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2022 audrain museum concours d 1elegance

Ned J. and Kate Lawler Shamrock Motoring Images

It was very blustery, and cold—but when the gray morning dawned it was no longer raining. And the third annual Audrain Concours d’Elegance on the grounds of the legendary Breakers “cottage” went on as planned October 2. The convertible tops were down, but the winter coats and scarfs came out and some owners huddled in their cars for warmth and wind evasion.

As at Pebble Beach, this is a Concours and Motor Week, with a full round of seminars and events (yoga was canceled because of the weather!). It’s an increasingly successful attempt to make this historic New England summer retreat famous for something other than its annual folk and jazz festivals. Saturday’s Tour d’Elegance around Newport, Rhode Island, and vicinity got drenched, but heavy rain didn’t deter the 25 to 30 hardy souls, some of whom were driving topless. There is precedent for Newport’s automotive bona fides, because the first US car race—the Vanderbilt Cup—was held on its roads in 1900.

Cadillac was a sponsor this year, and that brought out not only the Lyriq electric car and Escalade V-Series but also a big display of vintage examples of the marque. The most spectacular was a 1953 Series 62 coupe bodied (just one of two) by Ghia with a bold wraparound rear window—new technology in 1953. The Petersen Automotive Museum owns this beautiful example, which it turns out was not a gift to Rita Hayworth from Prince Aly Kahn. Another display Caddy, a 1929 town sedan, had been impounded as evidence by the Bridgeport, Connecticut, police during the investigation into the disappearance of flyer Charles Lindbergh’s son.

The Best in Show award went to William Medcalf for his 1930 Bentley Speed Six Sports Saloon. It also won in the European Luxury 1920 to 1935 category. The Most Elegant award was scooped up by Lawrence Auriana for his racy red 1968 Alfa-Romeo 33 Stradale.

Jay Leno, who has a house nearby and is a close friend of Audrain Automobile Museum CEO Donald Osborne, is a regular at the concours and was seen admiring the Nethercutt Collection’s 1931 Bugatti Type 51 coupe. “In the old days, cars like this would have been broken up, with one person getting the chassis and someone else the engine,” Leno said. “It’s a beautiful car.” The attendees thought so too, because the Bugatti won the People’s Choice award. The Hagerty Youth Judges award went to the 1912 Mercer 35C Raceabout from the Heritage Museums and Gardens.

Here are some other highlights:

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1957 Mercury Turnpike Cruiser

A memorable detail of the 1957 Mercury Turnpike Cruiser. The car featured an early trip computer.

1960 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint Speciale Coupe

Wicker Francis bought this 1960 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint Speciale Coupe as a basket case, and the restoration took four years.

1966 Citroën DS21 Le Léman coupe

Henri Chapron was known for building special-body Citroëns, especially a run of convertibles. Only 24 of these DS21 Le Léman coupes were built, and Jeffrey and Frances Fisher’s example is the 1966 Geneva show car.

ATS, a breakaway company created to challenge Ferrari, was a featured marque at Audrain. The museum owns this 1964 ATS 2500 GTS, one of only 12 GTS cars (without bumpers to save weight) that were built.

1941 Chrysler Newport Dual-Cowl Phaeton

Five of these unusual Chrysler Newport Dual-Cowl Phaetons were created, and this is the first of them—one of two with hidden headlights. Paul Gould’s car was at Pebble Beach in 2009.

1948 Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet

Mark O’Neil’s 1948 Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet sports two-tone blue coachwork by Faget Varnet, and was featured on that coachbuilder’s stand at the Salon de Paris in 1949. It was a class winner at Pebble Beach in 2008.

1953 Ferrari 250 MM Spyder

Phil Hill drove this 1953 Ferrari 250 MM Spyder in that year’s Del Monte Trophy race in California. It was restored in 1990 and won its class at Pebble Beach, then was restored again in 2018.

1931 Bugatti Type 51 Coupe

Jay Leno inspects the Nethercutt Collection’s 1931 Bugatti Type 51 Coupe, a recent discovery. It was reportedly a gift to race driver Louis Chiron from Ettore Bugatti after the 1931 season. The car was chosen for the People’s Choice award.

1937 Mercedes-Benz 540K Cabriolet A

A show highlight was this elegant 1937 Mercedes-Benz 540K Cabriolet A, owned by Tom Laferriere, and with body by Sindelfingen. It’s been in the U.S., on and off, since the 1950s.

1938 Packard 1604 w/body by Mayfair

An impossibly elegant 1938 Packard 1604 with English body by Mayfair was created for the mother of Aristotle Onassis, but at one point after World War II it was used as a chicken coop. A soldier bought it for $600 and had it shipped to the US.

1922 Secqueville-Hoyau Sports Two-Seater

Alexander and Teri Giacobetti’s rare 1922 Secqueville-Hoyau Sports Two-Seater was a light car from Alfred Secqueville and Gaston Hoyau, who built cars between 1919 and 1924 in Gennevillers, France.

Surviving the weather in an Allard. Most of the tops were down.

1930 Bentley Speed Six Sports Saloon

Best in Show was awarded to William Medcalf for his 1930 Bentley Speed Six Sports Saloon. The Breakers serves as backdrop.

1968 Alfa-Romeo 33 Stradale

Most Elegant was Lawrence Auriana’s 1968 Alfa-Romeo 33 Stradale. Only 18 of these V8-powered cars were built, with just 10 left.

The concours includes a “30 under 30” category to attract younger drivers. F. Maxwell Ladner’s 33,000-mile 1991 Jaguar XJS is in the foreground.

1914 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost

Sam and Emily Mann’s 1914 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost London to Edinburgh car wears wooden “skiff” coachwork by Berlin’s Karosseriewerke Schapiro-Schebera. It spent 30 years in Egypt.

1935 SS Cars SS1 Airline Saloon

Only 16 of these pre-Jaguar SS Cars SS1 Airline Saloons (of 624 built) are still extant. This example, with champagne set up in the picnic tables, belongs to Jim and Lisa Hendrix.

Joseph Moch’s 1936 Lagonda LG43R was a team car at the 1936 Le Mans race, then spent 60 years in a garage in Dana Point, California. Beyond it is a supercharged 1931 Bentley 4.5-liter with Vanden Plas tourer coachwork.

1946 Lancia Aprilia Barchetta Corsa Sport

Charles Schoendorf’s 1946 Lancia Aprilia Barchetta Corsa Sport started life as a standard sedan, but then gained a one-off aluminum barchetta body for use in hill climbs.

1948 Daimler DE36 Drophead

This “Green Goddess,” owned by Mark Hyman, is a 1948 Daimler DE36 Drophead, one of a series of luxury cars built by Hooper and Company between 1948 and 1955. It was a personal project of Lady Norah Docker, a socialite who was married to Daimler head Sir Bernard Docker. Six flamboyant cars were created, and four survive. This one was in the Harrah’s collection until 1982.

1953 Series 62 Cadillac w/body by Ghia

This is one of just two 1953 Series 62 Cadillacs bodied in Italy by Ghia. And, no, this car was not gifted to Rita Hayworth by Prince Aly Kahn.

1959 Citroën Mismaque Squal 09C Prototype Coupe

This outlandish 1959 Citroën Mismaque Squal 09C Prototype Coupe sported huge tail fins and a custom tube frame. French engineer/designer Guy Mismaque built three of these lightweight cars, two with 2CV running gear and one powered by Simca.

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