The headquarters of the company will remain in Maldon, Essex, home to the firm’s 60 craftsmen, technicians and engineers. However, with the company developing such an international reputation in recent years – and the client base to go with it – it was in need of a more central location, with closer proximity to the major airports for clients on flying visits.
When Alejandro de Tomaso took over the reins of Maserati from Citroën in 1975, he was confident of the potential for a comfortable, high-performance saloon. He had already created such a car in the form of the De Tomaso Deauville, and believed that a new Maserati Quattroporte was the way to go for the beleaguered Trident. According to De Tomaso, the 1974 Quattroporte II, built on the extended chassis of a Citroën SM, was not right at all: the 3.0-litre V6 – a sad let-down after the powerful V8 of the first Quattrop
In addition to the usual recipe of high-end classics and the latest supercars showcased alongside various luxury and lifestyle brands, a new test drive and demonstration element will join the programme. According to the organisers, visitors will have the opportunity to “test drive many of the desirable cars present”, with the internal network of roads (and those stretching beyond into the Oxfordshire countryside) offering manufacturers plenty of room to demonstrate their offerings.
At this point, the project is destined to blossom into a new front-engined Volkswagen coupé, an eventual replacement for the mid-engined 914. Volkswagen has already commissioned (and paid) Porsche to develop the new car on its behalf; the engineering team is using a pack of ‘mules’ to test various engine and suspension set-ups.
In case you’ve been hiding beneath a rock (or corrugated iron roof) for the past few weeks, it’s the ex-Alain Delon Ferrari California Spider (lot 59) that headlines the unprecedented sale – and, carrying an estimate of €9.5m to €12m, is set to achieve more than the remaining 58 Baillon cars put together. Originally, 60 cars were set for the auction (to be held separately, the day before the annual Artcurial sale), but one was withdrawn due to being in worse condition than previously thought.
Ten years on from the launch of its predecessor, the new Ford GT shows just how far supercar development has come. While the 2005 model used an ultra-butch 5.4-litre supercharged V8, the car revealed in Detroit will employ a 3.5-litre twin-turbocharged ‘Ecoboost’ V6 producing 592bhp – along with a host of aerodynamics-enhancing and weight-saving measures.
While not occupying quite the wealth of floorspace as its established counterparts in France and Germany, the inaugural London Classic Car Show certainly made efficient use of what it had. Themed displays were curated by the likes of Top Gear host James May and F1 mastermind Adrian Newey, but the headline feature was undoubtedly the ‘Grand Avenue’ automotive catwalk. Goodwood’s hillclimb might have the speed, but only at LCCS could you experience the hollerings of a Maserati 250F or ex-Fangio C-type ensnared in an exhibition hall.