Cars

Reportedly the first of several concept cars that will be revealed to celebrate BMW’s centenary, the Vision Next 100 is a culmination of the knowledge gained by BMW’s designers and engineers, in order to predict what our cars might be like decades into the future. Accounting for what BMW clearly sees as the inevitable switch to autonomous cars, the concept comprises two driving modes: ‘Ease’, in which the car drives itself, and ‘Boost’, in which the car is manually controlled.

What is your earliest automotive memory?

Oh, there are so many. I grew up around classic cars, and as a child they always fascinated me. I have a particularly fond memory of my father’s Maserati 3500 Vignale Spyder, which he owned for many years. He chose to sell it at auction, and I sat in the audience completely unaware that his car was about to be sold. When it drove up the ramp, I was so shocked that I started crying loudly. Fortunately for me it failed to sell, and therefore returned home, much to my delight.

There’s an interesting cross-section of the current collector-car market on offer at Motostalgia’s Amelia Island 2016 sale. Firstly, there are established classics such as the Ferrari 330 GT or Alpine A 110. Secondly, there are many popular modern classics, such as the first BMW M6 and the Porsche 993 Turbo.

1990 VW Golf GTi

The Concours’ familiar formula of gathering ‘sixty of the world’s finest cars’ will see the automotive troupe take over the Royal castle’s Inner Quadrangle – an area usually off-limits to the public – with express permission from The Queen herself. In return, the organisers will hold several themed displays, including a selection of cars produced in 1926 (Her Majesty’s birth-year), along with those that have proved revolutionary across the nine decades since.

Old dog, new tricks