More than 500 classic and contemporary vehicles were on show when Chelsea AutoLegends Festival roared into The Royal Hospital Chelsea for the third consecutive year. The event, which took place on Sunday, 2nd September, saw thousands of visitors flock to the grounds of the iconic Grade I listed building to admire automotive greats, rub shoulders with some of the biggest names in motorsport and support Armed Forces charity, Walking with the Wounded.
The key themes for the 2012 event were 70s Cool, Stars Cars, Le Mans and Formula 1, while the 50th anniversary of the British Women Racing Drivers Club (BWRDC) was celebrated with a supercar convoy through the streets of London supported by luxury car dealer HR Owen. Many of the clubs members, including British Female Rally Champion Louise Cook and American Le Mans Series veteran Liz Halliday, took part on the day, with a number of the BWRDC members also displaying their vehicles at the event.
A new addition this year was the Techno Park, an area of Chelsea AutoLegends concentrating on the future of the automotive industry and celebrating British innovation in engineering. The World Land Speed Record-attempting Bloodhound SSC and the 200 mph full-electric car from Drayson Racing Technologies were the highlights for visitors, with members from both teams answering questions throughout the day. The Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) also provided younger visitors with information about careers in motorsport and engineering, as well as the international Formula Student programme.
While the current F1 drivers were competing in Spa for the Belgian Grand Prix, Chelsea AutoLegends had its own crop of Formula 1 cars on show. The 2012 Marussia F1 Team car proved popular with visitors, displaying the intricacies of Formula 1 in the 21st century, while the Benettons driven by Michael Schumacher and Nelson Piquet in the early 1990s also proved a hit with the crowds. Visitors were in for a special treat shortly before 4pm, when the ex-Piquet Benetton was fired up and the grounds of the Royal Hospital were alive to the sound of Formula 1.
There was also a brilliant selection of Le Mans racers, ranging from the 1927 winning Bentley 3 litre sport to the Aston Martin DBR9 that was victorious in 2007. The Ace Caf Motorcycle Paddock featured classic and contemporary machines from manufacturers across the world, while the Supercar Paddock was home to the likes of Lamborghini, Ferrari, Rolls-Royce and Maserati. HR Owen also brought along the brand new Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport Vitesse, heralded by the press as the fastest roadster in the world, while the BugARTi car showed a slightly different approach to supercar apparel.
Chelsea AutoLegends organiser Max Wakefield was really pleased with how the day turned out: Each year, we get bigger and better and we had to turn away some really fantastic vehicles, such was the quality of the cars and bikes we already had on show. I was able to talk to some of the visitors and have been assured that the 2013 event is already in their diaries. A really positive result for what is only the third year of the event and something we could not have achieved without the support and dedication of all of our partners, sponsors and organising crew.
Chelsea AutoLegends will return in September 2013, a year that will see the 50th anniversary of Lamborghini and mark 110 years of Harley Davidson.
