The Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este 2014 will be staged on the weekend of 23-25 May over the grounds of the Grand Hotel Villa d’Este and neighboring Villa Erba on Lake Como in Cernobbio, Italy. The 2014 edition will again see an intimate selection of 50 historic automobiles displayed against the incomparable backdrop of Lake Como.
First held at the same location in 1929, this year’s Villa d’Este Concours d’Elegance will celebrate the 110th anniversary of the Rolls-Royce brand. It was in December 1904 that the company — founded just a few months earlier — debuted its models at the Paris Auto Salon under the brand name which to this day remains a global byword for automotive luxury.
An exhibition in the rotunda at Villa Erba will be dedicated to the Spirit of Ecstasy, the winged radiator figurine that has accompanied Rolls-Royce since 1911 and quickly became the emblem of Britain’s motoring heritage. One of the ways in which the 2014 Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este will pay tribute to the 110-year anniversary of the brand is with a presentation of select rarities from the Rolls-Royce past. The automobiles on display from the various eras all, in their own individual way, embody the “striving for perfection” which company founders Charles Rolls and Henry Royce made their guiding principle early on.
For the second time, the BMW Group Young People’s Award for historic vehicles will be presented — a special prize to reflect the enthusiasm among the younger generations for classic cars and motorcycles.
A fixture of the Concorso Villa d’Este since 2011 is the Concorso di Motociclette. Escorted by members of the local police force, a convoy of classic two-wheelers makes its way from Como to Cernobbio on the Saturday, stopping briefly at the Historic Car Parade at Villa d’Este before reaching its destination in the neighbouring grounds of Villa Erba. Here, once again, an array of historically significant motorcycles will be on display. Last year marked “90 years of BMW Motorrad” with a presentation of the key milestones in the brand’s history in the context of their time and alongside their former competitors. This year’s special show will turn the spotlight on sensational one-off custom bikes.
The support programme for the 2014 ‘Classic’ Weekend will also offer greater appeal and diversity than ever before. On the evening of the first day of the event, the park at Villa Erba will be turned into an open-air cinema. Entry is free to visitors, who will be able to enjoy the Hollywood remake of the classic movie The Great Gatsby on a big screen, starring Leonardo DiCaprio in the title role. The spirit of the Roaring Twenties also sets the scene for numerous other items on the programme. The historic vehicle parades on both Saturday and Sunday, for example, will be accompanied by models dressed in the style of the era, while the themed evening for guests of honour at Villa Visconti will likewise take its cue from The Great Gatsby.
For additional information, visit ConcorsodEleganzaVilladEste.com.
[Source: Concorso Villa d’Este; photo: Dirk de Jager]
