COMING UP
As spring moves towards summer, our calendar of events is hotting up, too
27-29 April Manx Classic
The Isle of Man welcomes a variety of four-and three-wheeled machines for a programme that features a sprint and a pair of hillclimbs manxmotorracing.com
28-30 April VHRA National Finals
Members of the Vintage Hot Rod Association will descend on Santa Pod for this new event, ‘running what they brung’ at the home of British drag racing. vhra.co.uk
28-30 April Donington Historic Festival
All the qualifying will be done on the Friday this year, meaning the weekend will feature non-stop racing action, with nine decades’ worth of top-notch machinery on the track. Other attractions include sure-to-be-memorable passenger rides in Group B cars. doningtonhistoric.com
29 April Brooklands Auto Italia
The spiritual home of British racing is overrun by Italian cars, and a few motorcycles, too. Test Hill will be open, as of course will the museum. brooklandsmuseum.com
29-30 April Classic Days Magny-Cours
Among the special attractions at the tenth running of this popular French event will be a celebration of Renault’s 40 years in Formula 1. classic-days.fr
4-7 May The London Motor Show
Over 130 new models will be brought to London, but there will be plenty to catch the eye of classic car lovers, too, including the 1933 Napier-Railton record-breaker. thelondonmotorshow.co.uk
4-7 May Simola Hill Climb
Seriously quick hillclimb action in picturesque Knysna in South Africa’s Western Cape. ‘Classic Car Friday’ is on 5 May. speedfestival.co.za
5-7 May Verona Legend Cars
Sponsored this year by Abarth, which will bring along some of its rally cars to run on a new 1kmlong track. There’s always a good club presence here, and plenty of interesting cars to buy, too. veronalegendcars.com
6-7 May Keels & Wheels
Beautiful old cars and boats share a stage at Lakewood Yacht Club in Texas. You’ll come away coveting all sorts of wooden things and a waterfront property. keels-wheels.com
6-7 May
The Classic Land Rover Show The classic Landie scene is bigger than ever, and this gathering at Gaydon will bring together an array of all-original workhorses and immaculate show vehicles. britishmotormuseum.co.uk
13 May The 1940s Relived
Brooklands puts its WW2-era exhibits in context with visitors wearing period garb, plus military displays and a vintage market. brooklandsmuseum.com
13-14 May Beaulieu Spring Autojumble
If that winter project is missing one or two crucial bits, there’s a good chance you’ll find them among the thousands of stands at the first Autojumble of the year. beaulieu.co.uk
18-21 May Mille Miglia
Brescia to Rome and back in a hurry, in the company of some of the old car world’s finest machines and some of its greatest characters. 1000miglia.eu
19-21 May Spa Classic
Belgium’s brilliant circuit will as usual test 1960s GTs and Group C giants, but there are some novel grids planned for 2017, such as Formula Vee, Euro F2, and GT1, for cars built from 1994 to 2011. peterauto.peter.fr
19-21 May SVRA Spring Vintage Festival
Meanwhile, across the pond, racers and spectators will flock to Road America for a weekend of action. There are grids for all SVRA classes, including the new Mazda Miata Heritage Cup for first-gen MX-5s. roadamerica.com
26-28 May Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este
No other concours can boast a prettier location, and the cars that gather on the shore of Lake Como aren’t half bad, either. Classes will include ‘Playboys’ Toys’, for ‘wholly impractical’ road-legal racing cars. concorsodeleganzavilladeste.com
27-28 May Masters Historic Festival
Masters’ flagship event always brings a first-class field to Brands Hatch, and this year’s Festival will also celebrate 50 years of the Cosworth DFV engine. mastershistoricracing.com
27-28 May La Vie en Bleu
… ‘incorporating La Vita Rossa’, so visitors can expect to enjoy the sights and sounds of both French and Italian treasures charging up the hill at Prescott. The new Bugatti Chiron is set to join the party. prescott-hillclimb.com
28 May – 10 June The Baltic Classic Rally
This two-week adventure will take crews through Sweden, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Germany. It’s not all hard work, though: the hospitality promises to be as good as the scenery. endurorally.com
1-4 June Jersey International Motoring Festival
A great celebration of Jersey’s motoring heritage and the island’s famous post-war road race. endurorally.com