Photo ©Rolex/Tom O’Neal Monterey Car Week is singular — no other car enthusiast event in the world can compare Over the past few years, it’s not been uncommon to hear event organizers in the U.S. declare that their weekend is going to be “the next Goodwood.” Or the “American Rétromobile.” And in fact, we can eagerly anticipate the versions of Rétromobile and Goodwood that are now coming to the U.S. But while American interpretations of these Euro-centric events are headed here, I will tell you what I have never heard, in Paris, London, Rome or anywhere else: “Let’s bring Monterey Car […]
Photo ©Rolex/Tom O’Neal
Monterey Car Week is singular — no other car enthusiast event in the world can compare
Over the past few years, it’s not been uncommon to hear event organizers in the U.S. declare that their weekend is going to be “the next Goodwood.” Or the “American Rétromobile.”
And in fact, we can eagerly anticipate the versions of Rétromobile and Goodwood that are now coming to the U.S.
But while American interpretations of these Euro-centric events are headed here, I will tell you what I have never heard, in Paris, London, Rome or anywhere else: “Let’s bring Monterey Car Week to Europe.”
As we continue to bask in the afterglow of August, the uniqueness of Monterey becomes more apparent.
Car Week (actually 10 days long) included concours, auctions, vintage racing and dozens of ancillary events.
All-American
I’ve attended many of the premier events in Europe, from Salon Privé to the Mille Miglia (as an entrant in 1992 and ’96), and raced an Alfa Romeo GT Junior at Paul Ricard, Mugello, Montlhéry and other tracks as a part of the Modena Cento Ore. I’ve also attended the concours at Villa d’Este, the swap meet at Padua (where I found bumpers for my Alfa Giulia Super), and a host of other European events. In scope, they’ve been local to national, and included the Festival of Speed and the Revival at Goodwood, as well as Rétromobile a half-dozen times.
At not one of these events has anyone ever compared them to Monterey Car Week.
What sets Monterey apart? First, it is a series of large-scale events, not confined to one racetrack, show field or airfield. It takes over the entire Monterey Peninsula. See Monterey, the marketing organization for Monterey County, estimates that over 100,000 visitors come to the area for the occasion, which includes more than 35 official events.
Many attendees drive their own cars. Southern California is unquestionably the epicenter of car enthusiasm in the U.S., and Monterey’s proximity to Los Angeles (not to mention San Francisco) means a non-stop stream of classic and modern cars rolling down Highway 101 to Monterey and Carmel.
That’s not going to happen at Villa d’Este.
Money honey
Going to Monterey is not for the financial faint of heart. Savvy lodging owners often more than triple their rates for the week. I paid $1,500 a night at the downtown Portola Hotel & Spa three years ago, and I needed two rooms for four nights. (I recall that when I asked for “the friendly price,” the response was, “You’re lucky to get a room, period.”) So my hotel bill alone was $12,000, before taxes, parking and resort fees. But these costs have never dampened the enthusiasm.
There are some free events. However, Pebble was $650 if you bought a general admission ticket the day of the show, and the “Eve On The Green” dinner at Quail Lodge was $4,500 per person, and quickly sold out.
Corporate America has discovered that the affluent, passionate car fanatics in Monterey are an ideal customer base for everything from exotic-car unveilings to special-edition watches to private-jet fractional ownership programs. There is no other automotive event in the world that attracts so many wealthy car enthusiasts.
Youth movement
Social media has also discovered Monterey Car Week. Reaching a new peak this year, hundreds of young people armed with cell phones have inundated Monterey, spotting the most outrageous Lamborghini or Pagani to snap a selfie with.
My first thought was that we don’t have to worry about our affection for cars dying out with our Baby Boomer generation. Today’s kids love cars as passionately and intensely as we did at their age. While we were waiting anxiously for each issue of Road & Track and pored over the road tests inside, today’s young people are simply showing their love through their thousands of posts online.
And it’s not just modern exotics they are posting about. Pictures and videos of the $42.9m 1964 Shelby Cobra Daytona coupe and $18.7m 1963 Corvette Grand Sport were as prevalent as the $40m 2026 Ferrari Luce.
An anniversary to remember
This year, the 75th annual Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance was the Sunday cherry on the sundae. It featured 218 cars from 30 states as well as 14 countries outside the U.S. There was an in-person attendance of over 20,000, all livestreamed on YouTube with an estimated 60,000 viewers and non-stop social-media coverage. Best of Show was awarded to a 1935 Duesenberg SSJ Special Speedster formerly owned by actor Clark Gable, now owned by SCMer Harry Yeaggy of Cincinnati, OH.
From a few races and a Sunday car show, Monterey Car Week has evolved over the past 75 years into the definitive, fully immersive car week. From the freshly unveiled Singer Louis Vuitton Edition to a 1956 Maserati A6G Zagato coupe, every enthusiast has something to go bug-eyed about when they see it parked on Alvarado Street or cruising along 17-Mile Drive.
If you are looking for a fantastic vintage race, consider the Phil Hill Cup at the Goodwood Members’ Meeting. For an extraordinary concours, there is the Hampton Court Palace. But if what floats your boat is a weeklong, all-encompassing automotive feast with dozens of unique events to choose from, there’s only Monterey Car Week. There is simply nothing else like it anywhere in the world.
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