Wednesday 28 February 2018

DRIVE LIVE PUTS YOU BEHIND THE WHEEL AT THE 2018 SILVERSTONE CLASSIC

Silverstone Classic

DRIVE LIVE PUTS YOU BEHIND THE WHEEL AT THE 2018 SILVERSTONE CLASSIC
 


• New opportunity for visitors to drive the latest showroom models 
• Innovative feature added by popular demand following visitor research
• Lexus is the first of many marques to confirm Drive Live attendance
• Cost-saving Early Bird tickets available until the end of March


An exciting new ‘Drive Live’ initiative will add yet another innovative attraction to the interactive visitor experience at this summer’s Silverstone Classic (20-22 July).
Adding to the unrivalled array of off-track entertainment already available to the 100,000 festival-goers – the majority of which is included free in the price of an admission ticket – the advent of Drive Live will provide all-comers with a fantastic opportunity not only to see the latest cars from a range of renowned manufacturers but also to take to local roads for a test drive over the 3-day weekend.
“Having so many knowledgeable and enthusiastic car lovers at the Classic, it was perhaps no surprise that our customer research revealed that those attending the event were really keen to check out some of the best new models on the market – the introduction of Drive Live will let them do just that,” explained Nick Wigley, CEO of Goose Live Events, organiser of the Silverstone Classic.
Jason Stanley, General Manager of Lexus Marketing and Strategy at Lexus UK added: “Drive Live at the Silverstone Classic provides us with the perfect opportunity to give visitors the chance to experience our Lexus Self Charging Hybrid range first-hand. We’re excited to be a part of this new initiative, enabling motoring enthusiasts to get behind the wheel and try out a Lexus for themselves”.
The Drive Live showcase will be based in the event’s thriving Shopping Village area, adjoining the ‘Town Square’ that proved so popular when newly introduced last year. Now, fuelled by the extra draw of appealing test drives, the central locality is set for further enhancement in 2018.
Lexus is the first to confirm its Drive Live presence and the names of other leading manufacturers will be announced in the months running up to what is already patently going to be another sensational and record-breaking Silverstone Classic.
What’s more, astute ticket buyers can take advantage of a range of Early Bird offers. All tickets for Silverstone Classic must be purchased in advance and, for those buying before 31 March, adult admission begins at £37.
Once again, all tickets will provide access to both Silverstone racing paddocks, all open trackside grandstands, live music concerts on the Friday and Saturday evenings, air shows, funfair rides and the vast majority of the family entertainment on offer including the new Drive Live test drives. Options on camping and hospitality are also available. Full details of all 2018 ticket prices are detailed on the silverstoneclassic.com website.

THE ELECTRIC FUTURE AND THE GTP PAST MEET AT AMELIA



   
 THE ELECTRIC FUTURE AND THE GTP PAST MEET AT AMELIA
   Tradition will be held on Friday, March 9 and Saturday, March 10, 2018, when the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance offers auto enthusiasts two rare opportunities to get "backstage passes" to the inside world of automotive competition and design.


 Jaguar Electric E-Type (Photo Courtesy of Jaguar USA)


   On Friday, March 9, 2018, Stewart Reed, Department Chair Transportation Design of the Art Center, will host the WATTS NEXT? Design Challenges of the Electric Car seminar. The seminar features an all-star panel including Alfonso Albaisa, Senior VP of Global Design, Nissan; Ian Callum, Design Director, Jaguar; Moray Callum, VP of Design, Ford Motor Company; Grant Larson, Exterior Designer, Porsche; Michael Simcoe, VP Global Design, GM and Gorden Wagener, Chief Design Officer, Daimler, AG. Watts Next? will explore and explain the challenges and complexities of designing for the burgeoning electric car market.


1985 Porsche 962 (Photo Courtesy of Bill Warner)

   Saturday, March 10th brings Drivers of the IMSA GTP Prototypes (Grand Touring Prototype) to the Ritz-Carlton's Talbot Ballroom. These are the headline players who made IMSA's endurance races of the 1980s and nineties one of the most popular and best-supported racing series in North American motorsport history. IMSA's 1981 Lola T600 GTP-mounted Champion Brian Redman will be united with former Group 44 teammates Hurley Haywood and 1987 GTP Champion Chip Robinson. They will be joined by Derek Daly, Rob Dyson, Tommy Kendall, and Davy Jones to share insider stories and experiences from America's most prestigious sports car series.

  

1983 March 83G (Photo Courtesy of Bill Warner)


   As a Saturday seminar bonus Andial founder and former Porsche Motorsports North American CEO Alwin Springer and IMSA Senior Vice President Mark Ruffauf will join the panel for an inside look at the racing formula that saw speed and attendance records obliterated and automotive technologies forced into the future. The Amelia's IMSA GTP seminar will be hosted by award-winning television racing commentatorBob Varsha.

  "IMSA's GTP era marked the first time in motorsport history that a North American road racing series helped force automotive technology through competition rather than exist as little more than motorized entertainment," said Bill Warner, founder and Chairman of the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance. "The seeds of the high-technology GTP era can still be seen in today's efficient hybrid-powered racers. We believe the IMSA GTP and WATTS NEXT? - The Design Challenges of the Electric Cars seminars offer relevant views of the path and future of automotive technology and design."


INFINITI Prototype 9 Concept (Photo courtesy of INFINITI)

   The Amelia's seminars take place in the Talbot Ballroom of the Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island March 9 - 10, 2018. Tickets for both WATT'S NEXT: Design Challenges of the Electric Car and Drivers of the IMSA Prototypes ($35.00 per person, per seminar) are available now at www.ameliaconcours.org.

Tickets for the 23rd annual Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance on March 9-11, 2018 at the Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island are available now. Click Here for Tickets

Monday 26 February 2018

DRIVE LIVE PUTS YOU BEHIND THE WHEEL AT THE 2018 SILVERSTONE CLASSIC

Silverstone Classic

DRIVE LIVE PUTS YOU BEHIND THE WHEEL AT THE 2018 SILVERSTONE CLASSIC
 


• New opportunity for visitors to drive the latest showroom models 
• Innovative feature added by popular demand following visitor research
• Lexus is the first of many marques to confirm Drive Live attendance
• Cost-saving Early Bird tickets available until the end of March


An exciting new ‘Drive Live’ initiative will add yet another innovative attraction to the interactive visitor experience at this summer’s Silverstone Classic (20-22 July).
Adding to the unrivalled array of off-track entertainment already available to the 100,000 festival-goers – the majority of which is included free in the price of an admission ticket – the advent of Drive Live will provide all-comers with a fantastic opportunity not only to see the latest cars from a range of renowned manufacturers but also to take to local roads for a test drive over the 3-day weekend.
“Having so many knowledgeable and enthusiastic car lovers at the Classic, it was perhaps no surprise that our customer research revealed that those attending the event were really keen to check out some of the best new models on the market – the introduction of Drive Live will let them do just that,” explained Nick Wigley, CEO of Goose Live Events, organiser of the Silverstone Classic.
Jason Stanley, General Manager of Lexus Marketing and Strategy at Lexus UK added: “Drive Live at the Silverstone Classic provides us with the perfect opportunity to give visitors the chance to experience our Lexus Self Charging Hybrid range first-hand. We’re excited to be a part of this new initiative, enabling motoring enthusiasts to get behind the wheel and try out a Lexus for themselves”.
The Drive Live showcase will be based in the event’s thriving Shopping Village area, adjoining the ‘Town Square’ that proved so popular when newly introduced last year. Now, fuelled by the extra draw of appealing test drives, the central locality is set for further enhancement in 2018.
Lexus is the first to confirm its Drive Live presence and the names of other leading manufacturers will be announced in the months running up to what is already patently going to be another sensational and record-breaking Silverstone Classic.
What’s more, astute ticket buyers can take advantage of a range of Early Bird offers. All tickets for Silverstone Classic must be purchased in advance and, for those buying before 31 March, adult admission begins at £37.
Once again, all tickets will provide access to both Silverstone racing paddocks, all open trackside grandstands, live music concerts on the Friday and Saturday evenings, air shows, funfair rides and the vast majority of the family entertainment on offer including the new Drive Live test drives. Options on camping and hospitality are also available. Full details of all 2018 ticket prices are detailed on the silverstoneclassic.com website.

Friday 23 February 2018

THE MYSTERY CAR REVEALED: SHELBY'S LONESTAR "COBRA III" DEBUTS AT 2018 AMELIA CONCOURS


   
 THE MYSTERY CAR REVEALED: SHELBY'S LONESTAR "COBRA III" DEBUTS AT 2018 AMELIA CONCOURS

   The sole Shelby Lonestar,created in secrecy a half-century ago as a replacement for the legendary 427 Shelby Cobra, will make its international concours debut at the 23rd annual Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance on March 11, 2018.
   
  
You'll need to attend the 23rd Annual Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance on March 11, 2018 to see the freshly-restored Lonestar revealed on the show field.

   


   Based on the GT40 chassis the Ford V-8-powered mid-engine coupe was assembled in England during 1968 and wore the name "Cobra III" in internal Shelby documents. 

   The Cobra was a very hard act to follow but the Lonestar checked all the right boxes; and Shelby had a potent plan. But there were considerable obstacles: Ford had acquired the Cobra name a year earlier. So Shelby, a Texan by birth, nature and bearing, named his third-generation "Cobra" after his home state and the Shelby Lonestar was born.

   In the end US safety legislation halted the budding project. A disgruntled Shelby left for the wilds of South Africa. The Lonestar was advertised for the then princely sum of $15,000 but there were no takers. Now, after a sensitive and complex ten year-plus restoration, Shelby's only Lonestar will make its international concours debut at the 2018 Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance.

   "The Lonestar is a globally significant one-of-a-kind car. With its pedigree and design it could have changed history," said Bill Warner, founder and Chairman of the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance. "We're honored that the Lonestar's owner has chosen to reintroduce Carroll Shelby's 'ultimate Cobra' to the world at The Amelia."


   Congratulations to Jeffrey Moore of Rogersville, Missouri for being the first to correctly identify the Shelby Lonestar and win two tickets to the 2018 event! We also want to thank the hundreds of entrants who guessed and the half dozen that guessed correctly.
   Tickets to see the Shelby Lonestar and the rest of the 300 historically significant vehicles appearing at the 23rd Annual Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance can be purchased online at  
www.ameliaconcours.org

N.A.R.T CORVETTE COMES TO THE 23RD AMELIA ISLAND CONCOURS d'ELEGANCE


   
 N.A.R.T CORVETTE COMES TO THE 23RD AMELIA ISLAND CONCOURS d'ELEGANCE

     Luigi Chinetti's New York-based North American Racing Team is internationally famous as Enzo Ferrari's UNOFFICIAL western outpost. Yet right in the middle of the cars in the 23rd Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance Cars of N.A.R.T. class -- surrounded by a fleet of exotic and historic Ferraris -- is a pure red-white-and-blue Chevrolet Corvette nicknamed "Old Scrappy" for its Florida junkyard origins. At first glance the burly kid from Tampa seems out of place and context with this gathering of glamorous Italians. But it's a Corvette with a pure Le Mans pedigree. 


Photo supplied by Anthony Geraci
   It all has to do with Luigi Chinetti's status with the ACO, the organizers of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. As a three-time Le Mans winner -- including Ferrari's first 24 Hour victory in 1949 -- Chinetti Senior enjoyed an exalted status with the organizers of the world's most famous endurance race. And Chinetti held Chevrolet's all-American sports car in some esteem.
  "He once said the Corvette would make a good racecar," said Bill Warner, founder and Chairman of the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance.

Photo supplied by Anthony Geraci


   When Goodyear -- for whom N.A.R.T. had produced their first overall Le Mans victory just seven years earlier -- said they wanted "an American presence" in the 1972 24 Hours of Le Mans they turned to Chinetti for help. So Chinetti provided the entry for a Goodyear-shod Corvette in the 24 Hours on one condition: that the car wear his famous N.A.R.T./Ferrari insignia. The deal helped Goodyear counter a squadron of very fast BF Goodrich Corvettes built by Corvette ace John Greenwood for Le Mans that year.

   The number-four "N.A.R.T. Corvette" was driven at Le Mans by Bob Johnson and Dave Heinz who had finished an astonishing fourth place overall at Sebring earlier that year in their "Rebel" Corvette. That was not only good enough for the over-2.5 liter GT class victory, it made them the first GT car to finish that famous and final FIA World Championship edition of the venerable Florida 12 Hour enduro.



  At Le Mans the ZL-1-powered "N.A.R.T. Corvette" was never able to challenge the Ferrari Daytonas for the GT victory. Yet it lived up to the team's Sebring-winning performance starting 51st and climbing relentlessly through the field to finish 15th overall; again best of the Corvettes entered winning the over 5-liter GT class in the 40th annual 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Photo supplied by Anthony Geraci

  Corvette added yet another chapter to its competition legend and Luigi Chinetti was proven right again.

  Tickets to see the Shelby Lonestar and the rest of the 300 historically significant vehicles appearing at the 23rd Annual Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance can be purchased online at  
www.ameliaconcours.org.

Wednesday 21 February 2018

The first air displays for Sywell Classic: Pistons and Props confirmed!

The first air displays for Sywell Classic: Pistons and Props confirmed!


Expect to see the superb Supermarine Spitfire TIX ML407 at the 2018 Sywell Classic: Pistons & Props event! This aircraft is credited with shooting down the first enemy aircraft on “D-Day”

This two seat dual-control Spitfire is one of very few surviving Spitfires which utilises nearly all of its original components as it left the Castle Bromwich factory in 1944.

Join the Spitfire, is the North American TF-51D Mustang.  This dual-control P-51 Mustang is the only of its type in the UK. Built too late to see combat service in World War Two, P-51D 44-84847 was one of the last Mustangs constructed at North American Aviation’s Dallas, Texas, plant. Details of her post war service career are limited, but there is photographic evidence, from September 1951, of her serving with the 45th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron at Kimpo, South Korea, during the Korean War.


You can find out more about this amazing aircraft at www.sywellclassic.co.uk/high-flyers and join us on September 22-23rd to see them in the flesh! Single Day and Weekend Camping tickets are now available to purchase from www.sywellclassic.co.uk
Buy Tickets

Monday 19 February 2018

KEEP ON MOVIN’ AS SOUL II SOUL HIT THE SILVERSTONE CLASSIC STAGE

Silverstone Classic
19/02/18
 

KEEP ON MOVIN’ AS SOUL II SOUL 
HIT THE SILVERSTONE CLASSIC STAGE

 

• Chart-topping Grammy winners top Friday night live music line-up
• UB40 already confirmed as headliners on Saturday evening
• Oasis and U2 tribute bands to perform crowd favourites   
• Cost-saving Early Bird tickets available until the end of March

The full live music line-up for this summer’s ‘Rocking and Racing’ Silverstone Classic (20-22 July) is announced today (Monday) with two great evenings of chart-topping performers in prospect for visitors to the world’s biggest classic motor racing festival.
 
Reggae and pop legends UB40 featuring Ali, Astro and Mickey have already been confirmed as headliners for the post racing revelries after sunset on Saturday; now R&B chart-toppers Soul II Soul are announced as Friday night’s bill-toppers.
 
Fronted by Jazzie B and Caron Wheeler, the band achieved global fame at the end of the eighties with singles such as Keep on Movin’ and Back to Life selling millions of copies around the world. Underlining their success, Soul II Soul won two Grammy Awards and have been nominated for no fewer than five Brit awards, twice for the ultimate accolade of Best British Group.
 
The band is now celebrating its 30th anniversary and has recently announced a special anniversary tour at the end of this year. 2018 was kicked-off for the band with a performance of several of its renowned dance classics on Jools Holland’s Hootenanny show on New Year’s Eve. With their inclusion on the bill at the Silverstone Classic too, 2018 is set to be a great year for the band.
 
With all ticket holders enjoying free admission to the live music shows at the Classic – and many camping out for the full three-day extravaganza – festivities at the Classic should be every bit as exuberant as they were for those welcoming in 2018.
 
Even more so, as two of the country’s foremost tribute bands will be ensuring everyone is in the right upbeat mood well before Soul II Soul start their stellar set.
 
With more than 900 performances to date, Noasis are established as the nation’s favourite Oasis tribute band, playing all the Gallagher brothers’ greatest hits.
 
U2 2, also confirmed for the Friday night, have a great pedigree too, having travelled the globe for more than 26 years thrilling fans of the Irish rock legends and occasionally being mistaken for the real thing! They, too, will be revving-up festival-goers on Friday evening at Silverstone in July.
 
“With more and more of our visitors spending the full weekend at the Classic, the live music shows are becoming evermore important – and this summer’s line-up is one of the best yet,” enthused Nick Wigley, CEO of Goose Live Events, organiser of the Silverstone Classic.
 
“We have chart-topping bands on both evenings and, with free admittance for all those buying tickets for the day’s unrivalled roster of retro racing, the rocking is going to be equally entertaining for absolutely everyone to enjoy.”
 
Tickets for Silverstone Classic must be purchased in advance and those buying before 31 March can take advantage of a range of Early Bird offers, with adult admission beginning at £37.
 
Once again, all advance tickets will provide access to both Silverstone racing paddocks, all open trackside grandstands, live music concerts on the Friday and Saturday evenings, air shows, funfair rides and the vast majority of the family entertainment on offer. Full details of all 2018 ticket prices are available on the silverstoneclassic.com website.

NIGEL MANSELL BRINGS THE LONDON CLASSIC CAR SHOW TO A GRAND FINALE

NIGEL MANSELL BRINGS THE LONDON CLASSIC CAR SHOW TO A GRAND FINALE   
 

• Racing legend wows record crowds at ExCeL with amazing F1 display
• TV star Philip Glenister reunited with Ashes to Ashes Audi Quattro 
• Close to 40,000 flocked to the Capital’s premier classic car celebration 
• Spectacular action as stunning Specials rev up on The Grand Avenue 
• Dates announced for next year’s show: 14-17 February 2018


This year’s record-breaking London Classic Car Show signed off in dramatic fashion with racing legend Nigel Mansell CBE bringing four days of retro heaven to a fittingly spectacular close.


The 1992 F1 World Champion wowed Sunday crowds with some dazzling driving displays on the show’s central Grand Avenue, a unique quarter-mile long highway running through the centre of the exhibition hall. Mansell announced his arrival at the capital’s premier classic car event with a thrilling wheel-spinning entrance behind the wheel of a Jaguar E-type inspired Eagle Speedster.

Later in the day, he returned to drive a scarlet Ferrari 246 Dino F1 front-engined F1 car from the late fifties plus a 1993 Benetton-Ford B193 as raced by arch-rival Michael Schumacher in period. Mansell was also reunited with some of the cars which he raced during his roller-coaster career. A special Icon display featured a 1977 Crosslé 32F, the junior single-seater in which he first cut his teeth competing in Formula Ford, and his title-winning Williams-Renault FW14.

“I’ve got to say that I’ve been pleasantly surprised at just how great this London show is,” enthused Mansell. “It’s always wonderful to see some of my old racing cars and to meet the fans – and they’ve have been absolutely brilliant. To drive cars indoors was pretty special, too – I’ve had a lot of fun and I hope those who came to see me, and the show, enjoyed themselves as much as I did.”

On Saturday, twenty-four hours before Mansell’s theatrical presence, it had been Phillip Glenister’s turn in the spotlight. Renowned for ‘firing up the Quattro’ as DCI Gene Hunt in the hugely-popular television series Ashes to Ashes, Glenister had curated a rogue’s gallery of famous Getaway Cars – another of the glittering show’s stand-out exhibits.  

With so much to savour, it was no surprise that this year’s London Classic Car Show drew record crowds and further established the mouth-watering retro celebration as the capital city’s premier feast of automotive culture and nostalgia.

This year’s enlarged showcase built significantly on the notable successes of the three previous shows, attracting unprecedented attendances on all four memorable days.

In total, more than 38,500 visitors savoured close to 700 of the world’s finest classic cars on display at ExCeL London. With a combined estimated value of more than £300m, these ranged from barn-finds and in-progress restorations to unique concepts, Concours winners and pure-bred, championship-winning race cars.

Sparkling displays provided by independent vendors ensured all the great marques were well represented in glittering style. AC, Alfa Romeo, Alvis, Aston Martin, Bentley, Bugatti, Corvette, Jaguar, Lotus, Mercedes, MG, Lamborghini Porsche, Rolls Royce and TVR were all included as well as many lesser known brands adding further to visitor interest and intrigue. Some notable modern classics topped by a McLaren P1 hypercar and the amazing new 200+mph Lister Storm which enjoyed its global launch at the show on the opening day.

As well as providing a staggering selection of magnificent classic cars for visitors to relish, dealers confirmed considerable interest from buyers with many significant sales. Saturday’s busy Coys auction also witnessed notable lots coming under the hammer, topped by the sale of a 1984 Ferrari 512BB ‘Boxer’ for more than £260,000.

Adding further to the excitement, the head-turning cars at ExCeL London were not only on static display. No fewer than 60 hand-picked classics – including some thunderous racing cars – were fired up for eye-catching displays on The Grand Avenue.

This year’s theme was ‘Specials’, putting the spotlight on an eye-catching gathering of road and race cars steeped in history and mystique owing to their unique designs and often outlandish performance. Once again, the Grand Avenue enthralled visitors, allowing them to see – and hear – some of their favourite classics in action.

Another popular attraction was Car Club Square – a hall dedicated to enthusiasts of popular and affordable classics giving visitors the opportunity to talk to experts and fellow devotees.

All those attending The London Classic Car Show were also admitted into the new Historic Motorsport International – a complementary show celebrating the UK’s leading role in all areas of historic motorsport. Its presence added yet another exhilarating dimension to the visitor experience and was also home to the Supagard Theatre, where broadcaster Henry Hope-Frost hosted public forums with a number well-known personalities including both Mansell and Glenister.

“It has been another absolutely fantastic London Classic Car Show,” effused Bas Bungish, Event Director. “We started with the global launch of the incredible Lister Thunder on Thursday evening and ended with Nigel Mansell doing tyre-burning donuts on The Grand Avenue in an F1 car – could you ask for more? Even so, we are determined to keep building on what we’ve achieved and are already planning for an even bigger show in 12-months time.”

To that end, the organisers have already confirmed that next year’s London Classic Car Show will be staged at ExCeL London from 14-17 February in 2019.  




Friday 16 February 2018

LIGHTS, CAMERAS, ACTION AS THE LONDON CLASSIC CAR SHOW FIRES UP!

15/02/18 

LIGHTS, CAMERAS, ACTION AS THE LONDON CLASSIC CAR SHOW FIRES UP! 
 


• Global launches grab the headlines on opening evening
• More than 700 eye-catching classics to covet, savour and buy 
• Special showcase pays tribute to race legend Nigel Mansell CBE   
• Film star Nick Moran on Getaway Cars display curated by Philip Glenister  
• Record ticket pre-sales as show continues to build for a busy weekend 
• Tickets on sale with significant reductions for those buying in advance



The biggest and best London Classic Car Show blasted off to a truly ‘thunderous’ start at ExCeL today (Thursday). For the first time in the sparkling show’s own four-year history, the opening evening witnessed a pair of major global car launches with two of Britain’s most iconic marques unveiling spotlight-stealing new models. 
First Morgan took the wraps on its latest +4 Club Sport and then Lister revealed its never-seen-before Thunder. The former is a road-legal racer aimed at those either keen on track days or competing at motor sport’s grassroots level, the latter a mighty 666bhp supercar with a top speed of 208mph. Both cars will now be on display for the remainder of the glittering four-day show.  
Earlier in the afternoon, the expanded London Classic Car Show was officially opened by three well-known TV motoring presenters: Alex Riley (BBC One Show), Jonny Smith (Fifth Gear andMud, Sweat & Gears) and Quentin Willson (BBC Top GearFifth Gear and The Classic Car Show).
Other highlights included a number of high-profile photo calls. Squadron Leader Adam Collins from the RAF Red Arrows was on the Aston Martin Owners Club stand together with a Vanquish S Red Arrows limited edition model which was recently raffled earning £1.5m for the RAF Benevolent Fund. He was joined by Humphrey Bradley from south east London – the lucky man who won the car.
Across the hall, actor Nick Moran of Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and Harry Potter fame was reliving various of his film roles on the special display of Getaway Cars. Adding to the rogues’ gallery Nick Reynolds was reunited with the very Lotus Cortina that his late father Bruce Reynolds used to stake out the Great Train Robbery in 1963.
The beautifully preserved car has just 3,500 miles on the clock and is still fitted with the same tyres that left the tracks which police found to hunt down the gang. The showcase of Getaway Cars is curated by Philip Glenister – aka DCI Gene Hunt from BBC police dramas Life on Mars and Ashes to Ashes – who will be at the show on Saturday.
Another famous face appearing over the weekend is Nigel Mansell CBE. The 1992 F1 World Champion is flying into ExCeL on Sunday where he will be reunited with some of the racing cars in which he savoured many of his most notable sporting successes.
Adding to Thursday’s excitement, at 6:30pm sharp, engines were started as a number of ultra-rare classics took to The Grand Avenue, a quarter-mile long highway running through the centre of the show. The Grand Avenue, a feature unique to the London Classic Car Show, allows visitors to see and hear their favourites in action actually inside the show arena.
As a preview of three daily displays taking place on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, a number of the 60 incredible cars selected for the parades were in action. These included an amazing revolutionary twin-engined Mini from the sixties, mouth-watering ultra-rare Lamborghini Miura Jota from the eighties and an attention-grabbing selection of raucous F1 cars. 
As the dramatic live show came towards its conclusion, the show opening trio of Riley, Smith and Willson – now joined by former Blue Peter and GMTV presenter Anthea Turner – selected four stand-out cars from the show with a combined value of more than £3m to join the parade: a 1931 Bentley 8-litre; a highly-original 1961 Jaguar E-type; a 1992 Jaguar XJ220 and a 2015 McLaren P1 hypercar – a classic car of the future. These four British legends then formed the perfect backdrop for the Morgan and Lister launches.
“The London Classic Car Show just goes from strength-to-strength, getting bigger and better every year,” said show director Bas Bungish. “We have sold a record number of advance tickets and we are immensely proud to have witnessed two major global launches. Dealers are also reporting a number of significant sales, so we’re off to a great start!”
Admission to the London Classic Car Show incorporates free entry to Historic Motorsport International. Both shows run from 10am to 6pm on Friday and Saturday and from 10am to 5pm on Sunday.
Tickets are available from the show website – thelondonclassiccarshow.co.uk – and on the door where adult admission to both shows costs £30 though advance tickets are still available online priced from £25.
Show opening times:
Friday 16 February              10:00-18:00
Saturday 17 February         10:00-18:00
Sunday 18 February           10:00-17:00