Vintage Vroom: The Quail Rally

By Jody McCutcheon

As we’ve stated before, we here at Eluxe are fans of vintage cars. Not only are they beautiful and a nod to past automotive glory, but they also provide added utility while keeping “what’s already made out of the waste stream.”  So we were pleased to learn about the inaugural Peninsula Classics Best of the Best Award, a vintage car showcase held from August 16-19, during the Quail Rally at Quail Lodge & Golf Club in Carmel-by-the-Sea.

The Quail Rally is an exclusive motorsport gathering, as indicated by the elite cadre of judges selected for the Peninsula Classics event. Among them were noted car aficionados Ralph Lauren, Jay Leno and Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason, as well as Henry Ford III (the auto magnate’s great great-grandson).

Included in the Monterey Car Week, the award is a fun way for automobile lovers to gather together and acknowledge a whole bunch of beautiful classic cars while celebrating the best of the year from the automotive world. The judges chose the world’s most exceptional car from among a collection of six Best in Show-winning automobiles. The runners up consisted of the following classics:

• 1903 Mercedes Simplex 60hp
• 1924 Isotta Fraschini Tipo 8A F. Ramseier & Cie Worblaufen Cabriolet
• 1930 Cord L29 Brooks Stevens Speedster
• 1965 Ferrari 166 P/206 SP Dino 0834
• 1968 Alfa Romeo Tipo 33 Stradale

The winner? The 1937 Talbot-Lago T150 C SS, Chassis No. 90106 Coupe aerodynamique ‘Goutte d’Eau’ (teardrop shape), with bodywork by Figoni & Falaschi. Belonging to Peter and Merle Mullin of The Peter Mullin Automotive Museum Foundation, the antique vehicle is noted for muscling its way to the head of the pack in top-level races, as well as for its indelible influence on automotive style.

Award co-founder The Hon. Sir Michael Kadoorie, Chairman of The Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels, Limited, (The Peninsula Hotels‘ parent company), cited the Talbot-Lago “Teardrop” for its speed, aerodynamics and elegance.

Congratulations go to the victor and its long-defunct maker. The Talbot-Lago has been around for eight decades, and with good maintenance and upkeep, it may well be around for another eight. It’s conspicuously true that they don’t make ’em like they used to. That’s our loss, and the environment’s loss as well. Thankfully, we have vintage car expositions to remind us that disposable consumerism wasn’t always the way.