In the end I made a good choice.  Torrential rain in the days leading up to the day had the Berry event cancelled.  Instead of cancelling their event, the Rolls Royce club moved indoors.   It was supposed to be held by the water in Newcastle.  The backup location was a hotel parking lot.   Unlike most hotel parking lots, it was not a dingy affair, even the floors were painted. It worked out quite well, as there were areas for the main families of cars (e.g. pre-war, separate chassis, Silver Shadow based, Silver Spirit based and moderns).

I drove up to Newcastle in my 560SEL. I’m taking it on a 4800km road trip in July.  This was a good trial after having a new radiator fitted and fixing a few minor annoyances myself.   The rain was very heavy, but I find the W126 a very surefooted car in the wet.  Nothing else jumped out at me as needing to be attended to.

Given the weather, I was impressed with the display.   There were a fair number of cars that had traveled from Victoria and Queensland.   There was also a great selection of pre-war cars and the RROC must be one of the few clubs that extensively use their pre-war machines.   These cars need to be used an appreciated and it’s always nice to see the on the road.   There was a good selection of the early cars as well as a couple of examples of the V12 Phantom III.

Moving on to the other models, probably my favorite on the day was a Victorian registered Bentley S series, and of course the two different Bentley Continentals were not to be missed.   As you would expect, the largest numbers were in the Silver Shadows and related models such as the Corniche and Camargue, and the Silver Spirit and related models such as the Bentley Turbo R.

There was also a section of modern models on display.  These don’t hold a great deal of interest to me, but were good to complete the history.   I enjoyed the day and it was good to see the event happen despite the weather.

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This year I had a vested interest in Aston Martin & Rolls Royce Concours d’Elegance, as the event was being at held Cruden Farm, Langwarrin. This is the same venue as the 2025 Mercedes-Benz Victoria Concours d’Elegance, in which I’m the Concours Director.

The Aston Martin & Rolls Royce Concours d’Elegance event was a fantastic opportunity to view how these two Clubs utilised the venue. The Aston Martin Owners Club utilised the grass area sandwiched between the lake and the Picking Garden, while the Rolls Royce Club utilised the five ways paddock. The weather outlook didn’t look great this morning, and shortly after arrival the weather threw a curve ball, with a short downpour. I bumped into the Rolls Royce Chief Judge, Neil Matthews, he had hoped the weather could have held up at least until midday, allowing judging to complete.

After reviewing both areas, figuring out how many cars we could park comfortably in Concours and Members Display section & defining our parking layouts, it was time to have a
look at some of the cars. The weather allowed a short 20min window, as the wind gusts spiked up and light faded, even though it was the middle of the day.

For anyone reading this article, the 2025 Mercedes-Benz Club Victoria, Concours d’Elegance is being held in conjunction with a Cruden Farm open day, 16th March and will be listed on Cruden Farm website.  If you’re a motoring enthusiast, or just want to check out Cruden Farm, public entry is $10 per person. For Mercedes-Benz Club Members, you can find out more about the event at https://vic.mercedes-benz-clubs.com/?page_id=33

Author:  Nick Gruzevskis is a contributor to classicjalopy.com, and the custodian of a great collection of classic and modern cars.  Links to some his other articles can be found here

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Given the wild weather of the past few weeks, I was impressed with the number of cars sporting interstate plates.   There were plenty of cars on Victorian, Queensland and South Australian registration.  This is in addition to the expected ACT and NSW cars.   Even more impressive was the number of pre-war cars on display.   I’m always impressed how much these owners actually drive the cars – and drive them long distances.   In my view at least, turning a car into a garage queen is about the worst thing that can be done to it.   Not to mention using the cars keeps important skills alive and makes it worthwhile for parts suppliers to keep parts in production.

The other advantage of walking over to the Rolls Royce Club federal rally display was the better food options on offer!

As you would expect, the Silver Shadow (and its derivatives) and Silver Spirit (and its derivatives) dominated the display.  These are the only models that were sold in large numbers.   There were cars of all types and conditions, from the show cars to the driven regularly.   My favorites tend to be the later small horsepower prewar cars, and the Silver Cloud and its Bentley S series sister.   I would like to own one of these one day.

It was certainly worth the walk over to see the display.

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This year the numbers of Rolls Royces and Bentleys was down considerably.   From what I understand this wasn’t the actual concours day, and I’m not sure if this is a change from previous years.   The other marques somewhat made up for it, but I was curious as to why.   The day was still well worth attending and the cars that did attend were exemplary.   My pick of the day was the silver Bentley Continental.

This years event was the first showing of a Rover 3 litre coupe that has been under restoration for a year or so.   The car is a similar spec to the one I used to own, but much better in nearly every way.   The owner has chosen a classy two tone paint job that complements the blue leather interior.   It is a sort of blue/grey colour for the roof and it looks very good.    As can be seen in the pictures the car still needs quite a bit of re-assembly but the car illustrates what lovely cars these Rover P5s are when in nice condition.

There was also an interesting pair of Armstrong Sidseleys.   The two cars were very similar in colour, but one was a ute and one was a convertible.   They each had a different colour highlight line to provide a bit of contrast.

There were also a few random Mercedes-Benzes from spectators.   I saw a few people from the MBCNSW who were in attendance.   I dove there in my 450SLC, but parked outside.  Next year if I go, I will probably drive in and park with the other ring-ins!

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I would estimate that at least 50% of the collection has turned over since that visit.    It is still a very impressive museum, although the collection is now 10-15% smaller.   In addition, there are probably fewer jaw dropping cars than before.   For example last time in the Mercedes Benz section there was a Gullwing, a 300Sc, 300SE Coupe etc.   This time there were a couple of Pagoda SL and a LHD W111 Coupe.

Some of the highlights for me:

• An Aircraft engine car with a 10L De Havilland engine.
• A Chrysler 300F
• A Rolls Royce 20HP with a sleek tourer body
• The Bentley 4.25 liter

The Gosford Car Museum is a great half day trip.  I got lucky today as the museum was having a free entry day.   I went in my brothers E63 650i, which really came into its own on the old Pacific Highway.   If only there were fewer packs of cyclists that ride 2-3 abreast.

I will probably go again in a couple of years to see if the collection has changed further.

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Starting with the five original cars in the 1950’s the museum has expanded out to hundreds of cars, representing all parts of British Motoring history.   Today the museum is run by a separate trust.    The museum is probably best known for its racing cars and expensive collection of Edwardian vehicles.

As well as visiting the museum, it is possible to tour the grounds and manor house on the Beaulieu estate.   Various guides are on hand to explain features of the house.   The house started out as a monastery until it was dissolved by Henry VIII.   These origins can still be clearly seen in the older parts of the house.

Some highlights of the museum for me were:

• The excellent collection of Edwardian cars
• The 1914 Rolls Royce 40/50 Continental ‘Alpine Eagle’ that I had a demo of
• Two interesting Bugatti cars, including the oldest one in Britain
• The wide collection of racing cars and motorbikes, including Formula 1
• A blower Bentley

They have also done a nice job trying to make the cars look like they are in their natural element.

I was able to visit the museum as I had a free Saturday afternoon on a work trip.  It was an easy drive from Heathrow and the museum can be seen in a couple of hours.

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During the 1912 Trial, the three speed gearbox had proven insufficient.   Therefore, four cars were prepared for the 1913 season with four speed gearboxes.   Power was increased to 75hp (from 60) through increased compression and and improved carburettor.   The four cars were known as Alpine Eagles.

The success of the Alpine Eagle allowed Rolls Royce to market the model to the public as the Continental.  However, both the original four cars and the production model were known informally as the Alpine Eagle.

The car in the video was owned by Lord Montagu and used in many historic rally events.   Perhaps the best known of these was the 1988 Bicentennial Rally where it was driven from Canberra to Perth by Lord Montagu and Prince Micheal of Kent.  Despite being over 100 years old the car is still used on a semi regular basis for historic rally events.

The car is now in the collection of the National Motor Museum in Beaulieu.    It can be seen in the museum, and I was lucky enough to see it being started up by the curators.   It is a really impressive machine, and forms an interesting comparison with the Phantom II parked next to it.   The car has been fitted with an electric starter and was re-bodied in 1950.    As can be seen in the video it is started on a trembler coil and then switched to a Magneto.  It therefore has two spark plugs per cylinder.

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This is a nice event.  It is not well known by the general public and has a relaxed atmosphere.    As usual there was a nice selection of Rolls Royce and Bentley motor cars from the marques entire history.   As you would expect Silver Shadow and Silver Spirit models dominated.   There was a reasonable selection of 50s and 60s cars, and a few rather nice pre-war models as well.

This was the first car event my 9 month old daughter attended.    Not a bad one to start with some classy cars on display.   The cars only put her to sleep for some of the time!

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Not only is the display quite a sight, but its one of the few times of the year you’ll sit in traffic behind a Jowett and have a Daimler behind you.    One of the highlights was seeing a Bentley 6.5 liter in the Vintage Sports Car Club.   I was hoping to see a Derby Bentley as well, but unfortunately it would appear there were none in attendance.    Was hoping a member of the Rolls Royce, Bentley or Vintage sports car clubs would bring one along.   There was a rather nice S Series Continental though.

As usual, the Jaguar Club had a great display, especially the E-Type register.    As with last year, no XK140s on display but a few with other clubs.    There are always large numbers of MGs, Minis etc on display too.    After the big Flynn auction I was wondering if there would be a big display of Rovers this year, but it as pretty similar to last year.    For some reason this year there were only a few Jensen Interceptors on display.   The Bristol club had a nice handout of their key models including numbers in the club and production volume.   A nice touch.

It is great to see some of the more forgotten marques, such as Riley, Alvis, Wolesely, Humber.   These cars are going to need their next generation of enthusiast.   And the marques that are defunct but perhaps better known like Austin, Rover, Daimler etc.   These shows certainly help show off the cars to people who may not have been familiar with them.

UPDATE (1/9/17):  There was a lovely Rolls Royce Silver Ghost that looked it it had been through a very thorough restoration.   I noticed an interesting switch on the side of the car.   Through a friend in the Rolls Royce club, I was able to find out its function.   It controls fuel pumps.   The Silver Ghost apparently has a mechanical pump and a manual pump that can be operated by the passenger.   The switch allows the selection of one, both or neither of the pumps.   It is quite a clever system, as it’s easy to forget that back at the time this car was new, the infrastructure to support the automobile was also in its infancy.

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Some of the highlights for me included:

• The matching pair of Bugatti Type 57S Atalante and other French luxury cars such as the Voisin.
• A striking Rolls Royce Phantom III.
• A number of Duesenbergs.
• The Tucker.
• Various American luxury cars including Packards, Pierce Arrrows etc.
• Mercedes 500K special roadster.

I would return in a heartbeat.    These are cars that are rarely seen at shows in America, let alone in Australia.     It was one of those shows where four hours was gone at the blink of an eyelid and there was still more to see.

I was actually hoping to drive my E-Type there (and park it in the parking lot).   It hadn’t quite arrived from Oregon, so I took the black 560SEC.

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