Alfa and Holden take concours honours at Motorclassica

By Marc McLaren

| 16 Oct 2018

Classic & Sports Car – Alfa and Holden take concours honours at MotorClassica

Two cars at opposite ends of the automotive spectrum stole the show at Australia’s Motorclassica 2018 – one a pre-war Alfa Romeo 6C Spider, the other a 1960s Holden Monaro GTS.

The gorgeous 1932 Alfa 6C 1750 GS Spider was named ‘Best of the best’ in the Australian International Concours d’Elegance, which brought the three-day Motorclassica extravaganza to a close on Sunday.

The 6C, which wears stunning aluminium coachwork by Zagato, is powered by a supercharged 1762cc in-line six-cylinder engine.

Now owned by New Zealander Lawrence Southward, it originally belonged to English jazz musician and racer Bubby Featherstonehaugh, and resided in the UK for many years.

Some 16 years ago it made the long trip to the southern hemisphere, with Southward’s father and sister then beginning a full restoration of the vehicle. Both unfortunately passed away during the process, and the Alfa was only finished earlier this year, after it was entrusted to the team at Bristol Motors in New Zealand.

Sam Santoro’s 1969 Holden Monaro GTS was the People’s Choice

While the 6C was clearly a fitting choice for the main prize, which was judged by an independent panel, the 24,000 visitors to the event in Melbourne looked elsewhere when selecting the winner of the People’s Choice award.

They proclaimed Sam Santoro’s 1969 Holden Monaro GTS their favourite – one of two awards it picked up, alongside the Modern Classic, USA and Australia gong.

Another dual winner was Barry Edge’s magnificent 1969 Maserati Ghibli Spyder, expertly restored by Recreation Automotive. That carried off both the Restoration of the Year and the Modern Classic Sports & Performance Over 3 Litre Award.

This 1969 Maserati Ghibli Spyder took home two awards

Other winners in the 140-strong concours included Allan Reid’s 1964 Alfa Romeo Giulia Sprint Speciale, which won the Chief Judge’s Spirit of Motorclassica Award, plus a stunning 1924 Cadillac V16 Tourer, owned by Scott Emerson, which took the Vintage & Veteran honour.

The show this year celebrated the era of the Art Deco cars, and a special award was presented for the best such vehicle on display: that went to the 1937 Cord Custom Berlin Coupe of Terry Dowel.

Another theme of the event was 90 years of the Australian Grand Prix, and here a 1963 Brabham BT7A owned by Peter Harburg was recognised.

“Lawrence Southward’s Alfa Romeo 6C Spider is truly a world-class car and a very worthy winner of the ‘Best of the Best’ award,” Motorclassica Event Director Paul Mathers said.

“Every year the standard of our Concours entrants keeps getting higher and making the judging that much more difficult, the panel is literally having to make judgements on the most minute of detail.

“It’s fantastic to see this evolution and to share the passion of the owners with our Motorclassica audience.”

A 1963 Brabham BT7A owned by Peter Harburg was honoured, as was Terry Dowel’s 1937 Cord Custom Berlin Coupe

The full list of winners is:

BEST IN SHOW: 1932 Alfa Romeo 6C Spider (Owner: Lawrence Southward)
PEOPLE’S CHOICE: 1969 Holden Monaro GTS (Owner: Sam Santoro)
CHIEF JUDGE’S SPIRIT OF MOTORCLASSICA AWARD: 1964 Alfa Romeo Giulia Sprint Speciale (Owner: Allan Reid)
RESTORATION OF THE YEAR: 1969 Maserti Ghibli Spyder (Owner: Barry Edge, restored by Recreation Automotive)
VINTAGE & VETERAN: 1924 Cadillac V-63 Tourer (Owner: Scott Emmerson)
PRE-WAR UK & EURO: 1926 Delage D.I.S.S Boat Tail Tourer (Owner: Max Joffe)
PRE-WAR USA: 1929 Stutz Black HawkL6 (Owner: Trevor Hudson)
POST WAR CLASSIC CLOSED: 1958 BMW Isetta Micro Coupe (Owner: Tony Nassar)
POST WAR CLASSIC OPEN: 1959 Goggomobile Dart Convertible (Owner: Mark & Michelle Jansen)
MODERN CLASSIC: 1963 Jaguar Mk2 (Owner: David Lamont)
MODERN CLASSIC GT UK & EURO: 1961 Jaguar E-Type (Owner: Gavin King)
MODERN CLASSIC USA & AUST: 1969 Holden HK Monaro (Owner: Sam Santoro)
MODERN CLASSIC SP & PERF UNDER 3 LITRE: 1967 Porsche 911S (Owner: Bram Williams)
MODERN CLASSIC SP & PERF OVER 3 LITRE: 1969 Maserati Ghibli Spyder (Owner: Barry Edge)
PRESERVATION CARS PRE 1950: 1924 Minerva AB Tourer (Owner: Greg Mackie)
PRESERVATION CARS POST 1950: 1974 Ferrari Daytona Coupe (Owner: Greg LaManna)
RACING CARS PRE-WAR: 1937 Maserati 6CM (Owner: Tom Roberts)
RACING CARS POST WAR: 1957 Lotus 12 (Owner: Mike Bennett)
MOTORCYCLES PRE 1955: 1954 BSA A7 SS Daytona (Owner: Thomas Weitacher)
MOTORCYCLES POST 1955: 1959 Triumph 650 Bonneville (Owner: Jon Munn)
MOTORCYCLES PRESERVATION: 1972 Triumph X-75 Hurricane (Owner: Jordan Roddy)
ART DECOCARS: 1937 Cord Custom Berlin Coupe (Owner: Terry Dowel)
90 YRS OF THE AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX: 1963 Brabham BT7A (Owner: Peter Harburg)
A TRIBUTE TO CADILLAC: 1959 Cadillac Convertible (Owner: Sam Newman)
LAST DAYS OF AMERICAN SUPERCAR: 1963 Ford Galaxie R.Code Fastback (Owner: Barry Hodson)
MICRO CARS THE PRACTICAL RUNABOUT: 1957 BMW Isetta 300 Coupe (Owner: Alvin Chua)