In pictures: North America's most prestigious classic car event
The Concours d’Elegance of America held at the Inn at St. John’s in Plymouth, Mich. at the end of July is one of the North America’s most prestigious classic car events. It attracted some 10,000 visitors to view the more than 300 vehicles competing for show honors in classes that included Slingshot Rail Dragsters and Jet-Age Station wagons. The Best in Show winning American-built car was a 1933 Chrysler Imperial Dual Cowl Phaeton with body by Le Baron, and Best in Show foreign make was a1933 French Delage D8S deVillars Coupe Roadster.
Winning car in the Gaslight class was this 1911 Pierce Arrow 48 Touring model, which would have sold for about $1,000 and was powered by a 48hp six-cylinder engine.
The People’s Choice award at this year’s Concours d’Elegance of America was a vividly painted 1929 Willys-Knight 66B Roadster.
Judged the Most Elegant car parked on the lawns of the Inn at St. John’s this year was a stately 1937 Railton named after a British designer of the land speed record cars.
Winner of the Chairman’s Award was a 1938 Horch 853A Phaeton, a creation of one of Germany’s pioneering auto makers, which was later to become part of Audi.
Best in Class in the Post-War American category was this classy but rather dazzling (check out that red roof and extensive chrome) Packard Balboa-X of 1953, a concept car created by American designer Richard Teague.
By the end of the 1950s Corvette, which is currently celebrating its 60th anniversary, was beginning to make a name for itself on road racing circuits with cars like this 1960 Hardtop, which won the Corvette Racing class.
With the rapid spread of the suburbs in the 1950s came the need for vehicles that could handle a wide variety of family transportation chores and these were celebrated by the Jet Age Wagons class at the Concours d’Elegance of America, with the winner declared to be this 1961 Chrysler New Yorker.
The Best in Class Post-War Sports car was judged to be a sleekly elegant 1966 Bizzarinni 5300 Spyder S1, one of small number of cars created by ex-Alfa Romeo and Ferrari engineer Giotto Bizzarinni.
Founders Trophy Best in Show American winner was this 1933 Chrysler Imperial Dual Cowl Phaeton with body by Le Baron, possibly the last of these grand cars built.
Founders Trophy Best in Show Foreign award recipient was this white-on-white Delage D8S deVillars Coupe Roadster, whose first owner was the son of the Prime Minister of Spain.
One of the more interesting racers in the Slingshot Dragster class was this recreation of the Hollish Brothers Bantam delivery-bodied rail-job of the late 1950s, affectionately dubbed “The Outhouse.”