Het Internationale Concours van het Concours d’Elegance Paleis Soestdijk is onderdeel voor mooie oldtimers, maar dat wil niet zeggen dat iedere mooie oldtimer in iedere editie van het concours past. Voor iedere editie worden thema’s gekozen. Uiteraard is het van belang dat uw auto binnen een van deze thema’s past. Is dit het geval, dan kunt u zich inschrijven om deel te nemen.
De onderstaande voorwaarden, spelregels en inschrijfformulier zijn in het Engels. Mocht dit voor u een probleem zijn, dan helpen wij u graag verder als u ons een mail stuurt op info@classicsatthepalace.com
DE CONCOURS KLASSEN VAN 2022
2022 CONCOURS D’ELEGANCE CLASSES
In more than 135 years of automotive development, nothing has remained the same. The technology slowly but surely approached the perfection of today; comfort now equals that of home. But more than anything, the design changed: the appearance of the car. That is why the Concours d’elegance at Soestdijk Palace on 26, 27 and 28 August 2022 will have twelve classes, determined by age, culture and design – from the shiny copper of the automobile’s pioneering years to the iconic super sports cars from the recent past.
CELEBRATING 75 YEARS OF FERRARI
Every enthusiast knows the Ferrari 365 Daytona Berlinta, or the 512 Testa Rossa. They are just two of the countless Ferrari models designed and produced by Pininfarina since 1950. Many of them were designed exclusively for the great and the good– from film star Ingrid Bergman to our very own HRH Prince Bernard. Nowadays, such one-off editions are locked up in private collections, but visitors of the Concours d’elegance at Soestdijk Palace can admire them with their own eyes.
ICONIC SPORTS CARS OF THE 80S & 90S
Only recently did they make it into the automotive news, but already they have collector’s value: the supercars of the end of last century. Like the extremely rare and 386 km/h (!) fast McLaren F1 of which only 107 were made between 1992 and 1996 and won the Le Mans 24 hour race immediately after its introduction. Or the 1987 Ferrari F40, intended as an exclusive sports car with racing aspirations that eventually became a commercial success with 1337 cars built. Their unique and exotic appearance is admirable.
MILLE MIGLIA ELIGIBLE
Between 1927 and 1957, the unique Mille Miglia road race was organised, for a broad variety of marques and models. Today, only cars complying to those which originally competed are accepted by the organisers of today’s historic MM event. That is de reason to open a special class for cars totally complacent to Mille Miglia acceptance standards. When going through original entry lists, this class guarantees a unique variety of cars for the judges to make their choice.
FRONT-ENGINE GRAND PRIX RACERS
In modern F1 machines, drivers can only be recognised by a colourful helmet. This was not the case in the golden years of motor racing until 1960. Dressed in just a polo shirt, you could see drivers pulling on a large steering wheel, visibly struggling with their single-seater car because the narrow tyres had very little grip. A mighty engine roared in front of them and they carried the brand name of Maserati, ERA, Ferrari or Mercedes-Benz. At Soestdijk, we see a few of them next to each other, as if they were stationed in front of the pits.
SHINING BRASS OF THE BELLE ÉPOQUE
After the world discovered the phenomenon of the automobile at the end of the 19th century, the burgeoning automobile industry flourished until 1914. Impressive bodies decorated with shiny copper headlights and upholstered interiors with the finest quality fabric or leather, set wealthy customers apart. You won’t encounter the oldest Peugeots, Daimlers or Spykers on public roads anymore – but you will find them at Soestdijk against the historic backdrop of our national palace.
BRITISH OPEN OF THE 30S
In the thirties, the English made long journeys across the European continent in their luxury open touring cars. The fresh air, wind in your hair and unobstructed view all around was simply unbeatable. And there was plenty of choice, because every self-respecting British car brand offered at least one open touring model: Rolls-Royce, Alvis, Bentley and Lagonda, but also Austin or Riley. On the grass in front of the palace, you can relive the nostalgic atmosphere that these characteristic English cars embody.
PRE-WAR SPECIAL COACHWORK
Those who had money before the second world war and wanted to distinguish themselves went to a renowned coachbuilder with a fully driving chassis. That coachbuilder then drew an exclusive design, usually in accordance with the fashion and culture of America, England, France or Italy. That is why the styles of Romeo, Packard, Hispano Suiza or Mercedes cars of that time are so totally different from each other. So too at Soestdijk, where no car in this class is the same as the other.
POST-WAR SPECIAL COACHWORK
A car with a body that nobody else owned was no longer possible in the fifties. But manufacturers were still responding to the desire for something special. They had specialised coachbuilders build something in small series that differed from the masses in terms of style and detailing. And so a Delahaye with coachwork by Chapron or even Pennock from The Hague, a Bentley Mulliner-Park Ward, but also a simpler but no less exclusive Peugeot 403 convertible, were excellent choices to show up in at the golf club.
GENTLEMEN’S SPORTS CARS OF THE 50S & 60S
It was a dying breed in the fifties and sixties: the amateur racers who drove around in fast exclusive sports cars on a daily basis but still wanted to take part in a race on weekends. Famous sports car manufacturers such as Aston Martin, Maserati, Mercedes-Benz or Porsche eagerly responded to that need. This resulted in seemingly well-known sports cars that had a more exclusive feel thanks to added sporty features and stylistic details.
CARROZERIA ITALIANA
Nergens floreerde de ambachtelijke carrosseriebouw zo succesvol als in Italië. Met Fiat, Lancia en Alfa Romeo telde Italië voor de oorlog weinig automerken; in de jaren vijftig kwamen daar Maserati en Ferrari bij, plus enkele specialistische sportwagenbouwers. Hun klanten hadden echter grote behoefte aan iets exclusiefs, met een eigen identiteit. Een groot aantal carrosseriebouwers, met inbreng van getalenteerde artistieke stilisten speelde daarop in. Mede dankzij lage lonen floreerde de bedrijfstak tot in de jaren zestig. Hun nalatenschap is echter groot in aantal en groots in creatieve verscheidenheid – een onuitputtelijke bron voor concours klassen.
LANCIA FLAMINIA
Lancia’s verleden telt talloze onvergetelijke modellen: de innovatieve Lambda en Aprilia van voor de oorlog, het legendarische model Aurelia en de in rally’s onverslaanbare Fulvia, Stratos en Delta Integrale. Tussen al dat erfgoed dreigde de Flaminia, gebouwd tussen 1957 en 1968, in vergetelheid te raken. Maar deze opvolger van de Aurelia was niet alleen de laatste prestigieuze Italiaanse berlina maar vormde ook de basis voor drie speciale versies. Daarom hebben de chique Pininfarina coupé, de flamboyante door Touring gebouwde coupé /convertible en de ruige Zagato Sport/Super Sport als pure Lancia iconen een eigen klasse op hun 65e verjaardag.
FUTURE CLASSICS
Onze eeuw is amper twee decennia jong maar de voorafgaande jaren negentig voelen aan een oudheid. Exotische sportwagens als een Ferrari F40, de Mclaren F1 of Porsche’s 959 waren al ten tijde van hun debuut verzamelgoed; gelimiteerde Groep-B rally-auto’s verdienden in hun actieve tijd meteen historische status. Maar waartoe reken je toenmalige sportieve automobielen – variërend van populaire betaalbare cabriolets tot exclusieve klonen van grote seriemodellen? Ze zijn meer dan 25 jaar oud – de norm om als klassiek verzamelobject te worden gecategoriseerd. Ook zij hebben met hun eigen nostalgische waarde inmiddels dus recht op een vaste plaats op en Concours d’Elegance.
DUTCH COACHBUILDERS (DISPLAY)
The list of coachbuilders who built the most beautiful bodies for rolling chassis of luxury brands, especially before the second world war, is long. But apart from famous names, there have also been many small coachbuilders, including in the Netherlands. Best known among them is probably Spyker, who built the Golden State Coach and started producing their own cars in 1998. Other well-known names were Veth, Roos, Pennock, Van Rijswijk and Schutter & Van Bakel, some of which also started out with carriages. But how many of their cars still exist today?
