Gallery: Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance 2014

By: David Berthon, Photography by: David Berthon

Date: 13.11.2014

This year's Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, the crème de la crème of classic cars, celebrated the centenary of Maserati and marked a historic week for Ferrari...

Pebble Beach 2014

Pebble Beach 2014

LIFE'S A BEACH

In a change of tradition, the 64th Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance this year threw up a "Best of Show" winner from the hottest sector of the collector car market.

The 1954 Ferrari 375 MM Scaglietti Coupe was not only the first post-WWII car to take the gong in nearly five decades, but remarkably, it was also the first time a Ferrari has won the prestigious event.

In addition, more than U.S. $100 million was achieved in auction sales by Ferraris, making it a historic week for the Maranello marque.

After dominating the collector car auction scene for several years, Ferrari is clearly the most sought-after collector’s brand and the Scaglietti Coupe didn’t disappoint the enthusiastic crowd. A clear favourite with the judges, it also took out the special Art Centre College of Design Award.

Most 375 MMs were built for competition, but this car is one of just five built for road use. Ordered by Italian film director Roberto Rossellini, it started life as a Pininfarina-bodied competition Spyder, but it was soon damaged in an accident and the chassis was sent to Carrozzeria Scaglietti in Modena for a re-body.

The elegant grey Ferrari Coupe was Scaglietti’s first attempt at a road car and laid the foundation for a styling partnership that exists to the present day.

This wasn’t the car’s first appearance at Pebble Beach. Former President of Microsoft, John Shirley, has owned the car since 1995, not long after it was found tucked away in a Paris garage. After its initial restoration it was shown at Pebble Beach in 1998, earning a class win.

Despite this success and appearances at numerous tours and rallies, Shirley decided to restore the car again. Armed with new information on its original condition, the leather seats were returned to their original vinyl and with the help of some period photographs, the revised grille and driving lights were moved further forward.

"The styling is very special, but I love the engine, I love to drive this car," said Shirley. It’s a very powerful car, it’s a race car underneath; it’s four and a half litres, and it’s a great deal of fun." He’s in a good position to judge, owning an extensive collection of Ferraris and is a regular competitor in historic racing with his ex-Nuvolari 1935 Alfa Romeo P3 Monza, a car he brought to South Australia in 2009 for the re-enactment of the Lobethal Grand Prix.

The Best of Show was also the second time Shirley had won at Pebble, having previously taken home the valuable Lalique Trophy in 2008 with his 1938 Alfa Romeo 8C 2900B Touring Berlinetta.

But while his post-war car was clearly the favourite with the judges, the concours field of 216 cars and motorcycles on the 18th fairway of the prestigious Pebble Beach Golf Course represented all periods of motoring, with the oldest car on display being an 1892 steam-powered Philion Road Carriage.

This year’s Concours celebrated 100 years of Maserati and included the oldest running example, a 1928 Tipo 26B Monoposto works racer that ran in the Targa Florio that year.

Featured marques also included Ruxton – the first American car with front-wheel-drive. Just 500 were produced by the New Era Motor Co of New York in 1929/30 and 16 fine examples were on display – six of them from the same Texas collector. These rare cars are distinguished by their low overall height – 1,300mm – achieved by the elimination of a drive shaft and accentuated by the lack of running boards.

Tatra was the other featured marque, well-represented by nine examples of the revolutionary streamlined Czech sedans with the First in Class trophy won by a 1936 Tatra T77, the subject of a 20-year restoration.  With a rear-mounted 2,968cc V8 engine, the top speed of the T77 was quoted at 140km/h while the aerodynamic body boasts an impressive co-efficient of drag of just 0.21.

Other features at Pebble this year included a category for early steam cars, while special classes catered for post-war Rolls-Royce Phantoms and Eastern European motorcycles.

Reinforcing the popularity of the Prancing Horse was a stunning display of 20 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossas, estimated to be worth $20 million. Each.

Celebrating the centenary of the 1914 French Grand Prix was a trio of Mercedes team cars including the winning 4.5-litre car driven by Christian Lautenschlager, as well as a 1914 4.5-litre Opel and a 1913 4.5-litre Peugeot, one of four race entries from the French manufacturer that introduced four-wheel-brakes.

Three Australian entries graced the field this year. Perth collector Alan Tribe showed his 1930 Alfa Romeo 6C 1750 Super Sport Brianza roadster, fresh from its run earlier this year in the Mille Miglia. This striking Alfa was one of three short chassis cars built for the 1930 Targa Florio.

Melbourne’s Allan Reid displayed his 1931 Delage D8S Cabriolet, restored over two years by Paul Chaleyer at Historic and Vintage Restorations in Melbourne.

It ran trouble-free in the nine-day Pebble Beach Motoring Classic from Seattle to Carmel before being detailed for the Concours.

The most successful of the Aussie trio was Peter Harburg from Brisbane who won the special French Cup Award with his 1936 Delage D6-70 Figoni and Falaschi Milord Cabriolet. No stranger to accolades, this car was awarded the Grand Prix d’Honneur at the concours d’elegance of the Automobile Club Feminin de France in 1936.

The Pebble Beach Concours may represent the very crème de la crème of classic cars owned by some of the world’s wealthiest collectors, but it’s more than just an exercise in conspicuous collection. This year the event raised $1,677,445 for charity, taking total donations to more than $19 million.

Unique Cars magazine Value Guides

Sell your car for free right here