LONDON CONCOURS - The London Concours, presented by Montres Breguet, is delighted to announce that for 2022, its class ‘The Collector’ will feature star cars from Rodger Dudding’s Studio 434.
Running from
the 28th-30th June at the Honourable Artillery Company in the heart of the City
of London, this summer’s event will assemble the finest examples from Dudding’s
astonishing array of machinery – which now numbers well over 400 motor cars in
total.
The collection
began in the 1970s, initially with a Jensen Interceptor FF and Dudding’s
father’s Morris Minor. It is now thought to be the largest privately assembled
collection in the UK, if not Europe. The enthralling selection of metal,
amassed over decades, is a bold individual collection, one that charts the
history of British and European motoring through the ages – giving a unique
sense of how cars have evolved from the early 1900s to the present day.
Ordinarily
housed in Dudding’s sprawling warehouses, the London Concours will offer a
special opportunity to view the star cars on the manicured lawns of the
Honourable Artillery Company HQ, at the capital’s summer automotive garden
party.
Among the cars
on display will be an example from one of the automotive industry’s oldest
marques – AC. Guests to the HAC will have the opportunity to examine the
British firm’s extremely rare, high performance GT car of the 1960s – the AC
428 Coupe. Based on a stretched Cobra chassis, the 428 was nearly a quarter of
a ton lighter than its rivals – the Aston Martin DBS and the Jensen
Interceptor. With a substantial, 7.0-litre Ford V8, it packed serious
performance: 5.5 seconds to 60 mph and over 150 mph flat out. Also known as the
‘AC Frua’, only 51 ‘fastback’ versions were produced of this alluring
coupe, which compellingly blended British charm, Italian style and American
brawn.
The display
will also feature an AC from the 21st century, the 378 GT Zagato. Launched at
the 2012 Geneva Motor Show, the GT combined bruising performance, courtesy of
an LS Chevrolet V8, with a stunning Zagato designed body – one that still looks
decidedly modern 10 years on. Analogue, with a manual transmission and no
driver aids of any kind, the 378 was supposed to herald a new era for AC.
Sadly, this was not to be; Dudding’s car remains the sole 378 Zagato in
existence. A rare opportunity to pore of this unique, alluring car, and ponder
what might have been.
The Collector
class will also play host to an example for the car that has for some, come to
define Dudding’s collection: the Aston Martin Lagonda. With its wedge like
design and high-tech, if temperamental, digital instruments, the V8 powered
Lagonda was spaceship-like in 1970s Britain, removed from any Aston Martin,
indeed any car, that had come before it. The Lagonda on display is one of a
remarkable 26 in Studio 434’s collection. Dudding acknowledges it to be
something of a ‘Marmite’ car, noting, “you’re certifiable if you have one…what
happens when you have 26?”
The line-up of
cars will also include the Lagonda’s most direct antecedent, if there is one,
the Lagonda Rapide Sports Saloon of the 1960s. An earlier foray by Aston Martin
into reviving the revered Lagonda name, the Rapide’s elegant shape was designed
by Touring of Milan, and was produced for just three years, from ’61 to ’64.
Based on the DB4’s platform, the chassis was lengthened by some 16 inches and a
De Dion axle added to provide the rear space befitting of a luxury saloon. The
Rapide featured the familiar Tadek Marek straight-six, enlarged to 4.0-litres
and similar to the engine that later powered the iconic DB5. Extremely rare,
only 55 of these stylish sporting saloons were produced, all built by hand,
specially to order. The London Concours will offer a special opportunity to
savour one in an intimate setting.
The breadth
and reach of the Dudding collection will be borne out by the presence of the
automotive, and indeed cinema, icon of the 1980s, the DeLorean DMC12. Famed for
its appearance in a certain sci-fi comedy film, the DMC12 was produced in
Belfast between 1981 and 1983. With its avant-garde shape by the masterful
Giugiaro at Italdesign, brushed stainless steel bodywork and gullwing doors,
this much-loved car is sure to entertain the crowds when it takes to the HAC’s
lawns this June.
These
fascinating motor cars, and many more besides, will be assembled as the London
Concours celebrates Dudding, the most passionate of enthusiasts, with this
special ‘Collector Class’ display. Further announcements will be made about the
exiting further classes in the coming weeks and months, as we build up to the
6th iteration of the event, sure to be another occasion of complete automotive
indulgence.
Andrew
Evans, London Concours Director, said: “We are delighted that for 2022 the
London Concours will feature star cars from Rodger’s astonishing collection.
Our class ‘The Collector’ was conceived to celebrate the most passionate and
committed car enthusiasts; Rodger is perhaps peerless in this regard.
“We look
forward to bringing motor cars from this astounding collection to the heart of
the City this summer. Guests will be able to savour truly special cars,
delectable food and beverage options, and browse a carefully curated selection
of designer brands and boutiques at London’s ultimate automotive extravaganza.”