Ferrari's 70th birthday to be celebrated at Motorclassica in October

Let’s hope Friday the 13th proves to be is an auspicious date for the eighth Motorclassica exhibition which will be held at Melbourne’s Royal Exhibition Building from October 13 to October 15.

The event mixes rare and exotic cars and motorcycles with contemporary sports and performance cars, and plays host to the Australian International Concours D’Elegance, the daily Club Sandwich car club displays, the VIP Lounge for entrants and special guests, and the Saturday evening Classic Car Auction, the latter being conducted this year for the first time by Mossgreen.

The organisers say “Australia’s most prestigious automotive event” will assemble a choice selection of entries for the Concours, which will see “the country’s premier classic and collector cars and motorcycles competing in multiple classes for the most prestigious show awards on the calendar, while more than 30 collector cars will go under the hammer when Mossgreen conducts the annual Motorclassica auction.”

A big part of the celebrations will be the celebration of Ferrari’s 70th birthday in an event which is officially supported and sanctioned by the Ferrari factory in Maranello, Italy. The Ferrari Club will bring 70 cars to mark the anniversary for display in the Club Sandwich on Saturday.

The event will also mark the 100th anniversary of Holden’s beginnings in Australia, when the first Holden-bodied car was made.

Also on display will be the very first Australian-built Holden 48/215 1948 prototype, along with three significant concept cars including the EFIJY and Hurricane, plus a unique display of all eight generations of Australian-made Commodores.

And, tying in with the national Lancia Rally, Motorclassica will also pay tribute to 110 years of this innovative Italian marque with a number of iconic Lancia rally cars in original race livery, accompanied by a display of very rare models including one of just two 1947 Lancia Aprila Spyder Gransport Ghia existing in the world, a limited 1957 Lancia Appia GT Zagato and a Lancia Flaminia Supersport Zagato.

The celebrations kick off with the annual Tour Classica, in which Motorclassica cars travel in convoy from Alexandra Gardens on the banks of the Yarra River, through Melbourne’s CBD to the Royal Exhibition Building on Thursday October 12.

“Eight years on it feels like Motorclassica is now firmly established on the annual Australian events calendar and is the go-to event for automotive enthusiasts,” Motorclassica, Event Director Paul Mathers said.

Motorclassica’s official charity for 2017 is the Peter MacCallum Cancer Foundation and tickets are on sale at: www.motorclassica.com.au