The 100th anniversary of Bentley will be celebrated at the Salon Prive 2019, scheduled for 5-8 September at the Blenheim Palace in Woodstock, England. A full two days of this year’s event will highlight the marque founded in 1919 by the gifted engineer W.O. Bentley.
On Saturday 7th September, the third running of the Masters Series at Salon Prive will be devoted to Bentley Motors, marking the 100th birthday of this British automotive marque. Although there will be a competitive element to the day, first and foremost it will be a celebration with a display of 50 Bentleys from the earliest through to the latest models.
These 50 Bentley motor cars will be judged on the Saturday by a panel selected for their knowledge and expertise of the Bentley marque. Salon Prive takes a relaxed and celebratory approach to the judging, rather than the close scrutiny of a traditional Concours event. Trophies will be awarded during the day, with the Owners’ Choice presented at the Saturday evening Gala Dinner within the Blenheim Palace.
Salon Prive’s Co-Founder and Sales Director, David Bagley commented: “It’s a real honour for us to have been selected as the host event for Bentley’s Centenary this year and we are planning a spectacular weekend of celebrations at Blenheim Palace. Stretching across the North Lawns, it will be the ultimate tribute for this iconic British marque.”
On Sunday 8th September, the Bentley Drivers Club (BDC) Concours d’Elegance will merge with the Salon Prive Classic and Supercar and with an expected record gathering of no less than 1,001 Bentleys from across the globe taking centre stage.
Owners of Bentley models are encouraged to consider entering their motor cars for both days of Salon Prive’s Bentley centenary celebration weekend. Models already submitted for entry to the whole weekend include a 1929 Speed Six Gurney Nutting Weymann Saloon, one of 182 Speed Six models built, a 1938 Sports Saloon by Park Ward and a 1950 Mk VI Drophead Foursome Coupe by E.D.Abbott, one of 16 built.
Sunday 8th September will see the largest ever annual Bentley Drivers Club (BDC) Concours d’Elegance taking place as a part of the event at Blenheim Palace, with 18 trophies to be awarded, including Concours, Patina and the Inter-Regional Team Challenge awards. An exhibition of significant Bentley cars from every decade will showcase 100 years of the marque; this will include the earliest surviving Bentley, EXP2, and a number of cars such as a Continental GT Zagato, one of nine made, and a Continental GT S Convertible ‘art car’ decorated by the brush of artist Sir Peter Blake.
Bentley Drivers Club Chairman Ron Warmington said: “Our Concours d’Elegance will be a unique occasion and we would be delighted to mark Bentley Motors’ centenary by setting a new world record for the largest ever gathering of Bentleys in one place.”
[Source: Salon Prive]
