The St James’s Motoring Spectacle was a free to attend event on Pall Mall, outside the Royal Automobile Club’s beautiful clubhouse.
For this event Pall Mall was divided into four zones. There was Innovation and Design, which was a collection of modern hypercars and race cars.
The Heritage Exhibits featured everything transport from horsedrawn carriages and penny-farthing bicycles, through the history of innovative benchmark cars.
There was an education zone featuring stands from universities promoting their engineering courses and a stand from the Association of Heritage Engineers.
The star attraction for me though was the Concours of Veteran Cars that would be embarking on the London to Brighton Veteran Car Run.
The London to Brighton Veteran Car Run is open to cars built in 1905 or prior. People bring their cars from all over the world to take part.
Duncan and Sophie Pittaway, who own the Beast of Turin (I’ve built a slot car replica of the Beast of Turin, you can read about it here: https://motorsportformentalhealth.com/2024/02/18/george-turner-models-fiat-s76-the-beast-of-turin/) were taking part with their 1896 Salvesen steam car.
I had the pleasure of seeing this at idle at the London Classic Car Show a few years ago. It’s an absolutely lovely machine.
From the following year (1897) was this lovely two cylinder Daimler.
This is an 1899 Hurtu, who were a French manufacturer from the Somme region of France.
I love exposed wooden bodywork. I couldn’t be sure but it looks like the teak that the LNER (and some of the pre-grouping railways such as the GNR) used for the bodies of their passenger coaches. It’s gorgeous!
This 1901 Albion also had a lovely exposed wooden body.
This was absolutely lovely. I tried Googling A.Wright Carriage Hirer and (what I assume to be) The Bainsford to Sterling rally but sadly nothing came up. If anyone knows any of this history behind this please get in touch!
This is Buttercup – a 1903 Darracq. For some reason this little car really stood out to me. It was very sweet.
The curved dash Oldsmobile was built from 1901 to 1903 and can be sited as being the first mass-produced car (19000 were made). There were a number of them on the run.
The 1904 Orient Buckboard is a very basic little car. In 1903 it was priced at $375, and Waltham Manufacturing (who owned the Orient Bicycle Company who built the car) claimed it was the cheapest automobile in the world.
A little gallery of some of the other cars taking part.
The 1904 Fiat 130HP Grand Prix car houses a whopping 16.2 litre four cylinder. The heads of the pistons must be the size of dinner plates at that sort of capacity! That’s enormous for a four cylinder!
My favourite car on the London to Brighton run was this 1899 De Dion Bouton Quadricycle.
It’s an interesting thing. You could pedal it like a bike or run it on the little single cylinder engine. It has cable brakes like a bicycle (only to the rear axle) and steered like a bike.
From what I’ve read, on level ground these can reach 30mph which I bet is an experience!
I love the passenger seat on the front too!
It looks like brilliant fun!
Outside of the Veteran Car run – a few manufacturers brought along some cars to show off.
I’ve been somewhat following the new Renault 5 project (along with Alpine’s A290 Beta which will hopefully be the hot version) for a number of years now. I was so excited to see one in person!
I think it pays tribute nicely to the original Renault 5 and I personally think that the small car segment is where electric cars shine – having an electric car to do short journeys in built up areas makes a lot of sense to me. Because they have the instant torque – especially when in a short wheelbase, chuck-able hatchback – you can also have a bit of fun with them without breaking the law.
Hopefully Renault do well with it.
There was also a Renault 5 Turbo. We love a Group B era homologation special!
Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar loved a Renault 4. In 1979 he actually competed in the Copa Renault 4 Championship.
The Copa Renault 4 Championship was a spec series, meaning that all the cars should be built equally. Whilst he wasn’t the fastest around the corners, his car was uncatchable on the straights. Officials never found any illegal modifications done to his though… Funny that!
Fiat also had a range of cars. Most were modern 500s in various trims, which I’m sure we’ve all seen before, but I had to document this lovely 4×4 Panda.
On the dash there were too little gauges; one monitored the gradient you were climbing or decending and the other how much the car was leaning in either direction if travelling over uneven ground.
They were originally designed with local wine makers and farmers in mind who may need a small, cheap four wheel drive to get about their lands (like a slightly more practical quad bike I guess). This is how most were used and, as toughas they were, most got obliterated.
The Innovation & Design section was very popular with the public and super car spotters, so I didn’t get to photograph everything there.
I did manage to catch this lovely carbon bodied Pagani Huayra Roadster.
The famous tartan liveried Aston Martin Valkyrie.
Team Jota’s Porsche 963 sports prototype race car.
Finally we have N1 WRC, Colin McRae’s Subaru Impreza from 1996. McRae was a bit of a childhood hero of mine, so it’s always nice to see his cars.
Thanks for reading. I hope you’ve enjoyed this little tour of the St James’s Motoring Spectacle. If they do it in 2025, and you’re in the area, it’s well worth a visit!
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By Richard Francis
