London, 1 May, 2012
The organisers of Salon Prive held a media preview day on Friday
27 April, to present the themes and highlights of the 2012 edition,
the seventh running, of the now well established Luxury Supercar
Event and Concours d’Elegance. This will be the second year that
it has been held at Syon House and Park in West London, and
features a change of date from its previous June date to early
September. The main reason for the change is that Syon House
is currently undergoing a major external refurbishment, due for
completion in August, and would not look its best shrouded in
scaffolding. There was also the consideration of the London
Olympics taking place this summer, and they thought it best to
let things settle down after they had finished, rather than to try
and compete with them. During the gathering, it was also
announced, that title sponsor Chubb Insurance, had signed a new
three year deal to continue in their present roll. In recognition of
their continued support, the concours will be titled “The Chubb
Insurance Concours d’Elegance at Salon Prive”.
The 2012 edition promises to be the biggest and best to date, as
there are more high end automobile manufacturers participating,
together with numerous purveyors of luxury goods, and the
Concours d’Elegance will feature a spectacular array of
machinery, in the following classes.
· Class A: Collection of Shooting Brakes
· Class B: Bugatti – The Vintage Competition Series
· Class C: Closed Sports Cars from the Swinging Sixties
· Class D: Open Sports Cars from the Swinging Sixties
· Class E: Pre-War Rarities
· Class F: Ferrari F40 – Celebrating 25 Years of an Icon
· Class G: Mercedes-Benz Gullwing – The Legend at 60
· Class H: The Design Class featuring Carrozzeria Touring
Superleggera
· Class I: Vee-Twins through the Ages
· Class J: Important Competition Bikes
One of the participants in Class A was in attendance at the
preview day, the splendid green and gold Ferrari 330 GT Vignale
Shooting Break, owned by Jamiroquai front man Jay Kay, a
musician well known for his motoring passion.
Manufacturers who have confirmed their participation are as
follows, with more expected to be added to the list before the
event.
· AMG
· Aston Martin
· Bentley
· BMW
· Eterniti
· Ferrari
· Fisker
· Harley Davidson Motorcycles
· Jaguar
· Mercedes-Benz
· Noble
· Carrozzeria Touring Superleggera
New for 2012 is an Art & Memorabilia Fayre, supported by the
Swiss private banking organisation EFG International, where
original artwork and rare photographic images will be displayed
and available for purchase. There will also be an “aviation lawn”,
where guests can learn about the benefits, privileges and cost of
private aviation, whether it be by charter or ownership.
Amongst the special feature exhibits will be an array of Ferrari
F40s, celebrating the models 25th anniversary, 60 Years of the
Mercedes-Benz 300 SL “Gullwing”, the British debut of the styling
star of the 2012 Geneva Salon, the Alfa Romeo 8C based Touring
Superleggera Disco Volante, and 18 cars from the ROFGO Gulf
sponsored race cars collection assembled by Adrian Hamilton for
a client. This will be the first time that so many examples from
the collection have been shown together in public, so that is a
tantalising prospect in itself, without all the other promise that the
event holds. One final note, if you attend, make sure that you
take in a tour of Syon House, the history is fascinating, whilst the
decor and furnishings are truly magnificent.
Further details of individual day’s activities and ticket information
can be found at www.salonprivelondon.com
Keith Bluemel
04/2012
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