2016 Concours of Elegance at Windsor Castle attracts 12,500 visitors
Windsor Castle played host to this year's Concours of Elegance, an event of rarefied cars from around the globe.
This year’s Concours of Elegance was held in the stately surroundings of Windsor Castle with nearly 1,000 of the world’s finest and rarest cars on display, with over 12,500 motoring enthusiasts making their way over across Windsor Castle's drawbridge.
The Castle’s Quadrangle played host to 60 of the rarest cars in the world, with a further 1000 cars displayed on the lawns outside.
Uniquely, the car owner’s themselves turn judges for the top prize at the event – assuming they don’t vote for their own pride and joy – and there was a clear winner, a 1938 Hispano-Suiza Dubonnet Xenia, with an Alfa Romeo 8C 2300 Viotti Coupé taking the runners-up spot.
The Hispano-Suiza Dubonnet Xenia was developed by André Dubonnet, who among other things was an inventor, racing driver and World War One fighter pilot. Jean Andrea was commissioned to design a streamlined car, which was then constructed by Jacques Saoutchik. It features a H6 Hispano-Suiza engine, curved glass, sliding doors and a panoramic sunroof.
Voted for by the public, the 1938 Hispano-Suiza Dubonnet Xenia also drove away with the Classic Driver Public Choice award.
HRH Prince Michael of Kent was part of the judging panel for the Royal Automobile Club Trophy, which went to an Aston Martin ‘Clover Leaf’. The winner benefits from a place on the main Concours of Elegance next year.
With Friday being Owner’s Day, Saturday brought together more than 100 classic Jaguars. It was an XK120 Roadster that took the spoils with the Jaguar Trophy.
Finally, Bentley Sunday saw a gathering of more than 100 Bentleys, which lined Windsor Castle’s Long Walk. A panel of expert judges, including male supermodel David Gandy, took a ‘long walk’ to pick the winners for the final two awards of the weekend.
A Bentley 3 Litre won the pre-1965 class award, while a Bentley Azure took the crown in the post-1965 class.
Almost £200,000 was raised for The Queen’s Choral Foundation, The Household Cavalry Foundation and Springfield Youth Club Hackney charities, taking the overall money raised for charity by the Concours of Elegance to more than £1 million
