DELAGE TOPS THE DELIGHTS DOWN UNDER

The glitz and glamour of the classic car world returned to the southern hemisphere from 4-6 March, as some of the finest and rarest metal in Australia gathered for the third running of the Sydney Harbour Concours d’elegance.

Hundreds of guests attended each day of the exclusive event, held in the grounds of Swifts, an impressive Gothic Revival mansion in Darling Point. On the Saturday, 300 spectators were treated to a moving parade of 25 cars that had taken part in the ‘Distinguished Gentleman’s Drive’ to raise funds for prostate cancer and men’s mental health awareness. The roads around the venue were filled with 911s, Pagodas, Ferraris, Alfas and even a Mazda Luce.

To celebrate the diamond jubilee of the Jaguar E-type, examples streamed into the venue on the Friday and a special ‘Happy Birthday E-type’ class in the concours was won by its earliest entry, a 1962 S1 fixed-head coupé.

Overall concours glory went the way of a striking 1936 Delage D6-70 Spéciale by Figoni et Falaschi. Owned by Andrew and Linda Lawson, the Prix d’honneur winner secured a class victory at Le Mans in 1937 as well as enjoying a successful concours career.

A gorgeous 1957 MercedesBenz 300SL Roadster proved popular, picking up awards in the ‘Poster Children’ and ‘Women’s Choice’ categories, while a 1922 Delage/hispano Suiza was also a double winner, claiming both ‘Style et Lux’ and ‘People’s Choice’.

Homegrown hero Sir Jack Brabham was celebrated, with his World Championship-winning BT19 on display, but was upstaged by his son David’s creation, the road-racing BT62R, which won the ‘Black Jack’ group. A 1976 Lamborghini Countach LP400 was honoured as ‘Best Restoration’, while a 1978 Aston Martin V8 Oscar India took the ‘Preservation Award’ and a 1973 Dino 246GT landed ‘Fun, Fun, Fun’. A 1976 Porsche 911 Carrera targa topped the curiously titled and Porschepacked ‘It’s A Family Affair’ class.

Classics on display included a Mazda 110S Cosmo and a Porsche 356 convertible complete with skis, while Mclaren supported the event with the Australian debuts of the Gulf-liveried Elva and 765LT.

Supercars of all ages, from Countach to Veyron, were on show in the leafy grounds of Swifts mansion

From top: Best in Show was landed by elegant Figoni et Falaschi Delage; ‘Poster Children’ class was won by ’57 300SL; display marked the E-type’s 60th

From top: Sir Jack’s 1966 F1 title-winning Brabham BT19; ’73 Dino took the ‘Fun, Fun, Fun’ class; Style et Lux glory went to 1922 Delage/hispano Suiza