The 2014 Autosport international show finished last Sunday with the final public day a sell out. There were several big name drivers attending the final day with Allan McNish and Tom Kristensen opening the show.
Adrain Sutil spoke on the Autosport stage about his season ahead as well as the recent skiing accident that befell Michael Schumacher. He wished his fellow german a speedy recovery. John Surtees and Martin Brundle were at the show once again after opening it on Saturday.
Also attending the show on Sunday were World Rally Champion Petter Solberg and British Touring Car Champions Andrew Jordan, Matt Neal, Jason Plato, Colin Turkington and Gordon Shedden.
The Performance car show had been running alongside Autosport for all four days and had a large amount of performance road cars on display as well as several debuts.
UK debuts included the Vauxhall VXR8 GTS, Abarth 595 50th Anniversary Edition and the launches of the Zenos Cars E10 and Radical RXC Turbo, powered by Ford’s EcoBoost engine.
Autocar had several performance cars as part of it’s display; the Ferrari F12 Berlinetta, which features a 731bhp, V12 engine and a top speed of 211mph headlined. It was joined by some of the best of Britain’s automotive industry, the new, 565bhp Aston Martin Vanquish, 542bhp Jaguar XKRS GT and 616bhp McLaren 12C GT Sprint. From the US the Tesla Model S which produces up to 416bhp from its electric motor was shown for the first time.
The Pistonheads display had the theme of Automotive heroes. Cars being shown here included Chassis Number 1 of the legendary Jaguar D-Type, (the car which won Le Mans in 1955, 1956 and 1957), the Aston Martin Works Vantage and, Lotus’ legendary Carlton which was at one stage the fastest family saloon in the world. From the rally world there were some amazing group B cars from the 80’s. Ford’s RS200, the Audi Quattro and the Peugeot 205 T16.
The seemingly immortal Porsche 911 was joined by fellow german classics; The Mercedes-Benz 450SEL 6.9, a BMW E30 M3 Sport Evolution and the genre defining Volkswagen Golf Mk1. as well A Renault Clio V6 255 was the sole car in the display from France but Japan was represented by renowned Honda NSX and iconic Nissan Skyline GT-R R34.
Overall the show seems to have been a great success with many exhibitors reporting lots of interest with sales of their products or drivers signing up to championships for 2014.
The Autosport International and Performance car show director Ian France was pleased with what has been a successful show;
“It’s been fantastic to have so many champions and distinguished drivers from the world of motorsport at the show,”
“Hosting two F1 drivers and the announcement of Max Chilton’s drive for the season ahead have been major highlights, and we wish all the drivers the very best for the 2014 season.”
“We’ve hosted some of the world’s fastest and most desirable cars for the big crowd at the show to enjoy over the course of the weekend, while talking to suppliers of the latest performance parts and accessories. We thank all of the show exhibitors and attendees, and look forward to seeing everyone in 2015.”
The 2015 show dates have already been announced as the 8th-11th January 2015.
Everyone now looks forward to the 2014 racing season ahead. If the four days of the show are anything to go by we should be set for a great year. By Marc Waller
