The search for the world’s finest cars and motorcycles is once again underway. The Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance has announced the featured marques and special classes for its 2012 collector car competition, and entry applications are now being distributed to enthusiasts, beginning the process of selecting the 200 automotive gems that will be displayed on the 18th fairway of Pebble Beach Golf Links on August 19.
Features for the 62nd annual Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance include Maharaja Cars and the marques of Mercer and Fiat. Special classes will recognize Saoutchik Coachwork, AC and AC Cobra, Sport Customs, and German motorcycles.
“Selecting the best cars to compete in the Pebble Beach Concours is vital to our success,” said Chairman Sandra Button. “And the first step in the selection process involves choosing the marques to be celebrated and the designers and engineers to be recognized for leading the way in style and technology.”
Entry applications are being distributed this week to past participants and other enthusiasts with cars that might be of interest and are due to be returned by January 27. Applications will then be vetted by the Concours Selection Committee, and formal letters of acceptance will be delivered in the spring.
Peter and Merle Mullin of Los Angeles went through this same selection process a year ago with their 1934 Voisin C-25 Aerodyne, the car that was ultimately named “Best of Show” at the 61st Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in August.
“The 2012 Concours will feature several notably distinct classes, drawing together some unforgettable cars,” said Button. “This is not an event to be missed.”
The 2012 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance will feature:
* Cars of the Maharajas – The Maharajas, or “great kings,” ruled states large and small throughout India and South Asia until the middle of the twentieth century. As befit their status, these rulers ordered the most luxurious automobiles available from Rolls-Royce, Daimler, Hispano-Suiza, Maybach, Bugatti, Duesenberg, Minerva and others, often specifying unique custom coachwork to accommodate their use in ceremonial processions and oversight of their vast lands.
* Mercer – The Mercer Automobile Company of Hamilton, New Jersey, operated from 1909 to 1925, building some of the most famous high-performance cars of the era. Mercer road and race cars, including the quintessential Mercer Raceabout, will be on display at Pebble Beach.
* Fiat – Special classes will feature cars drawn from many periods in the 113-year history of the Turin, Italy-based manufacturer, including the hugely powerful Grand Prix racers, coachbuilt prewar classics, and small postwar cars, with variants on the original Fiat 500.
Special classes will include:
* Saoutchik Coachwork – Jacques Saoutchik (SOW-chick), a Ukrainian-born cabinetmaker, started his coachbuilding company in 1906 in France. The company became known for crafting extravagant bodies for many marques including Bugatti, Delahaye and Pegaso.
* AC and AC (Shelby) Cobra – In 1961, automotive designer Carroll Shelby and AC Cars began a partnership to create a car to compete with Chevrolet’s Corvette. The result was the legendary AC Cobra, also known as the Shelby Cobra, a roadster built from 1962 to 1965.
* Sport Customs (1930s–1950s) – This class will feature one-of-a-kind cars built in the United States on modified American production chassis or hand-built chassis.
* German Motorcycles – The Pebble Beach Concours will include motorcycles for a fourth straight year, with the creations of German manufacturers like BMW, DKW, NSU and Zündapp on display in 2012.
For the current preliminary list of classes, along with additional entrant information, go to http://www.pebblebeachconcours.net/pages/3008