The second ever Salon Privé at the Royal Hospital Chelsea took place over the weekend with over 18,000 visitors over the three days of the event.
Some new launches included the Maserati GranTurismo and the Rolls-Royce Phantom Extended.
Again, all cars on display were for sale, with classic car dealers bringing along some choice stock for the ‘Concours de Vente’. A 1954 Aston Martin DB2/4 Vignale won the top Prix d’Honneur award at the end of the show.
Other new car launches included the Genesis GV60. Genesis is Hyundai’s luxury arm and the new GV60 features both face and fingerprint recognition to open and start the car. You can leave your keys at home once the system has been set up and I’m sure it won’t be long before this tech spreads to other cars.
Also on view was the new Polestar 3, Volvo’s EV offshoot. Polestar also had the limited edition 2 BST edition 270, a handling-focused EV with 476bhp and a 0-100km/h time of 4.4 seconds. Despite all this performance, it’s a proper family SUV, although its standard go faster stripes really make it stand out. Only 270 hand-built cars will be available worldwide and the car comes with bespoke Öhlins customised dampers, 25mm lowered springs, quicker steering and 21” forged alloys, Brembo brakes and a front strut brace.
It wasn’t all cars, either, with other luxury makers introducing new product lines, including Coachbuilt Whisky who launched their new blend with 2009 Formula 1 World Champion Jenson Button and whisky expert George Koutsakis. The blend is from five Scotch regions and demonstrates the immense skill required to piece together a beautifully crafted whisky.
Event Director David Bagley said: “The atmosphere has been unforgettable throughout the event, and everyone has agreed that it’s great to be back in the capital for our second year at Royal Hospital Chelsea. Salon Privé London has delivered everything that you’d expect – superb cars, first-class hospitality and a prestigious location – and the unique Concours de Vente once again proved to be a huge success. With many new cars and luxury products being shown for the first time at Salon Privé London, there were no end of delights for our record-breaking attendance to enjoy.”
The next Salon Privé Concours d’Elegance takes place at Blenheim Palace from August 30 to September 2.
Picture Gallery
