The London Concours held at the the Honourable Artillery Company (HAC) is one of the highlights of my automotive calendar.
The HAC is a little oasis of tranquility tucked behind City Road in Islington, which makes for an idyllic backdrop for what the concours organisers, Thorough Events, describe as “the capital’s leading automotive summer garden party”.
The line-up of cars at this event is always spectacular and the classes they are divided into are always interesting. This year was no exception and so to give the cars in the classes the screen time they deserve, I’ve decided to split my content from this year’s show into multiple parts. This is part one covering ‘Purple Reign’ hosted by Magneto.
The first pair of cars were Lamborghini Diablo SE30s, built to celebrate Lamborghini’s 30th anniversary.
The first car was an SE30 JOTA. The JOTA package was an upgrade that made the car compliant for the FIA BPR GT Series that ran from 1994 to 1996. McLaren, Ferrari and Porsche all offered similar packages with the McLaren F1 GTR, F40 GTE and 911 GT2 respectively.
The second was actually the judges choice for best car in the show. This is one of two supercharged SE30 prototypes built by Lamborghini Hoecker based in Landau Germany.
The supercharger boosts power (pun intended) from the standard 525hp to 634. This car has also been finished in Porsche Viola Metallic, had the rear wing removed, had the brakes fitted from a McLaren F1 and a speedometer retrofitted which goes to 400kmph (248mph). It’s said to be one of the fastest Diablos ever built.
This is a Porsche 911 Carrera RS 2.7 Touring, one of just 16 cars finished in purple.
Ferrari 250 GT Lusso. The Lusso is, in my opinion, one of the prettiest vehicles ever built and certain;y the best looking Ferrari.
This particular one was originally silver, but was repainted Aston Martin Roman Purple to match the original owner’s DB4.
Speaking of Roman Purple. Here we have a DB5. The car was off the road for 40 years before RS Williams undertook a complete mechanical restoration. The cosmetic restoration was quite sympathetic, tackling any rot and fitting new carpets. Since 2020 the car has covered 18,000 miles and has been driven all over Europe. I love to here of owners actually using and enjoying these cars.
One man who certainly uses and enjoys his cars is YouTuber Shmee150. This is his Zenvo TSR-S which has been all over Europe and has been to the U.S.
Zenvo Automotive are a Danish hypercar manufacturer. The TSR-S is the track focused but road legal version of the TS platform.
The TSR-S has a really interesting rear wing. As with a lot of modern supercars the wing car tilt forward to act as an airbrake, but can also roll from side to side to focus the downforce over a particular side of the car depending on which way you are turning. Whether it actually works is debated, but it’s interesting.
Another cool feature of the TSR-S is the ‘Zenvo’ written in the weave of the carbon fibre on the doors. It’s a little serotonin boost!
An 812 Competizione in a striking colour scheme. Apparently this one frequents Goodwood Motor Circuit. I’ve not had the pleasure of going yet.
A stunning McLaren P1. Photographs really don’t do this car justice. The body is purple carbon fibre which sort of shimmered under the light. The silver wheels complimented it nicely too. I’m going to say that this is the best specced modern McLaren I’ve seen so far. Beautiful car!
Our final car in Purple Reign is a Ferrari 365 GTB or Daytona, named after the 24 hour sports car race at the famous super speedway.
Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed the first part of my London Concours coverage. Part 2 will be looking at the Hypercar class, which you can read here: https://motorsportformentalhealth.com/2024/06/12/london-concours-2024-hypercars/
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By Richard Francis
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