132 TFL WEB BOOK 2 P..

Now in only its fourth year, thisconcours boasting the tagline “for veryimportant cars only” was already in itssecond year accepted into the LouisVuitton Classic Concours Award circle.This prize is presented annually to oneof the Best of Show winners from themost famous Concours d’Elégancein the world, which includes PebbleBeach and Villa d’Este. While thereare only around 40 vintage cars in 17categories invited, they do represent ahigh standard. This international flavordoes, of course, mean that many of thecars have made the rounds and are bynow internationally known.This year there were no Rolls-Royces and only three Bentleys ofwhich two won their classes. VolkswagenAG is a lead sponsor and thus Franz-Josef Paefgen, formerchairman of Bentley Motors and now president of BugattiAutomobiles S.A.S., chaired the jury on another splendid Septemberday at the inner court of the Grand Hotel Castle Bensberg.They awarded top honors to a 1965 Ferrari Dino166P/206P (#0834) whereas the public recognized a 1957Mercedes-Benz 300 Sc Roadster (#7500030).This is one of the two cars Bentley Motors campaignedthat year. It was piloted by Dudley Benjafield andBertie Kensington-Moir who lasted only until round19 when they ran out of gas—because apparentlyeveryone had forgotten that the first 20 laps had to berun with the top up which burned more fuel.Its racing days over, Bentley sales manager A.F.C.Hillstead owned 1138 before Mr. Lyle, co-owner ofthe sugar maker Tate & Lyle, put his name on the pinkslip. After WWII, 1138 moved from London to thesouth of England before coming to the US in 1966.It was comprehensively restored in Texas in 1985.

No stranger to these pages,B476DA makes the concoursrounds these days in a big way.This is only right for such animportant car and makes onewonder all the more why theCrestas were such “sleeper”cars for so long.Owned first by Precisa Distributors Inc. in Seattleand converted for them to lhd, B476DA then residedwith owners in Washington, Florida, and New Yorkbefore returning to Europe in 1990. Wildae RestaurationsLtd. in Devon, England did a ground-up restoration;the car is painted Brewster green (which thephoto doesn’t show very well) with light green leatherand dark green piping. At Bensberg the car won the“Small Series Gems (Unique Vehicles)” class.This car was ordered new by John D. Rockefeller Jr. andshipped on the American Flyer to New York. In the mid-1990s it returned to Europe, to Germany. Note the slightlyworn interior. It won the “Post-war Open” class here.