Simply put, the Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este, on the shores of Italy's Lake Como, is the world's most exclusive automotive beauty pageant. The basic ingredients are thus: 50 or so of the rarest cars ever built, 30 of the most authentic and impressive motorbikes, and about half a dozen brand-new concept cars (plus a few immaculate villa lawns). Once arranged, invite a special jury and the show-going public over for the weekend, and let them declare their favourites.
It's a recipe that dates back to the show's inception in 1929, but one that has been enhanced over the last two decades by modern-day patronage from the BMW Group, which takes the opportunity to unveil a new – but normally classic-inspired – concept car and motorbike at the show each year. For the 2015 event it revealed the pumped-up 3.0 CSL Hommage and US road-trip-ready Concept 101 bike, plus a choice exhibition of BMW's famous art car collection, featuring work by Lichtenstein, Stella and Warhol.
And in case you had the funds to buy rather than just look, RM Auctions also held a special event at Villa d'Este's sister venue Villa Erba – a pleasant five-minute boat ride away – to sell a few dozen ultra-exclusive and expensive classics (ten of which sold for more than a million Euros each).
1. BMW 3.0 CSL Hommage: BMW wheeled out both its strikingly yellow 2015 3.0 CSL Hommage concept alongside its silver 1970s CSL forebear to make the historic connection explicit. CSL stands for "Coupe, Sport, Lightweight" and where the old model chose aluminium to shave 200kg off the regular 3.0 CS model the new concept uses carbon fibre reinforced plastic to update the lightweight ideal
... While the original 70s model is quite delicate by 21st century standards, the modern Hommage version is wider and sits much lower to the ground, with muscular wheelarches that stand slightly apart from the rest of the bodywork to allow air to vent from the engine. At the back they do something similar for aerodynamic channelling benefit, before curving dramatically upwards to form a huge rear spoiler
... Inside the cabin the lightweight theme is continued with an exposed carbon fibre instrument panel brace teamed up with BMW-signature red and blue striping and stitching. Subtle but striking. Although based on 6 Series underpinnings, BMW says there is no production future for the 3.0 CSL Hommage, which is a bit of a shame
2. Zagato Mostro 'powered by Maserati': Another global unveil at this year's Villa d'Este was the Zagato Mostro 'powered by Maserati' which is a Maserati-badged and engined car designed by one of the rarer independent Italian design houses Zagato. Long of nose and rounded of rump its pleasing exterior design harks back to the 1957 Maserati 450 S Zagato 'Monster'
... Despite entering the Concept Car category at Villa d'Este - won by the Bentley EXP10 Speed 6 first shown earlier this year at the Geneva motorshow - the Mostro will actually go into production, albeit in a tiny run of five. Zagato says all of those have been sold to existing customers. Nice then, but unavailable now
3. BMW Concept 101 bike: It was fitting to see BMW unveil a new concept bike as well as a concept car at Villa d'Este, as Group design boss Adrian van Hooydonk pointed out at the reveal, "we've been making motorcycles even longer than we've been making cars". The Concept 101 bike suggests a future American Touring bike with its drop-shaped front end and big side cases. The '101' name also has US roots as the six-cylinder engine it uses is 1649cc - or approximately 101 cubic inches in American measurement - and Highway 101 is not far from where the bike was developed at BMW's US design outpost Designworks in Newbury Park, California
... One of the most striking conceptual touches on the 101 are the solid mahogany filets - only treated with oil rather than lacquer to keep the wood surfaces more authentic. It looks a little tricky for production but real-world feasibility wasn't the point of this detail says Edgar Heinrich, head of BMW Motorrad Design. 'Maybe for BMW this is something to be tested, but on a show bike we skip this question for the moment. The basic idea was to emphasise the craftsmanship. It's about the combination of the wood, carbon fibre and aluminium parts, which is important in customising bikes.'
4. Classic cars – 1932 Alfa Romeo 8C 2300: The Jury's 'Best in show' vote went to the racing heritage and immaculately preserved 1932 Alfa Romeo 8C 2300…
... The winning 1932 Alfa Romeo 8C 2300 from above, in action ...
1950 Ferrari 166 MM: The public vote on both days crowned the undoubtedly beautiful 1950 Ferrari 166 MM the winner
1946 Alfa 6C 2500 S: Spoiled by seeing lots of the more famous models of car before, Wallpaper* voted for the more leftfield 1946 Alfa 6C 2500 S formerly owned by perfume designer Giuliana Ciuccioli Tortoli. It doesn't look much like an Alfa but the wonderfully smooth lines of its bodywork show the artistry of legendary design house PininFarina
... After getting damaged and changing hands several times, the 1946 Alfa 6C 2500 S was thought to be a 'lost car' until it was bought as a "box of bits" by its current owner and completely re-built
... With further changes made since its 2014 unveil at Californian classic car event Pebble Beach in 2014, it was our star of the show at 2015's Villa d'Este, not only for that refined exterior but also for its beautiful cabin featuring exquisite see-through lucite knobs. It won the official jury's 'Best Interior Design' award at Villa d'Este at least
1952 Pegaso Cupula: Perhaps too quirky to be a grown-up 'Best of Show' contender at Villa d'Este - where there is serious competition - the yolk-yellow 1952 Pegaso Cupula nonetheless won the official jury's most 'Exciting design' of the show as well as the overall 'Best in Show' from the Under-16 voting public due to its striking design
... Known as the 'Spanish Ferrari', only 87 Pegaso cars were made between 1951 and 1958, but this 1952 one-off is even more special with its red-walled tyres, yellow exterior, olive green interior and highly unusual window graphics and exhaust work
Panther Six: Juxtaposed against the classical Italian scenery, the six-wheeled 1976 Panther Six made by the small English car company after the equally-wheeled Tyrrell P34 F1 car of the same year, stood out from the more obvious classics from Lamborghini, Ferrari and Aston Martin. Which is partly why we liked it so much. That and its Thunderbirds puppet vehicle vibe
... Powered by a 600hp mid-mounted engine from the Cadillac Eldorado the 'two-extra-wheels' trend didn't catch on in Formula 1 or for road cars, and only two were ever made
5. Classic motorbikes – 1914 Harley-Davidson 10-E: They don't make them like this anymore. A rather more restrained and slim early 20th Century two-cylinder 988cc Harley graced Villa d'Este's fifth Concorso di Motociclette
1951 Douglas 90 Plus: This 50s bike from British maker Douglas was teamed up with a similarly-coloured suit by its rider to complement the machine's fine bodywork as the parade drove through Villa d'Este's lawns ready to be judged
1934 Motobécane S5C Gran Sport: Fishtail-shaped exhaust pipes look pretty spectacular on this special S5C Gran Sport model by French maker Motobécane. The unusual pipes and other artistic flourishes on the one-cylinder 493cc machine were the ideas of artist and graphic designer Georges Hamel working under the pseudonym "Geo Ham". It won its category "The Luxury of the Thirties" …
... But the overall winner was 1973 Munch-4 TTS-E: Hollywood actor and motorbike-fan Orlando Bloom was one of the judges for this year's Concorso which was ultimately won by this equally rugged and handsome German-made bike and the first 100hp motorbike in the world, courtesy of a four-cylinder car from the NSU Prinz TT
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