A Ballot 3/8 LC, famous for winning the first ever Italian Grand Prix in 1921, has been confirmed for this year’s Concours of Elegance. This impeccable piece of motorsport history is just one of a line-up of over 60 rare and exotic motor cars set to take their place in the glorious Fountain Gardens of Hampton Court Palace this September.
The Ballot 3/8 LC was a cutting-edge French racing car, capable of 124mph at a time when many normal road cars struggled to hit half that. The engine’s double overhead camshafts, four valves-per-cylinder and hemi-spherical combustion chambers were the works of a genius mind belonging to Ernest Henry.
These innovations led to its victory at the Italian Grand Prix, which incidentally, would have ruffled a few feathers. The two French Ballots competing took first and second spots, while a Fiat 802 – the Italian crowd’s favorite – took third. But the Ballots won for their strategy, conserving fuel and tires against the much faster Fiat, and not once stopping.
Gathering the rarest and most exquisite vehicles from throughout automotive history, the 2019 Hampton Court Palace Concours of Elegance promises to be the best yet. Last year the event welcomed a wondrous array of automotive masterpieces, from a 1903 Panhard et Levassor O4R to a 1997 McLaren F1 GTR Long Tail and beyond.
Although the Concours of Elegance’s main display of around 60 vehicles will be the focal point, nearly 1,000 cars will be on display during the three-day event. A number of 2018’s features will be returning, including the Royal Automobile Club Trophy – contested by winners of the nation’s best car clubs – and the Future Classics class. Last year’s Future Classics included the unique Rolls-Royce Sweptail, one-of-seven Aston Martin Vantage V600 and McLaren Senna chassis #001.
For more information visit www.concoursofelegance.co.uk/
