“Something old something new something borrowed something blue…”
This years Concours d’Elegance was the perfect marriage between luxury and style. The 15th Annual Concours d’Elegance held at the Ritz Carlton on Amelia Island brought together an exotic, eclectic and in some cases eccentric array of automobiles and enthusiasts from across the country and from around the globe.
Notable staples in the luxury and exotic market such as Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Porsche, Aston- Martin, Jaguar, Maserati and Ferrari were well represented with excellent examples ranging from very early “horseless carriages” to late model concept cars and recent releases currently available for consumption in the show room. Chevrolet, Oldsmobile and Cadillac represented the domestic market with concept cars such as the Dodge Zeo and the new “Transformers 2” Chevy Corvette.
This year’s Concours d’Elegance, which benefits charities such as Community Hospice of Northeast FL, paid special tribute to the “King of Nascar” Richard Petty, and several of his signature race cars, painted in “Petty Blue” of course, as well as the man himself, were on display. Also being honored were the cars of Mercedes-Benz, the 300SL, 380, 500, and 540k, and several Exclusive AMG vehicles were available for test drives such as the 2010 E63 AMG sedan and SL63 a 6.3-liter, 518 hp V8, convertible.
Additionally the 15th Annual Concours marked the Southern Region Debut of the New 2011 SLS AMG “Gullwing” Super Car in a past-meets-present vehicle Display which included the Mercedes-Benz 1952 300 SL Racing Coupe and 1954 300 SL Gullwing. The limited SLS AMG’s exclusive features include Gullwing doors and a 563 hp V8 engine. Most notably were the Maybach 57 a modern super-luxury car powered by a V-12 bi-turbocharged engine that reportedly accelerates from 0-60 mph in 5.2 seconds and the ultra exclusive, limited edition AMG SL 65 coupe, touted as a modern super-exotic car powered by a robust V-12 bi-turbo as well. Unfortunately the AMG SL 65 coupe was not unavailable for test drive.
Rounding out the field were several BMW racing cars, the new Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport, a Lingenfelter Camaro, and several offerings from Lamborghini, Bentley, Tesla Motor cars and Spyker, respectively. We look forward to next year’s Concours d’Elegance to continue this enduring tradition of luxury, style and excellence.
