia Astura Series 4 Pininfarina Cabriolet had a 3 litre V8 engine where the cylinder were just 19 degrees apart.
Another elegant French machine, a 1940 Talbot Lago
A lovely 1953 Ferrari 250 Europa Pinin Farina finished in Bordeaux with a contrasting Bianco roof and sills. The car was commissioned by a friend of Battista Pininfarina, founder of the Carrozzeria Pininfarina coachbuilding company, one of Ferrari’s longest-standing design partners
This 1954 Fiat Turbina is a one-off prototype which was built as manufacturers experimented with how to exploit what had been learned about jet propulsion in the aviation sector in cars. This car had the lowest drag coefficient ever for 30 years and accordingly had a top speed of over 160 mph.
Also dating from 1954 was this one-off Alfa-Romeo 2000 Sportiva
Maserati built few road cars in the 1950s, but this1956 Maserati A6 GCS, styled by Frua is one of them. All were bodied by specialist carozzeria, with Frua producing just 10. This particular car was delivered to a customer in San Francisco in December 1956.
The V8 engine which featured in this car was originally intended for a large family car which never came to fruition. All was not lost, though and it was installed in a number of sports car chassis, which were then bodied by a number of different coachbuilders. Of these, this Zagato body is one of the most elegant. This car dates from 1953.
The body on this 1952 Supersonic also appears on the Fiat 8V chassis, so I was quite surprised at this mid morning arrival when it turned out to be based on a Jaguar XK120 instead.
Only 243 of these lovely BMW 507s were built, as they were fearsomely expensive when new. One of my favourite BMWs ever.
An original 1957 Jaguar XK-SS
One of the most valuable of all the cars in this display was this 1961 Ferrari 250 GT California Spider. Lovely.
Rivalling it in the value stakes, and definitely unique, as there is just one such car is this 1960 Aston Martin DB4 Bertone Jet. Styled by the young Giorgio Giugiaro, it was premiered at the 1961 Geneva Auto Salon. After not being heard of for many years, the car recently surfaced, and was put for auction earlier in the year. It sold for an impressive £3.25 million, which is the highest price ever paid for an Aston Martin.
This is a reminder of what the base donor looked like, a DB4 Convertible, a car which in its own right can attract price tags heading close to the £1 million mark these days.
I also loved this Ferrari 250 LM. I had a Corgi model of one of these when I was a child.
This is the oldest known Jaguar E Type, and is the very car in which Autocar achieved 150 mph in their March 1961 Road Test.
1963 Bizzarrini GT 5300 Strada.
A 1964 Maserati Mistrale, a lovely Touring design.
What were the designers of this one thinking? “They” were OSI and the “car”, the Silver Fox, was designed very much like a catamaran. Odd!
One of only 2 concept Vauxhall cars made in the 1960s, the 1967 VXR. Very striking even now, nearly 50 years later.
1970 Mercedes C111.
An early Lamborghini Countach LP400S
Ferrari F40
Among the small collection of Porsche 911-based cars were a Flatnose 935, the very rare 1998 GT1 and a 996 GT2
Jaguar XJ220
Yes, this is indeed the McLaren F1 belonging to a certain Rowan Atkinson.
Newest design in the concours was an example of the Bugatti Veyron
THE SUPERCAR PADDOCK
This is one part of the event where you probably won’t see everything on Moving Motor Show day, and so it proved, with a few empty spaces in the paddock, and a sign above that space to tantalise with what would be there for the rest of the Festival. Even so, this was an impressive display, with plenty of rare cars, the like of which you do not see every day, even in London.
Bentleys included the Speed versions of the GT Coupe and Convertible
Among the Ferraris were a F12 Berlinetta, an FF and a 458 Italia Spider, but the most special of all was Eric Clapton’s one-off SP12 EC.
Ginetta G60
ItalDesign Parcour
Jaguar had the XKR-S GT which was rather put in the shadow by the F Type Project 7 that was parked next to it.
Koenigsegg Agera
Lamborghini Aventador Spider
Mercedes SLS GT Black Series
The latest Morgan Plus 8
Noble M600
I had hoped to see the Porsche 918, but it was not in the paddock. We did find it elsewhere on site, hidden under a cover.
Ruf CTR2
Spano GTA
McLAREN
McLaren had a huge display at one of the Supercar paddock area, which contained the much talked about P1, flanked by Coupe and Convertible versions of the MP4 12C.
Sitting in front of these, but in that difficult mix of bright sunshine and deep shadow were examples of the F1 in “normal” and LM guise.
There was also a fabulous Can Am racer.
LAMBORGHINI
Celebrating 50 years of Lamborghini, a special display of some of the more notable models were lined up on the walkway leading to the BlackRock Drivers Club. This is a reserved area, not accessible to the general public, so all viewing of these splendid cars had to be done from a distance and the other side of a fence. In a way that helped the photographer, though some close up investigation would have been nice, especially when one of only 20 Reventons ever made was among the cars.
PORSCHE 911
More accessible was the line up of 911 models, reflecting the evolution of Porsche’s popular sports car over its 50 year life, both on the road and in motor sport.
THE RACING PADDOCK
This is where there would be a lot of action during the three days of the Festival of Speed itself, but most of the places were filled with vehicles even on the Thursday, giving us the chance to look at much of the machinery, albeit as static exhibits.
Audi had the actual 2013 Le Mans winning R18 e-Tron car present (still uncleaned!), as well as a Quattro
Bentley’s Speed 8, winner of the 2003 Le Mans event was also present. Nice to see this car again. having seen it last at Cholmondley a month ago.
Honda had an interesting showing of both racing cars and bikes. The display included the very car in which John Surtees won the 1967 Italian Grand Prix, a V12 engined RA3000. What a shame that they seem to have given this all up and now produce a set of road cars about as insipid as fellow countryman Toyota.
Among the classic Lotus were a Type 49B and a Type 25
A splendid display of Martini liveried cars was one of those lines where the shadows were such a problem that I did what I could and vowed to return when the sun had moved around. Of course, we never did.
Among the most valuable cars in the paddock were some fabulous Mercedes, including the 300 SLR a W196 (not the ex Fangio car that sold for auction at over £19 million the following day) and a W125.
This Austro Daimler was rather special, too.
Nissan GT-R
The Classic Renault collection ranged from the amazing 40CV Racer that I have seen many times before and a 1902 Paris-Bordeaux Racer (both victims of the sunlight/shadow problem so undepicted) , to the very latest TwinRun Concept, a rear engined concept car first shown at the Monaco GP earlier this year that uses the 3.5 litre V6 from the racing Megane. The R5 Maxi Turbo and Alpine A310 were also included.
Also rather fascinating was this Concept Twizy F1 Racing, which was parked up next to Jean-Pierre Jabouille’s 1978 RS01 F1 car, one of the first of the turbo charged Formula 1 cars.
Representatives of the 2012 F1 paddock were all lined up. Not a year where the cars are going to be remembered for their elegance and beauty!
Most of the current Formula 1 teams had at least own motor home there, along with their own relatively small paddock/pit/workshop area. Most were still being set up. The poor guy in the Ferrari area seemed to be spending his entire time apologising that he did not speak English, apart presumably from that one phrase that he had learned!
McLaren had a display which included a number of historic racers, including an MF8 Can Am raced by Denny Hulme as well as several of their older Formula 1 cars.
Toyota had their Le Mans entrant on show.
Chevron had a display of a trio of their track day oriented GT3 models.
The Drayson B12 69/EV, originally designed for Le Mans, smashed the sub 1000kg World Electric Land Speed Record at Elvington earlier in the year.
There were plenty of bikes of all ages, to see.
We were particular intrigued by this pair, which are both powered by helicopter engines. Made in Guernsey by an enthusiastic small group of engineers, the two guys by the bikes were happy to talk about what they had created, why and how. We are talking a top speed of over 200 mph for both, but prices not far short of £200,000. Yes, you did read that right. 200 Grand!
WACKY RACES
Although intended to amuse a younger audience, it was probably people of my generation who will remember Wacky Races, a children’s TV cartoon series produced by Hanna Barbera. Famous characters and vehicles from the show which were recreated, life size, included Dick Dastardly and Muttley in the Mean Machine, Penelope Pitstop in the Compact Pussycat, and Luke and Blubber Bear in the Arkansas Chuggabug.
SOAPBOX RACERS
Motor racing on a budget! Lots of ingenuity had gone into many of these amazing creations which were gathered together in a marquee. Some of them looked so improbably narrow that I cannot imagine how a driver managed to squeeze in at all.
LAND SPEED RECORD CARS
This was one of those displays that we almost missed, only coming across it late in the day, and what a treat it was. Set in a diaroma intended to resemble Daytona Beach were a number of land speed record holders, assembled from museums around the world. Among them was the Blue Flame, in which Gary Gabelich achieved 622mph in 1970. Sir Malcolm Campbell’s Bluebird, which was the world’s fastest car in 1935, and the first car to enter into the 200mph-plus club was reunited with Donald Campbell’s 1967 Bluebird CN7 for the first time in many years. Other cars in the display included Henry Segrave’s 1000hp Sunbeam.
BMW MOTORBIKES
A vast assembly of BMW bikes from the inception of the marque to the current day. We came to these late in the day and did not have time to linger over the collection, which was a shame, as there was lot to take in here in four lines of bikes.
OTHER DISPLAYS
There were a few interesting cars just parked up in among the displays. Without doubt the rarest of all of these was this a Schuppan Porsche 962
Near by were a duo of Noble M600s and a Jaguar XJ220
This Porsche 356 was a competitor in the 1953 Carrera Panamerica.
This Ferrari FF was part of the Veuve Cliquot stand.
A somewhat “used” Chevrolet truck.
The Innotech Aspiron, a Czech-based track car got its UK debut. It’s a car of big numbers, with 800bhp on tap and a price tag of £117,000 and is based on the Corvette, an example of which was parked alongside it.
The Caparo T1 was part of a group of track focused cars which also included an Ariel Atom 3.5,
The Porsche Owners Club had a small display.
The Mustang Owners Club had a larger display with an array of cars from the early models to the very latest.
An array of American cars were on show by the Land Speed Record cars, including a fabulous Ford Galaxie SunLiner.
I’ve started to see examples of the “Boris Bus” on the streets of London. A vast fleet are assembled just by the Hangar Lane gyratory, clearly ready for a action just as fast as the crews can be trained.
If you’ve studied this report from the top, and enjoyed the 600 photos that accompany the words, you would probably be feeling as sated as I was at the end of a long day. But there’s plenty that is not covered here. There was a huge poster display of the festival over 20 years which was well worth the time we spent seeing what we missed since 1993, there were plenty of cars that had the weather not been so sunny would have been photographed, and that’s before all those blank spaces were filled.
My most grateful thanks go to the Daily Telegraph, who once again made available (a limited number of) tickets meaning that there was no admission charge for this amazing day. Mind you, even at full admission price, I don’t think I would have felt short-changed. Far more than “just” a Motor Show, there was more than could be fitted into one very long day, and that was without taking any real rest from our 8:15am arrival to 8pm departure! Next year, I will find the solution to the (relatively) local accommodation problem, and stay for Day 1 of the Festival of Speed, thus giving more time to enjoy the vast array of exhibits. This has to be one of the top events not just in the UK but in the world, and it really is worth more than a 1 day visit.