Newport Concours, A Day of Design Excellence

Posted on Oct 17, 2024 in Antique | Comments Off on Newport Concours, A Day of Design Excellence

Summer and beautiful cars, nothing is better.

Today was a perfect day in New England, and I took full advantage of it by driving my Jaguar XJS Coupe down to the Newport Concours D’Elegance at Fort Allen on the harbor. The location is a beautiful island surrounded by yachts and sailboats, and the event included some of the rarest automobiles I have seen in these parts. Passing by the historic Mansions of the Golden Age, I was caught at a traffic light by a motorcade of Lamborghini, Ferrari, Aston Martin, Porsche, and Mercedes exotics, all lined up and ready to parade in. The line continued for at least 40 cars, and it was a grand spectacle of colors against the deep blue water.

Inside the fort, displays of rare Ferrari included two Enzo’s, in red and fly yellow, an F40 and an F50, several 275 GTB/4 including one owned by Wayne Carini from “Chasing Classic Cars,” who was nearby trying to sell someone a car from his cell phone. Other Ferrari included a very nice 365 GTC and a slew of 308s, 328s and Dinos.

Mixed among the exotics were two matching blue Ford GTs, which I had never seen close up before, a Lotus Esprit and Exige, a black Mercedes McLaren SLR and a stunning grey Mercedes AMG. Of course, there were more brightly colored Lamborghini than I could count, including a rare Diablo, Murcielagos of every shade, Countach and a very special 400GT in silver that looked like it just came from the showroom. One highlight was a new Aston Martin V8 Vantage in a dark wine color that looked absolutely dangerous.

The center of the field was reserved for the antique cars, which included a beautiful brass era 1914 Renault Victoria, and several Packard and Pierce Arrow cars in green and beige. Two Rolls Royce Silver Ghosts were present, as were a Duesenberg J, a Mercer, Jaguar SS100, and a breathtaking 1926 Hispano Suiza H6B Victoria with coachwork by Henri Chapron. Finally, in each corner of the field was a grouping of cars in a single model range, including a pod of pastel Porsche 356 coupes, a gaggle of Mercedes 300 SL roadsters and gullwings, a parliament of Allards, and a sault of Alfas. One notable collection was a group of motorcycles and motorized bicycles from 1900-1910 that included a Pope and an all white Thor.

It was an amazing afternoon, with astounding automobiles, excellent champagne, and a chance to converse with the owners of these wonderful machines about everything from design to maintenance. I can think of no better way to spend a Sunday.