Salon Privé 2015: Concours d’Elégance Parade

The highlight of the first day at Salon Prive 2015 is the Concours d’Elégance parade. A panel of distinguished judges oversaw the parade which served as a final chance to make a decision on awards. As part of the pageantry, the cars drove past the panel and details were read about each car.

Unfortunately there were a couple of cars which didn’t make it onto the stand, most notably the Voisin and a few of the racing cars. However, most managed the run without issue, although we did end up pushing a beautiful Austin Healy 100 Silverstone along the gravel path after it developed a mis-fire.

The judging panel consisted of world-renowned experts and was headed by Le Mans legend Derek Bell. The panel consisted of Fabio Filippini, Pininfarina design director, Tom Purves, Chairman of the Royal Automobile Club, celebrated presenter Steve Parrish and Adolfo Orsi, President of Historica Selecta among other notable individuals.

The two most important awards were won by the Jaguar XK120 Jabbeke and the Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet. The Jaguar won best in show, as determined by the judges. The stunning Delahaye was the visitors favourite.

Winner of the Pre-war Luxury & Touring was a Bentley 4 1/4 Sedanca Coupé with the Delahaye receiving the runner up award. The Wind in Your Hair class was won by a Ferrari with the Lancia Aurelia B24 Spider claiming the runner up award, both he Lancia and Goldmanini were restored by Thornley Kelham Ltd. The Competition Cars class was won by the Lancia Sport Prototipo Zagato with the runner up award going to a Porsche 550A.

An Ariel won the Exceptional Motorcycles 1900-1939 class beating a BMW into second place. The second motorcyle category, Exceptional Motorcycles 1940-1974, was won by a unique Triumph T100GP Prototype with a “Norvin” (part Norman part something else) coming in second.

The hotly contested Pininfarina & The Prancing Horse category was won by a stunning Ferrari 250 GT/L Lusso which had undergone a painstaking restoration. A Ferrari 365 GTS came in a close second. The winner of the Post-war coachwork class was the Jaguar XK120 Jabbeke with a Bentley S2 Coupé runner up.

The winner of the Fixed-Head Coupés from the 50s & 60s was a Ferrari 275 GTB 2 Long Nose Alloy, which beat a Lamborghini Miura LP400. Gentlemen GT Drivers – To the Track & Back, was won by a Ferrari 250 GT Berlinetta Tour de France which beat a Porsche 911 2.7RS Touring.

Finally, a number of special awards were given out including for Best Interior which was won by a Lagonda Rapide V12 Drophead Coupé and an award for the most elegant which was won by the Delahaye 135MS Cabriolet. The Goldmanini got an award for the most sensitive restoration, the Bentley Speed 6 won Most Iconic and the Frazer Nash TT Replica Shelsley won Most Original Pre-war.

Finally, the most Superlative Motorcycle was the Norvin Special and the most original was a Vincent HRD Series A. It was a fantastic parade and concours competition, be sure to keep checking back for more in-depth coverage of Salon Privé 2015!