1st Concours d'élégance Paleis Het Loo 1999

One of the most popular pre-war BMW models was the sporty 328. It came on the market in 1937 after it had been tested in races like the Grand Prix of Montlhéry in France in 1936. It kept up with its racing pedigree all through its life, winning hundreds of races amongst which the Mille Miglia in Italy and the ever popular Le Mans 24 Hours in France.
It wasn't only effective in races, it was remarkably fit for normal day to day use as well. The production cars were fitted with a nice compact 2-seater roadster bodywork and featured 1971 cc 6-cylinder inline engines, good for 80 hp @ 4500 rpm and a top speed of 160 kph. The production of these cars ended in 1941 in Germany, but the 328 engines lived on in England until the 1960s in Bristol and Frazer Nash cars.
The BMW 328 Cotura on the picture is a rare purpose built racing version made in The Netherlands. Its "special roadster" bodywork is streamlined and lightweight and reminds of Grand Prix cars. This car was manufactured by Co van der Tuyn from Rotterdam and made its first appearance on the racetrack in 1950. It remained in competition until 1958, when Rob Slotemaker drove it to its last victory at Zandvoort. Nowadays it's sometimes entered in classic car races like the classic Mille Miglia. Only three Coturas have been made.

All produced Bugattis are considered valuable classics nowadays. These French cars were meticulously engineered and often had artful designed, custom built bodywork. The marque had an appealing and competitive racing pedigree and production figures were always very limited. It was really the car to have for royalty and the very wealthy.
The Bugatti Type 46 was nicknamed "Petit Royale" (= small Royale) after the big and extremely luxurious Type 41 Royale. It appeared in 1929 and was produced up to 1936. Power came from a straight 8-cylinder unit with a capacity of 5359 cc and three valves per cylinder, producing 140 hp. Top speed neared the 140 kph mark. The version you see here has "Faux Cabriolet" (= fake convertible) bodywork by Dutch coach builder Veth from Arnhem. A unique car.

Best sold Bugatti was the Type 57: 725 cars of this type were produced out of a total Bugatti production of about 6000 between 1909 and 1956. The type 57 came in a number of varieties and body shapes, all wonderfully elegant and sportily powerful.
The standard Type 57 was made from 1934 until 1940 and could be bought as a rolling chassis for coach builders or with factory produced bodywork. On the picture you see the Type 57 with factory 2-seater coupé bodywork in a shape called "Atalante". Engine was a 3257 cc 8-cylinder inline unit with two overhead camshafts, good for 135 hp @ 5000 rpm and a top speed nearing 160 kph. The pressed steel chassis was not very advanced with rigid front and rear axle, elliptic springs and drum brakes on all four wheels.

In my opinion the first golden age of the US car industry was during the last half of the 1920s and the first half of the 1930s. Big, opulent cars were produced back then, with bright color schemes, lots of chrome and flashy designs. Maybe not very elegant or modest, but a feast to look at and impressive at the first glance.
General Motors' Cadillac brand was one of the most successful manufacturers of these upmarket luxury cars in that era. The series 341B Eight sedan model shown here has relatively straight forward styling without much gimmicks. But its size and distinctive two-tone paint job makes it clear for everyone that it is a special car.
A wide range of bodywork styles was available for the 1929 Cadillac, usually made by Fischer or Fleetwood. The Eight had Cadillac's smooth V8 engine, a 5782 cc, 95 hp unit renown for its silky ride and impressive torque. But this was to become only the base model...

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