A Visit to Salon Privé
By Andy Webber
The sun shone as we entered Blenheim Palace for the 2018 Salon Privé Concours d’Elégance.
Our shuttle bus took us up to ‘flagstaff’ car park with supercars and classics lining the driveway as the Union Jack flags fluttered in the early Autumn breeze. The flagstaff car park had many more supercar examples including the new Bentley GT and Aston Martin Vantage. These were the cars that really caught my attention, but there was something for everybody in that short journey. It felt like a car show before we got into Salon Privé
Going into Salon Privé at the back of the Palace was a real treat and quite an occasion. We were greeted by a glass of champagne, naturally. My wife. Heather and I wandered amongst the stands, taking in the all-carbon-fibre Bugatti Chiron, apparently a one of a kind, before arriving at the lunch area for lobster & delicious desserts.
It’s an amazing show where you can buy supercars, helicopters and superyachts… as well as a pair of shoes!
The winners’ parade included a white Lamborghini Muira S, a Ferrari 250LM, quite a few Ferrari Dino’s and an Aston Martin DB5. However, the overall show winner was a 1933 Bugatti that had come over from America to compete and did a lap of honour around the arena.
It’s a truly unique show where we saw cars that I’ve never seen before, both old and new, in an exclusive environment where you are made to feel special. Two modern cars stood out for me: the Aston Martin DBS Superleggera was displayed and the new Rolls Royce SUV, both of which I’d not yet seen in the ‘flesh’.
Even though I’d hoped for a bigger show, the quality of cars was the best I’ve seen in one location… and the food was also fantastic!
