This week, Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire is hosting the 16th edition of one of the UK’s most prestigious motoring events, the Salon Prive Concours d’Elegance. The Salon Prive, conceived by the brothers Andrew and David Bagley, is inspired by the extravagant concours events in the USA and Italy, which bring together rare and exotic cars from around the world to be judged by experts on their originality, historical provenance and quality of restoration.
This year’s event gathers an eclectic selection of cars on the palace grounds, from pre-war luxury Mercedes models to unique vintage Ferraris, alongside the latest hypercars from contemporary brands. The event has grown in prominence in recent years and invites brands like Rolls Royce, Aston Martin and McLaren to fill the turf and show off their newest metal. Other boutique-style hypercar manufacturers such as Hispano Suiza, Pininfarina and Touring Superleggera also appeared this year.
After hours of pouring over some of the best cars around on the show, we narrowed down our favorites. From carefully restored classics to concept vehicles and resto mods, here are the standout cars at Salon Prive 2021.
Kimera EVO37
It takes a brave manufacturer to try and recreate a groundbreaking rally hero, but with the EVO37, Kimera did just that. In 1983 the Lancia 037 prevailed against the impressive Audi Quattro to become the last two-wheel drive car ever to win the World Rally Championship and cemented its place in rally folklore. The Kimera EVO37 pays homage to the ’80s icon, with 500 horsepower, an even more muscular appearance and a price tag of £ 414,000.
Aston Martin Project Vantage
Most will recognize the Vantage moniker from Aston Martin’s entry-level sports cars and a number of brutal V8-powered models from the 1970s. The name is also associated with one of the most important cars in the company’s history: the 1998 Aston Martin Project Vantage.
The concept car was a glimpse into the future of the brand, with an F1-style paddle-shift transmission, aluminum chassis, and a design that finally found its home in the Vanquish flagship three years later. Project Vantage laid the foundation for the series of the VH platform Aston Martins, which ran until 2019 and probably saved the company.
Ferrari 275 GTB customer competition
With only 10 units built, the Ferrari 275 GTB Competizione Clienti is one of the rarest and most sought-after models from the Italian brand. Built as a replacement for the mid-engine 250 LM, which was banned from the GT sports car category in 1965, the Competizione Cliente is a light alloy racer that stayed close to the production vehicle to ensure entry into the racing class. The Competizione Clienti treatment included a lighter, tubular chassis, additional cooling fins and a more powerful Columbo V12 engine fed by six Weber carburetors.
McLaren F1 GTR
One of the defining characteristics of the McLaren F1 is that it was primarily a street car. It was never designed for the racetrack, so it was a joy to drive on the road. How did you come to an overall victory at Le Mans in 1995? Also there: the McLaren F1 GTR. A more aggressive aero package, a reduced interior and a new chassis setup increased the performance, despite the FIA restrictions that set the performance below 600 hp. It was enough to cement F1’s place in motorsport history.
Jaguar XJR 15th
The Jaguar XJR 15 is something of an unsung hero among the exotic of the 90s, but this is a model with all the hallmarks of a supercar icon. Only 53 copies of the XJR 15 were built by the motorsport subsidiary JaguarSport and is the first production car for the road to be made entirely from carbon fiber. Taking the Le Mans winner XJR-9 as its basis, the XJR 15 was designed as a road racer, powered by a 6.0-liter V12 naturally aspirated engine and weighing little more than a ton.
DeTomaso Mangusta
In 1967 the Italian brand DeTomaso combined an exquisite body designed by Giugaro and a thundering Ford V8 for a dramatic effect. Sitting still, the Mangusta (Italian for mongoose, a cobra-killing animal) is a symbol of restrained aggression, with a broad, low posture, bulging hips and a distinctive split engine cover. When fired on, the sound is pure V8 rage. The restoration of this particular car was completed just a few hours before the start of the Concours – the drive shafts were installed on the morning of the event.
Pagani Zonda F Clubsport
The arrival of the Pagani Zonda in 1999 sent shock waves all the way to Maranello and Sant’Agata, and over its 18-year lifespan, the supercar contender has been continually tweaked and improved until it produced an incredible 750bhp in its 760 form. However, the Zonda F Clubsport, released in 2005, is arguably the sweet spot.
The F Clubsport retains the clean lines of the original car, with a low rear wing and exposed carbon fiber panels that serve an additional purpose. The main attraction is the engine – the 7.3-liter AMG-built V12 develops 641 hp and drives via a six-speed manual transmission, in contrast to the shift paddles that are built into later cars.
Porsche 962C
The motorsport icons that can be seen at this year’s Salon Prive include none other than Derek Bell’s Porsche 962C, which he drove to victory in LeMans in 1987. The 962, here painted in the Rothman color scheme, was a groundbreaking car for ground-effect aerodynamics, and remained competitive in the sports car racing scene around ten years after it was designed in 1984.
Ferrari 250 GTO
The Ferrari 250 GTO is arguably the pinnacle of classic sports car racing. Only 36 were built and the front-engined V12 challenger won the FIA International GT Championship for three years, between 1962 and 1964, a unique solid green paint job. Chassis number 3767GT, previously owned and driven by British privateer David Piper, was reunited with his former driver at the show.
Eagle Speedster
When developing the Speedster, the renowned Jaguar E-Type specialist Eagle set itself the goal of improving the British icon while at the same time retaining its formative character. To this end, distinctive details like the long hood, low waistline, and disguised headlights are retained, but there is bespoke metalwork that accentuates the E-Type’s curved body.
Under the skin, the Speedster uses a drilled out 4.7-liter in-line six-cylinder with 330 hp and revised brakes and suspension – the mixture of classic style and selected modernization makes it one of the most sought-after cars on the market.
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