Just as Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance has long been linked with the start of Day Light Savings Time, the Hilton Head Island Concours d’Elegance has been linked to the return to Standard Time. November 3-4, 2018, was the 17th time that rare, exotic and interesting automobiles assembled on Hilton Head Island at the Port Royal Golf Club. The event is held on the Saturday and Sunday of the first weekend of November when the weather is typically southern fall, which means it is usually cool and dry – perfect for wandering around a beautifully landscaped golf course and looking at incredible automobiles.
Saturday is the Car Club Showcase. Car clubs are invited to bring their cars to the show field for attendees and spectators to see. A club can only be invited every other year, so you are pretty sure to see a new set of cars each year. This year, for example, the clubs attending included, among others, the Sunbeam Tigers East, Heart of Georgia Corvair Club, Great Smokey Mountain Region AACA, and Lowcountry Oyster and Motorcar Driving Society. There was considerable variety – something for everyone. Saturday’s field also included some automobiles that would be seen on Sunday as well. Each year a collector is honored by the concours and asked to display some of his or her cars. This year’s honoree was Paul Ianuario of Duncan, SC. He displayed four of his car on a green for both days – a 1912 Hudson Speedster, 1910 Chalmers Detroit, 1929 Packard Dietrich, and 1908 Cadillac Double Tulip Touring.
A particularly interesting display of cars was based on the theme of “Life Along the Orient Express.” The program explains that “. . . the ‘Life’ exhibit includes Concours d’Elegance classes showcasing the story of automotive excellence during these decades [1920s and 1930s] in Europe. The classes are made up of European Classic cars that embody Elegance and Speed. . . . These cars were the automobiles owned by the people who rode the Orient Express.” From an Isotta Frashchini to a Renault 2CV, the cars displayed were spectacular.
On Sunday, many of the cars of the Car Club Showcase were gone, replaced primarily by older, rarer automobiles. One particular display that attracted crowds were cars from the Peter and Merle Mullin collection of incredible Art Deco automobiles. Mullin provided three of the most beautiful cars ever created – on the left was a 1939 Delahaye Type 165 Cabriolet bodied by Figoni et Falaschi; another Figoni et Falaschi car, a 1937 Talbot-Lago T150-C-SS “Goutte D’Eau” [Teardrop] was in the middle; and possibly the most Deco automotive design ever was on the right, the spectacular 1938 Dubonnet Hispano-Suiza H6B “Xenia” bodied by Jacque Saoutchik.
The top honor at Sunday’s Concours d’Elegance, ‘Best of Show,’ was awarded to a 1931 Stutz DV32 Convertible Victoria owned by Joseph & Margie Cassini of West Orange, NJ.
The Best of Show was chosen from the event’s Best Rolling Art vehicle (Cassini’s 1931 Stutz DV32 Convertible Victoria), Best Production/Performance vehicle – The Paul Doerring Founders Award(1967 American Shelby GT350 Fastback, Hunt & Pat Palmer-Ball, Louisville, KY) presented by the Doerring family and Best Road & Track vehicle (1955 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gull Wing, Jeff Files, Durham, NC). Attendees at the event also chose a 1929 Ford Station Wagon as their ‘People’s Choice’ winner. The car is owned by Thomas & Donna Fitzgerald of Selma, NC.
Once again, the Hilton Head Island Concours d’Elegance presented a variety of exceptional automobiles for the viewing pleasure of the anticipated 20,000 attendees. The entire event happens over more than a week, starting with the Savannah Speed Classic the last weekend in October and the concours the first in November. It also includes an Aero Expo Exhibit for anyone interested in historic airplanes. And it would be a shame not to mention the excellent display of vintage motorcycles on Sunday.
Any motorhead considering a fall vacation to the southeast U.S. coast couldn’t have a better opportunity than to take in the Hilton Head Island Concours d’Elegance and Motoring Festival.
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