- JD Classics entries awarded second in class and third in class at the prestigious Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance
- Wins for the Ford GT40 Mark III Prototype,Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing Alloy mark the seventh consecutive year JD Classics has won a major award at the event
- Contested by more than 200 vehicles, and featuring a team of more than 100 experienced judges, the Concours d’Elegance is one of the world’s finest classic car events
Maldon, Essex, Tuesday 23rd August: JD Classics is celebrating its seventh consecutive year of awards at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, with second-in-class and third-in-class finishes for its entrants. Perhaps the most prestigious classic car event in the world, more than 200 vehicles flock to the Pebble Beach Golf Links each year to compete.
The first of JD Classics’ entries was a 1966 Ford GT40 Mark III Prototype, forming part of the particularly competitive ‘Class W: 50th anniversary of Ford GT40 Victory at Le Mans’.
Chassis number XP130/1 has a rich history, having originally been developed when GT40 Mark I production finished and Mark II production began. The unused chassis then became the basis for the left-hand-drive prototype of the Mark III GT40 road car.
It was this car that was showcased at the New York Motor Show in 1967, and featured in many contemporary magazine articles. Later purchased by the ‘Gulf Oil’ family in 1973, the car was then restored, repainted in yellow and sold again in 1976.
The car was converted to Mark I racing specification in 2003, which is how it was when acquired by JD Classics in 2010. JD Classics’ team of more than sixty craftsmen then undertook a full restoration of the GT40 at its Maldon facility to return it to original Mark III Prototype specification. At every step of the process the restoration was overseen and authenticated by leading GT40 expert, Ronnie Spain. It was this sympathetic restoration that secured JD Classics third place at Pebble Beach this year in Class W.
JD Classics also entered a 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300SL ‘Gullwing’ Alloy Coupe into Class O-1: ‘Post-war Touring’. Of the 29 alloy-bodied Gullwings ever produced, this car was uniquely finished in a combination of Elephant Ivory paint and Ivory and Tartan interior. Subject to a full restoration in 2014, followed by 1000 hours of concours detailing, completed in August 2016, the Gullwing’s rarity and excellent condition secured it second in Class O-1.
Derek Hood, Managing Director of JD Classics, said: “With more than 100 judges, many of whom have over 30 years’ experience judging events like this, it’s extremely difficult to win awards at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. For our work to win year-after-year as it has is all the evidence you could ever need that our engineers and craftsmen at Maldon are among the best in the world.”
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