The Concours of Elegance returns this weekend at Hampton Court Palace. The three day event opens this Friday and runs from from 3rd – 5th September. It will have on display some of the worlds rarest cars, with a collection of around 60 vehicles sits at the heart of the famous The Great Fountain Gardens. They will be joined by around 1,000 cars over the three days.

With the countdown to the Concours now in full swing, the full list of cars has been revealed, charting the full evolution of luxury and innovation in automotive from the pioneers right through to the modern day. Here are some of the noteable classics that will grace the grounds of Hampton Court.

Alfa Romeo P3 Tipo B

The Alfa Romeo P3 Tipo B was the first proper single-seater racing car and was a sensation. Powered by a supercharged V8 and weighing a mere 680kg, it was immediately successful, with Tazio Nuvolari scoring a victory in its first event halfway through 1932. He and Rudolf Caracciola would take a further five victories apiece that season.

Money troubles at Alfa Romeo the following season meant that the P3s simply weren’t raced until significant arm-twisting from a certain Enzo Ferrari released the cars to his Scuderia partway through the season. This model, chassis 50007, was ordered direct from Alfa by Scuderia Ferrari in ’32. After the 1935 season, a 19-year-old Count Jose de Villapadierna stole his aunt’s jewels and, with the proceeds, rushed out and bought 50007 from Ferrari. On crossing the border into Spain with the car, he was arrested and jailed until his aunt decided to forgive him. He later raced the P3 over a few seasons, but the Spanish Civil War intervened and he stopped racing, selling the car to England in 1938.

Frank Griswold bought 50007, and in 1939 he hired Louis Tomei to drive it at the Indianapolis 500 Classic, where it finished 15th. Griswold then sold the car to Tommy Lee in LA in around 1945, who entered it at The Brickyard with some success, running the Alfa as the Don Lee Special. The Lee Broadcasting team fitted the world’s first pits-to-car radio system to 50007, and it was the first car to be flown to a race.

Porsche 901

When the Porsche 901 was presented at the 1964 Paris Auto Salon, Peugeot took umbrage at its German rival using any three-digit number with a 0 in the middle. Porsche would change the moniker to 911, despite having built 82 pre-production cars bearing the 901 title. It was claimed no examples were sold to private customers, but some have trickled out of Porsche’s possession over the years.

Chassis 300078 is one such car, and has quite a story, having been displayed at the Geneva Motor Show in March 1965, announcing the 911 to the world. Despite the change in nomenclature, this 901 is one of six believed to be left.

Although outwardly very similar to the later cars, the first 82 differ slightly. The earliest examples have their A- and B-pillars trimmed in the same perforated white vinyl as the headlining, while later cars used black vinyl. The engine lid is unique to these cars, too, as was the rear licence-plate holder. The rear crossmember is completely smooth with no pressings, while the front wings house four-hole chrome horn grilles.

Voisin Type C27 Aérosport

The origins of the C27 Aérosport lie in the Aérodyne – a provocative car created for the 1934 Paris Motor Show that didn’t quite hit the mark in terms of sales. After the expo, two roadsters were built on shortened Aérodyne chassis, which became known as the C27. Powered by a 3.0-litre straight-six engine, it was good for 105bhp. However, it is the glorious Art Deco styling that makes this Voisin truly special. Using the basic outline of the Aérodyne as a start, it’s lowered, has more luggage space, pentagon side windows, piano-hinged doors and aluminium accents. It also features a sliding roof powered by it own motor that works off the main engine’s vacuum.

In the mid-1950s this car was offered for sale in France by marque expert Robert Saliot and the Saliot Garage. The garage owned all of Voisin’s spare parts, and Robert’s student son used the C27 for day-to-day transport. At this stage, the coachwork was modified, with poor metal-sheet patch repairs to the roof. Stewardship was then passed to a scrap dealer, and the Aérosport disappeared for some time.

One day, Phillip Moch, a Voisin expert and hoarder of marque parts, acquired an ailing Voisin that had a second body. Removing this outer layer, he found the distinctive underslung chassis and the remnants of the C27 Aérosport.

Rolls-Royce 40/50 Silver Ghost

The Rolls-Royce 40/50 chassis and engine had many names and roles. It even formed the basis of a range of armoured cars. However when The Autocar called it “the best car in the world”, they also coined the phrase Silver Ghost – and so a legend was born.

Chassis 60551 was the 12th 40/50 off the line, and it was destined to be a company demonstrator. Registered as AX 201, it was given a Roi-des-Belges body by Barker, and finished in aluminium paint. At a time when most cars were as noisy as they were unreliable, the model’s distinctive looks and relative serenity in motion lent it the Silver Ghost name. The car would break record after record, one of which included driving between London and Glasgow 27 times over a distance of 15,000 miles. Such reliable service provided the marketing backbone for the then-new Rolls-Royce Motor Company, rightfully earning that “best car in the world” title – one that is still used by the company today.

After a three-year restoration between 1948 and 1951, AX 201 entered service as a promotional tool, travelling around the world. In 1984 Franklin Mint took extensive photographs of the car while it was in storage, and produced a die-cast model that went on to become one of the firm’s best-selling models.

With Rolls-Royce Motors Ltd being sold in 1998, AX 201 ended up in the stewardship of Bentley Motors as part of the purchase of the Crewe Works by the Volkswagen Automotive Group. In late December 2019, AX 201 was purchased from Bentley and entered into private UK hands.

Alfa Romeo Giulia TZ2

Zagato might be known for its outlandish and sometimes challenging designs, but the heart of the Italian carrozzeria’s original mission was always light weight and slippery aerodynamics. The original TZ exemplified this starkly – its Ercole Spada-penned all-aluminium body weighed just 650kg, and was at the cutting edge of bodywork design thanks to its coda tronca ‘Kamm’ tail design.

For the TZ2, Zagato went even further, replacing the aluminium body with glassfibre to shave a further 30kg. Just eight race cars were built and they used an Autodelta-tuned 1.6-litre twin-cam four-cylinder that produced 170bhp. It was good for 152mph thanks to the wind-cheating design.

The car at the Concours of Elegance, chassis AR750113, is the most successful TZ2. In 1966 it took class victories with Autodelta at the Nürburgring 1000km, Trento-Bondone, Circuito Del Mugello, Corsa Della Mendola and the Coppa del Chianti Classico, where it also finished first overall. However, its biggest success came at the Targa Florio, again run under the Autodelta banner. With Enrico Pinto and Nino Todaro behind the wheel, the car finished fourth overall and first in class.

Jaguar E-type 60th Anniversary

Also gracing the grounds of of Hampton Court Palace will be some of the finest Jaguar E-types, as part of a special celebration of the iconic sports cars 60^thanniversary.

‘ECD 400’, one of the most renowned racing E-types will be present at the Concours. It was the first of seven vehicles prepared by the factory for racing. Its first event was at Oulton Park in 1961, where it won, in the hands of Graham Hill.

Joining the display is Chassis 050062, one of the first 54 right-hand-drive examples built and destined for the Rossleigh Jaguar dealership in Edinburgh. The early Series 1 model is among just 92 right-hand-drive Roadsters with externally mounted bonnet locks and a flat floor. In 2017, under the custodianship of TV’s Steve Coogan, the car underwent a root-and-branch restoration, at specialists XK Engineering, which took two years to complete.

Another noteable E-type present over the weekend is a 1969 Series 2 Roadster ‘XUC 673H’, which is owned by the grandson of Jaguar founder Sir William Lyons. It was originally supplied by Henlys of Hendon. When the current custodian inherited the car, it required a full restoration which was carried out partly through his own work at RA Creamer & Son Jaguar Main Dealer in Kensington, with the assistance of RS Panels of Nuneaton who repaired, painted, and reassembled the body. Following the car’s restoration in 1996 the car has covered some 18,000 miles including trips to Le Mans and Scotland and has appeared in various books, magazines, adverts and concours events.

Junior Concours 2021

Also taking place at the Concours of Elegance is the Junior Concours, which welcomes an array of beautiful hand-crafted half-size and three-quarter-scale pedal, electric and petrol-powered cars to sit alongside the full-size vehicles that inspired them.

The Junior Concours will see parents and their children taking on the roles of Works Drivers and Mechanics on Sunday 5^th September, as up to 20 cars line-up among a priceless collection of vintage race-winning Bugattis, one-off Alfa Romeos, coachbuilt Ferraris and more.

Over the course of the day, the cars will be piloted by their Works Drivers – supported by their Mechanics – up onto the Concours Live Stage. Competitors will win awards for ‘Best Pedal Car’, ‘Best Electric Car’, ‘Best Petrol Car’, ‘Most Original Car’ and ‘Best Dressed’, before being treated to a tea party in the grounds of Hampton Court Palace.

More details on the Concours of Elegance 2021 at Hampton Court Palace can be found on the website.

Full list of vehicles on display in the Main Concours: