among the judges about the restored paint of
these two greats, the 5/C took class honours.
There were no doubts about the winner of the
Ballot road-car class. Belgian André Plasch’s
1921 2LS No 21, with sleek three-seater skiff-
style body by Park Ward, is wonderfully
preserved after just five lucky owners. The 2LS
was the first series-production twin-cam sports
car, and is rated as the fastest of its era.
Other anniversary groups included a marvel-
lous set of 11 Voisins, from a Spartan 1919 C1
tourer powered by a smoky 4-litre Knight ‘four’
to the swansong C25 Clairière. With its sleeve-
valve ‘six’, this class-winner – just pipping Peter
Mullin’s 2011 Pebble Beach winning C25 Aéro-
dyne – was the last true Voisin and is now owned
by Francesco and Julia de Baldanza. A further
highlight was Gabriel Voisin’s personal short
chassis C15, which featured special running-
board cases to carry his fishing rods and a large
rear trunk to store firewood for his camping
trips to the banks of the Saône.
Creating as much interest as the coachbuilt
cars were two Biscooters, the maverick Voisin’s
final design. Originally sporting a 125cc two-
stroke engine, these clever microcars were later
licence-built in Spain by Auto Nacional SA with
193cc Villiers power. More than 20,000 C31s
were produced, but they are now scarce because
many were scrapped for their aluminium mono-
coque bodies. Rarer still was the six-wheeler
Camionette flatbed prototype with 200cc
Gnome et Rhône engine that was shown at the
1957 Paris Salon but never made production.
In total contrast to the distinctive coachbuilt
Voisins, a special class celebrated the BPR
Global GT endurance championship, which
was launched by Peter with Jürgen Barth
and Stéphane Ratel in 1994. The awesome
set included Saleen S7R, Maserati MC12 GT1
and Mercedes-Benz CLK-GTR.
With Richard Mille as the main sponsor,
a strong motorsport theme is guaranteed and
a breathtaking group of Matras was assembled to
honour the 50th anniversary of Jackie Stewart’s
first World Championship. In addition to a trio
of the Scot’s cars – MS9, MS10 and MS11 – were
the ex-Henri Pescarolo MS650, ex-Jacky Ickx
MS5 and Johnny Servoz-Gavin’s MS84.
The 110th anniversary of Bugatti was marked
in inspired style, with a group featuring horse-
drawn carriages previously owned by Ettore
leading a dramatic set of cars, from vintage
Brescia to outrageous La Voiture Noire hypercar.
Chantilly offers a rare chance to see the latest
concept cars in daylight, with these futuristic
wonders presented and judged with matching
models in haute couture fashions, in the classic
tradition of concours d’élégance. McLaren’s
dramatic Speedtail took the top award, while the
People’s Choice was VW’s ID Buggy.
Arts & Elegance is much more than just a
concours. Around the château’s grounds, French
car clubs stage displays with a picnic theme while
classic launches and sailing dinghies offer visitor
rides on the lake. Throughout the estate, jazz
musicians, clowns, magicians, carousels and
classic pedal cars keep the whole family amused
- along with hilarious chicken racing in a nod to
the Gallic symbol. In the closely fought club
contest judged by C&SC, Amicale Facel Vega
took the prize with a stylish set ranging from
Simca Huit Cabriolet to glorious Excellence,
plus an impressive 14 Facellias.
September 2019 Classic & Sports Car 157“Ilove1970sdesignandhave 12 classics from
that era, mostly Simcas and Talbots,” said Gérard
Magro. “I don’t own a modern, and my everyday
transport is a Talbot Tagora. I’ve admired the
Matra Bagheera since it was launched in 1973:
the styling looks a little Italian, and the three
front seats are a fantastic design feature. In
2010 I found this limited-edition version styled
by fashion designer André Courrèges.
“When new, they cost Ffr6000 more than the
standard car and they are now rare – I only know
of five others. I restored the car myself over five
years and did everything except the upholstery.
I drove up from Paris this morning, but a friend
had to bring my mannequin, Cindy, because she
doesn’t fit in the Bagheera. It’s fun to dress up
in period fashions to match the car.”Gérard Magro
MATRA BAGHEERA
A feature of Chantilly
are the French car-club
displays around the woods
and gardens; the Grand
Prize, judged by the FFVE
and C&SC’s Walsh, was
awarded to Amicale Facel
Vega. Below: period
dress is encouraged