A shared anniversary for a legendary display and BMW led to double the fun at Lake Como, writes Bob Montgomery
A UNIQUE PLATFORM for the most beautiful automobiles from the past as well as some of the boldest concept cars from the present, the 80th annual Concorso d’Eleganza took place in the glorious location of the Grand Hotel Villa d’Este and the Villa Erba in Cernobbio on the shores of Lake Como.
This year’s event was a double anniversary, for sponsor BMW Group was also celebrating 80 years since it produced its first automobile, giving rise to several special displays of BMW cars at the event.
Also celebrated at the Concorso D’Eleganza was 100 years of the Bugatti and Morgan marques.
As expected, Bugatti Automobiles SAS displayed a range of examples of this most famous of marques, from the “Tank” Grand Prix car to the last Bugatti Atlantic 57SC built – which is owned by Ralph Lauren.
Four special models of the Bugatti Veyron were also displayed, finished in the racing colours – blue for France, red for Italy, green for Britain and white for Germany.
The four supercars were displayed in front of signs with the names and racing histories of four drivers closely identified with Bugatti’s racing success.
One of the surprising aspects of the Concorso d’Eleganza is the very high proportion of cars that have been in the possession of the same family since new.
This sets it apart from that other great Concours d’Elegance event, Pebble Beach in California, where the cars are predominantly in the hands of rich collectors, and reinforces the sense of “old wealth” that predominates the Italian event.
Indeed, speaking to several such owners, the overall impression gained is not so much of a great motoring event as one that marks the commencement of the “season”.
The cars on display were subject to a pre-selection process so that only six examples were displayed in each class.
Very much the crème de la crème – and what a selection! A small number of the most interesting included a Mercedes 500K from 1936, which had until recently been part of the collection of Formula 1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone, a spectacular yellow Rolls-Royce Phantom 1 Sedanca Town Car from 1933 similar to the model in the film The Yellow Rolls-Royce, and a Ferrari 250 GT Lusso model from 1963, which was for a long time owned by the actor Steve McQueen.
Cars with a competition history were also well represented, and here pride of place must go to a superb Porsche 356 Glöckler from 1952.
Walter Glöckler was a successful Frankfurt motor dealer for whom six examples of a super lightweight Porsche 356 were built.
With an aluminum body and a hard top by the coachbuilder Weidenhausen, six were apparently built – with the example on display believed to be the sole survivor.
Two other cars must be mentioned. First of these is the wacky BMW 2800 from 1969 – a sort of Fiat X1/9 on steroids, also designed by Bertone and based on BMW 2500 running gear and first shown at the Geneva Motor Show in 1969.
Not part of the competition, but shown for the first time outside the BMW Museum, was the BMW Gina Light study which was undoubtedly the car that drew the greatest crowds and greatest reaction.
The Gina Light pushes the limits of contemporary materials and production processes far into the future.
This is most evident in the practically seamless outer skin, made of an elastic textile material which is stretched over a moveable framework.
While this is the single feature which attracts the most attention – and lots of finger-poking – the Gina Light abounds in clever details such as the wing and central mirror design.
Best of the Show was awarded by the international jury to a sublime Alfa Romeo 8C 2900B (1938). Fittingly, this was the choice of not just the jury but also of the public vote.
The Concorso d’Eleganza is an evocation of the grand era which was the heyday of many of the cars present and provides a magnificent setting in which to view and appreciate the glory of a bygone age of car design. Long may it continue.