Ned J. and Kate Lawler Shamrock Motoring Images
It was very blustery, and cold—but when the gray morning dawned it was no longer raining. And the third annual Audrain Concours d’Elegance on the grounds of the particular legendary Breakers “cottage” went on as planned October 2 . The convertible tops were down, but the winter coats and scarfs came out and some owners huddled within their cars for warmth and wind evasion.
As at Pebble Beach , this is a Concours and Motor Week , with a full round of seminars and events (yoga was canceled because of the weather! ). It’s an increasingly successful attempt to make this historic New England summer retreat famous for something other than its yearly folk plus jazz festivals. Saturday’s Tour d’Elegance around Newport, Rhode Island, and vicinity got drenched, but heavy rain didn’t deter the 25 to 30 hardy souls, some of whom were driving topless. There is precedent for Newport’s automotive bona fides, because the first US car race—the Vanderbilt Cup—was held upon its roads in 1900.
Cadillac was a sponsor this particular year, and that brought out there not only the Lyriq electric car plus Escalade V-Series but also the big display of vintage examples of the marque. The most spectacular was a 1953 Series 62 coupe bodied (just one of two) by Ghia with a bold wraparound rear window—new technology in 1953. The Petersen Automotive Museum owns this beautiful example, which it turns out was not the gift to Rita Hayworth from Prince Aly Kahn. Another screen Caddy, a 1929 town sedan, had been impounded as evidence by the Bridgeport, Connecticut, police during the investigation into the disappearance associated with flyer Charles Lindbergh’s son .
The Best in Show award went to William Medcalf for his 1930 Bentley Speed Six Sports Saloon. It also won in the European Luxury 1920 in order to 1935 category. The Most Elegant award was scooped up by Lawrence Auriana for his racy red 1968 Alfa-Romeo 33 Stradale.
Jay Leno , who has a house nearby and is a close friend of Audrain Automobile Museum CEO Donald Osborne , is a regular at the particular concours and was seen admiring the Nethercutt Collection’s 1931 Bugatti Type 51 coupe. “In the old days, cars like this would have been broken up, with one person getting the particular chassis and someone else the engine, ” Leno said. “It’s the beautiful car. ” The particular attendees thought so too, since the Bugatti won the particular People’s Choice award. The Hagerty Youth Judges award went to the 1912 Mercer 35C Raceabout from the Heritage Museums plus Gardens.
Here are some other highlights:
1957 Mercury Turnpike Cruiser
A memorable detail associated with the 1957 Mercury Turnpike Cruiser. The car featured an early trip computer.
1960 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint Speciale Coupe
Wicker Francis bought this 1960 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint Speciale Coupe as a basket case, and the restoration took four years.
1966 Citroën DS21 Le Léman coupe
Henri Chapron has been known for building special-body Citroëns, especially the run of convertibles. Only 24 associated with these DS21 Le Léman coupes had been built, and Jeffrey plus Frances Fisher’s example is the 1966 Geneva show vehicle.
1964 ATS 2500 GTS
ATS, a breakaway company created to challenge Ferrari, was a featured marque in Audrain. The particular museum is the owner of this 1964 ATS 2500 GTS, 1 of only 12 GTS cars (without bumpers to save weight) that were built.
1941 Chrysler Newport Dual-Cowl Phaeton
Five of these unusual The chrysler Newport Dual-Cowl Phaetons were created, and this may be the first of them—one associated with two with hidden headlights. Paul Gould’s car had been at Pebble Beach in 2009.
1948 Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet
Mark O’Neil’s 1948 Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet sports two-tone blue coachwork simply by Faget Varnet, and was featured on that coachbuilder’s stand at the Salon de Paris inside 1949. It was a class winner from Pebble Seaside in 2008.
1953 Ferrari 250 MM Spyder
Phil Hill drove this 1953 Ferrari 250 MM Spyder in that year’s Del Monte Trophy race in California. It was restored in 1990 and won its class at Pebbled Beach, then was refurbished again within 2018.
1931 Bugatti Type fifty-one Coupe
Jay Leno inspects the Nethercutt Collection’s 1931 Bugatti Type 51 Sports coupe, a recent discovery. This was reportedly a gift to race driver Louis Chiron from Ettore Bugatti after the 1931 season. The car has been chosen for the People’s Option award.
1937 Mercedes-Benz 540K Cabriolet The
A show highlight had been this elegant 1937 Mercedes-Benz 540K Cabriolet A, owned by Tom Laferriere, plus with body by Sindelfingen. It’s been in the U. S., on and off, since the particular 1950s.
1938 Packard 1604 w/body by Mayfair
An impossibly elegant 1938 Packard 1604 with English body by Mayfair has been created for that mother of Aristotle Onassis, but with one point after World War II it was used because a chicken coop. A soldier purchased it with regard to $600 and had it shipped to the US.
1922 Secqueville-Hoyau Sports activities Two-Seater
Alexander and Teri Giacobetti’s rare 1922 Secqueville-Hoyau Sports Two-Seater has been a light car through Alfred Secqueville and Gaston Hoyau, that built vehicles between 1919 and 1924 in Gennevillers, France.
1952 Allard K2
Surviving the weather in an Allard. Most of the tops were down.
1930 Bentley Velocity Six Sports activities Saloon
Greatest in Show was awarded to Bill Medcalf regarding his 1930 Bentley Rate Six Sports Saloon. The particular Breakers serves as backdrop.
1968 Alfa-Romeo 33 Stradale
Most Elegant was Lawrence Auriana’s 1968 Alfa-Romeo 33 Stradale. Just 18 of these V8-powered cars were built, with just 10 left.
1991 Jaguar XJS
The concours includes a “30 under 30” group to attract younger drivers. F. Maxwell Ladner’s thirty-three, 000-mile 1991 Jaguar XJS is inside the foreground.
1914 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost
Sam plus Emily Mann’s 1914 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost London in order to Edinburgh car wears wooden “skiff” coachwork by Berlin’s Karosseriewerke Schapiro-Schebera. It spent 30 years in Egypt.
1935 SS Cars SS1 Airline Saloon
Only 16 associated with these pre-Jaguar SS Vehicles SS1 Flight Saloons (of 624 built) are still extant. This example, along with champagne set up within the picnic tables, belongs to Jim and Lisa Hendrix.
1936 Lagonda LG43R
Joseph Moch’s 1936 Lagonda LG43R was a team car on the 1936 Le Mans race, then spent 60 years in the garage in Dana Point, California. Beyond it is a supercharged 1931 Bentley 4. 5-liter with Vanden Plas tourer coachwork.
1946 Lancia Aprilia Barchetta Corsa Sport
Charles Schoendorf’s 1946 Lancia Aprilia Barchetta Corsa Sport started life since a standard sedan, but then gained an one-off aluminum barchetta entire body for use in hill climbs.
1948 Daimler DE36 Drophead
This particular “Green Goddess, ” possessed by Mark Hyman, is a 1948 Daimler DE36 Drophead, one of a series of luxury cars constructed by Hooper and Company between 1948 and 1955. It had been a personal project of Lady Norah Docker, a socialite who was married to Daimler head Sir Bernard Docker. Six flamboyant vehicles were created, and 4 survive. This one was in the Harrah’s collection until 1982.
1953 Series sixty two Cadillac w/body by Ghia
This will be one of simply two 1953 Series 62 Cadillacs bodied in Italy by Ghia. And, no, this car was not gifted to Rita Hayworth simply by Prince Aly Kahn.
1959 Citroën Mismaque Squal 09C Prototype Coupe
This outlandish 1959 Citroën Mismaque Squal 09C Prototype Coupe sported huge tail fins and a custom tube frame. French engineer/designer Guy Mismaque built three of these types of lightweight cars, two with 2CV running gear plus one powered by Simca.
