After a first extremely successful version of Salon Privé London in 2022, it was looking forward to see how they would do this year and whether they could top the first version.
20 April Chelsea Park London, it looks like they made a deal with the weather gods because, like last year, it looks to be another beautiful day for the second edition of Salon Privé London.
The press launch starts as early as 8am. Like last year, the introduction is by brothers Andrew & David Bagley. They are also the organisers of Salon Privé on the grounds of Blenheim Palace. It is David Bagley who takes us for a tour of the estate along the various exhibitors. The early start has the advantage that no spectators are allowed inside at that time, making it rather quiet on the estate besides the press guests.
Premiere’s
Like last year, there were numerous premieres, some more impressive than others. So passed the new Abarth 500e Scorpionissima, a Maserati GranTurismo Trofeo, the Rolls-Royce Phantom Extended, the Hennessey Venom F5 Roadster, the Wiesmann Project Thunderball, Theon Design showed the ITA001, based on a Porsche 964. We also saw the UK premiere of the Polestar 3 and the new Genesis GV60. But we also saw the spectacular Delage D12 Hypercar.
Classic cars
The nice thing about Salon Privé London is the mix between old and new. In this way, they obviously appeal to a much larger group of potential buyers but it also just gives more schwung to the whole thing.
That Richard Hammond was going to take a lot of interest was written in the stars. Here he presented a beautiful Delahaye 135 MS restored at his company ‘The Smalest Cog‘.
Of course, it wasn’t just about Richard Hammond as in total no less than 60 of the world’s finest classic cars were on display on ‘the lawn’ at Chelsea Park. And that there were a few special ones among them you will find out later in the article.
Not just cars
Should we want to use the term ‘on land, sea and air’ we wouldn’t even be that far off. For instance, we saw Sloane Helicopters here with an R66 Turbine.
But we could also admire several yachts. For example, a new Riva Iseo was on display.
But also some yachts restored to perfection from the 1950s – 1960s. Real gems they were. If you then take a quick look at the Andrews Boathouses website, you quickly see that the level of restoration here is very high. And you can safely see that as a common thread throughout Salon Privé London. Indeed, the level here is very high, with only the finest and best products and vehicles featured here.
Watches & jewellery
As mentioned earlier, Salon Privé London aims to be a salon where everyone can have fun. For example, Mont Blanc was attending with a beautiful stand where they presented their latest timepieces to the general public. We could get acquainted with the brand new GLACIER collection. A beautiful timepiece in which numerous special techniques were used.
The dial of this series is specially crafted. The glacial texture was achieved with an almost forgotten ancient technique called gratté-boisé. This achieves a very special relief in the dial.
But also the drawing on the back of the movement has been applied with a special laser, creating the relief and colour shading.
Like last year, Boodles is one of the main sponsors at the Salon Privé London event. As such, they are prominently attending with a large luxury tent. While the gentleman marvels at the numerous classic cars, the lady is entertained at Boodles. Everyone happy for sure.
It is also Boodles that, for the second year in a row, is holding an election for who wears the most beautiful headpiece. As such, it was busy practising as evidenced by the picture above.
Electrification
Whether you’re for or against we’ll leave aside but no matter how you look at it we cannot ignore the electrification of the car market. For me, the electric Abarth with its fake bubbling sound is an example of how not to do it. If you make an electric car just keep it quiet. If you don’t want that, put a real engine in it.
However, that doesn’t take away from the fact that some really handsome new electric cars are coming to market. This is how we saw the premiere of the new Wiesmann Project Thunderball. If you ask me, it really does represent a successful shift to electric driving.
The various Everrati cars on display also attracted attention no less. They transform your existing car into an electric version. They don’t do this with your old Renault but with the more exclusive stuff. So if you still have a Porsche 911, a Ford GT40, a Mercedes Pagoda and yes even a Land Rover Defender lying around somewhere, they will be happy to help. Electrification means you can take your car back into the LEZ without restrictions.
And the nice thing about Everrati’s method is that the interior of your car is untouched. No big displays in a classic car, because if you want to go electric with your classic car anyway, I don’t think you are waiting for a display in your car. No, they do this really neatly. It gets really clever when you know that the whole process is reversible. So if, after a few years, for whatever reason, you want your car back to its original condition and have kept all the parts neat and tidy, this can be done.
Brute force on petrol
Hennessey
They sometimes say that internal combustion engines are dead. That nothing could be further from the truth has been shown to us here by Hennessey, Delage and Theon Design, among others.
Hennessey, best known for tuning American muscle cars presented its Venom F5 Roadster here. The 6.6-litre V8 twin Turbo produces a whopping 1817 bhp and pushes the car to an imaginative 311 mph. That they are not on trial at Hennessey is proven by the already 12000 tuned cars since 1991. Their mission is ‘we make fast cars faster’.
Theon Design
At Theon Design, they do things slightly differently. There, they will completely rebuild a donor Porsche (964) and call it a recreation. Or they simply restore your Porsche in painstaking detail; more companies do the latter. With their recreation they are rather unique, not that they are the only ones doing this but at this level you will not find many.
Even the engine they completely rebuild and this with state-of-the-art technology. For instance, they have three atmospheric air-cooled engines. A 3.6-litre that delivers 285bhp, a 3.8-litre with 370bhp and a 4.0-litre that delivers even 400bhp. Not enough? Then they can add a supercharger or a set of turbos on request.
Delage
The Delage will probably be the most extreme of these three. The atmospheric 7.6-litre V12 combined with a small electric motor delivers more than 1100hp. Know that the whole thing weighs only 1400kgr then perhaps I shouldn’t draw a picture with it heh. Delage was a French brand that mainly built sporty cars in the early 20th century. However, it did not survive the financial crisis of the 1930s and was lost. French billionaire Laurent Tapie (son of) bought up the name and released this D12. The central seating position is reminiscent of the McLaren F1, only here the second seat is also central. So you sit back to back in this doorless car. In fact, you get in when the roof is hinged up.
Parade
There are two parades during Salon Privé London, namely the ‘recent’ cars including the hypercars and the classic cars. It is important for both to show themselves along their best side because rather uniquely, each car is also effectively for sale here.
During the parade, it’s mainly the classic cars that will walk with the most attention. after all, these are all cars with some history.
Should we now call this Maserati MC12 a classic car I don’t think so. That it is a real head turner is beyond dispute. With an edition of barely 50, you hardly ever get to see this supercar built on the basis of a Ferrari Enzo, let alone while driving it. A beautiful appearance!
Also always nice to see is an Alfa Romeo Pré War like this.
Whisky
One celebrity seeks it in a restaurant business and the other markets a whisky. Not just any whisky though because there is a whole story attached to this. The Coachbuilt brand was founded in 2022 by whisky writer George Koutsakis. George lived in Japan for many years and knows the Japanese whisky industry inside out. He wanted to make his own high-end whisky with a focus on blending.
After meeting former F1 world champion Jenson Button, the two decided to work together. A good idea as it turns out because apart from the fact that the whisky is very well received, they managed to set up a collaboration with Rolls-Royce. As the first brand you partner with, this can already count. Jenson told me that this was just the start and that several collaborations will follow. Their premium whisky is therefore a perfect fit for the premium car industry.
On the Lawn
I mentioned earlier that there were some special cars on the lawn after all. So we could also spot a Jaguar XJR-15 with Fangio’s name on it. This raised some eyebrows, surely Fangio could never have driven this car? Some research soon told us that it was the nephew of the famous Fangio.
Without knowing which special example this was about, our attention had already been caught by this particularly beautiful 1954 Aston Martin DB2/4 Vignale. This one-off example turned out to have once been ordered from the Italian coachwork company Vignale by Belgium’s King Baudouin, who also owned it for quite some time.
The little flags on the back of the car confirmed that there was something special about this car. Consequently, this ‘one-off’ Aston Martin DB2/4 Vignale went on to win several awards. Whether the car was sold at Salon Privé we do not know. The price of £3,650,000 was not wrong, then.
Conclusie
Salon Privé London, as previously cited, is a salon that many will love to walk around on. There is literally something for everyone. And just like last year, we now once again advise you to mark 18 to 20 April 2024 in your diary. One day at the salon and a couple of days in London. In my opinion, something to look forward to. More info on the Salon Privé London website.
