2019 Cartier Concours d’Elegance preview

The Cartier ‘Travel With Style’ Concours d’Elegance is India's greatest vintage and classic car (and bike) show. The sixth edition of the show will take place on February 23-24, 2019 in Jaipur and will also celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Concours d’Elegance.

Cars from all around the country will participate in this celebration of automobiles, shimmering with chrome and fresh paint. The organisers have decided to give preference to local cars from the Rajasthan region in particular. This means that this year’s show will be packed full of cars with royal provenance – from the past and present and of course – that haven’t been seen in public for a while now.

NEW CLASSES APART

The cars will be judged in a total of 14 different classes this year. These include the usual Pre-War American, Pre-War European and Pre-War Rolls-Royce classes, along with Post-War American and Post-War European classes. The popular 'Indian Heritage and Preservation Class' category also continues for this year along with the addition of a new special Pre-War Transportation class. Other categories include the Roadster upto 1969 and a special Ford Thunderbird class along with yet another special class celebrating Sportscars upto 1979. The last three classes are sure to have some absolutely spectacular machinery on display. The-two wheelers will be split into the usual three categories, Veteran – vintage upto 1930, Pre-War from 1931-1945 and Post-War from 1946-1969.

DIAMONDS IN THE ROUGH

Unlike in the past, there are no cars being brought in from abroad for special displays and there are no ‘poster cars’ to speak of either. That being said, there are a few cars in certain categories that you should look out for if in case you do visit this exclusive show. Since vehicles that have local provenance have been given a preference, one of the cars sure to stand out is a Buick 8 Convertible that used to belong to the stunning Maharani Gayatri Devi.

Another beautiful car with an equally brilliant story is the Jaguar XK 120 that belongs to the erstwhile Maharaja of Jaipur. The car was bought and gifted by the then-Maharaja to his son as a graduation present, who in turn gifted it to his son at his graduation ceremony. Dubbed ‘the graduation car’, the XK 120 is a sure-shot head-turner with its stunning proportions and curves.

Another Jaipur car to look out for will be a stunning Ford Thunderbird taking part in the special Thunderbird Class this year and also used to be a part of the Jaipur Royal Family. The Sportcar category – which has extended entries all the way to 1979 this year, for the first time ever – will see some lovely Ferraris, Alfa Romeos and Jaguars take part apart from a host of other lovely four-wheeled machines.

And while the transportation class might appear to be quite drab, a spectacular Chevrolet chassis bus from the 1930s that was used to transport the staff (or servants) of the Maharaja is also said to be making an appearance. What make this vehicle special are the separate enclosures for the men servants and the women servants.

All in all, as with every Cartier Concours d’Elegance, this year promises to be a very special show, too.