The 2027 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance will celebrate 40 years of the Ferrari F40, a century of Delage’s Grand Prix World Championship victory and the centenary of the Mille Miglia, alongside dedicated classes for Delahaye, open-front town cars and Italian beach cars. The 76th edition of the Concours takes place on Sunday, August 15, 2027, on the 18th fairway of Pebble Beach Golf Links in California.
Seven principal themes have been announced, although several will be divided into separate judging classes. Delage, for example, will have distinct classes for its pre-war racing cars and road-going models, while open-front town cars will be divided according to their period of manufacture. The organisers have also confirmed a centenary celebration for General Motors’ Art and Colour Section, established by Harley Earl in 1927.
Delage’s inclusion at Pebble Beach Concours 2027 marks 100 years since Robert Benoist dominated the 1927 Grand Prix season in the 15 S 8, winning the French, Spanish, Italian and British Grands Prix. Designed under Albert Lory, the supercharged 1.5-litre straight-eight was exceptionally sophisticated for its period, incorporating twin overhead camshafts and a low-mounted chassis.
Benoist’s four victories secured the World Manufacturers’ Championship for Delage, although the company withdrew its factory team from Grand Prix racing at the end of the season. The marque had previously enjoyed considerable racing success, including victory in the 1914 Indianapolis 500 with René Thomas, before turning increasingly towards luxury road cars. Its eight-cylinder D8 range, introduced in 1929, provided coachbuilders including Figoni et Falaschi, Pourtout, de Villars and Letourneur et Marchand with a platform for some of their most elaborate creations.
Delage also has a particularly strong record at Pebble Beach. A 1938 D8-120 de Villars Cabriolet won Best of Show in 1996, followed by a 1937 D8-120 S Pourtout Aéro Coupé in 2005 and a 1933 D8 S de Villars Roadster in 2010. More recently, a 1938 D8-120 Letourneur et Marchand Aérosport won its European Classic Touring class in 2024.
Delahaye will also receive its own class, continuing the Concours’ longstanding interest in French coachbuilt automobiles. The marque’s Type 135, introduced in 1935, became particularly associated with designs by Figoni et Falaschi, Saoutchik, Chapron and other leading French coachbuilders, yet its mechanical capabilities were demonstrated through competition successes including victory in the 1938 Le Mans 24 Hours.
A 1937 Delahaye 135 M Figoni et Falaschi Cabriolet took Pebble Beach Best of Show in 2000. The marque has also featured prominently in recent competitions: a 1939 Type 165 Figoni et Falaschi Cabriolet won the later-period Figoni Centennial class in 2023 and was among the Best of Show nominees. Another Type 165, dating from 1938 and presented by The Pearl Collection, reached the final selection for Best of Show in 2026.
The Ferrari F40 class at the Pebble Beach Concours 2027 will examine the development of the model from the 288 GTO Evoluzione prototypes that preceded its introduction in 1987 through to the later competition versions. These include the F40 LM developed by Michelotto and the subsequent F40 GTE, which competed in international GT racing during the 1990s.
The F40 has already enjoyed success at Pebble Beach. At the 2024 event, a 1996 Ferrari F40 GTE Michelotto belonging to Jacob Brunsborg won the dedicated class for 1990s BPR and FIA GT racing cars. That display paired competition machinery with its road-going equivalents, also bringing together examples of the McLaren F1, Jaguar XJ220, Bugatti EB110, Porsche 993 GT2 and Mercedes-Benz CLK GTR. The 2027 class will extend the F40’s representation beyond its competition history to encompass the model’s wider development.
Another centenary concerns the Mille Miglia, first held on March 26-27, 1927. The original race was won by Ferdinando Minoja and Giuseppe Morandi in an OM 665 Sport, which completed the Brescia-Rome-Brescia route in 21 hours, four minutes and 48 seconds. Subsequent winners included Tazio Nuvolari, Rudolf Caracciola and Stirling Moss, whose 1955 victory with Denis Jenkinson in the Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR remains among the event’s best-known performances. The Mille Miglia centenary will also be marked in Italy with an extended six-day edition of the modern regularity event, scheduled for May 24-29, 2027. Its route will return to an anticlockwise loop, recalling the direction followed by competitors in 1927.
The Pebble Beach Concours 2027 is collaborating with 1000 Miglia to create a special class and award for the anniversary. The concours has previously celebrated historic road racing with dedicated classes, including a 2021 gathering of cars associated with the Carrera Panamericana. That class was won by a 1952 Ferrari 340 Mexico Vignale Berlinetta presented by Les Wexner.
The open-front town-car classes will provide a different focus, examining the chauffeur-driven coachwork popular among wealthy customers from the early 20th century into the post-war period. The design separated the exposed driving compartment from an enclosed passenger cabin, with British and European equivalents including the Sedanca de Ville and Coupé Chauffeur.
Such cars have a significant place in Pebble Beach history. A 1937 Rolls-Royce Phantom III Mulliner Sedanca de Ville won Best of Show in 1957, followed a year later by JB Nethercutt’s 1930 duPont Model G Merrimac Town Car. The latter was the first of Nethercutt’s six Best of Show victories. A 1929 Rolls-Royce Phantom II Brewster Town Car also won the top award in 1992.
The Harley Earl and General Motors Art and Colour centenary will mark the creation of GM’s dedicated styling department in 1927, following Earl’s work on the original LaSalle. The department helped establish automotive styling as a distinct discipline within the manufacturing process, introducing techniques including full-size clay modelling and the development of experimental vehicles to evaluate future design ideas.
Among its early projects was the Buick Y-Job, completed in 1938 under Earl’s direction and generally recognised as the first purpose-built concept car. GM subsequently expanded the approach through its travelling Motorama exhibitions, which displayed experimental designs including the Buick LeSabre, Chevrolet Corvette concepts and the gas-turbine Firebird series. Pebble Beach previously celebrated General Motors’ centenary in 2008, assembling approximately 20 Motorama cars, including the Buick Y-Job, alongside a 1940 Futurliner and other GM concept vehicles. The 2027 class will concentrate specifically on the origins and subsequent influence of Earl’s design organisation.
At the opposite end of the automotive spectrum, La Dolce Vita Beach Cars at the Pebble Beach Concours 2027 will celebrate the small, open-bodied vehicles produced for Mediterranean resorts during the 1950s and 1960s. The best-known examples were the Fiat 500 and 600 Jolly models created by Carrozzeria Ghia, featuring cut-down bodywork, wicker seats and fringed fabric sunshades. Gianni Agnelli was among the early customers, while the cars subsequently became associated with wealthy holidaymakers and coastal resorts.
The inclusion of beach cars continues Pebble Beach’s expansion beyond its traditional pre-war luxury and coachbuilt classes. Recent editions have introduced dedicated categories for Japanese motor sport, 1990s GT racing machinery and wedge-shaped concept cars, with the 2024 competition even seeing a 1970 Lancia Stratos HF Zero reach the final four nominees for Best of Show.
Further special classes are expected to be announced before the event. Applications for the 2027 competition have opened, with submissions due in January and invitations generally issued by April following consideration by the selection committee.
More details on the Pebble Beach Concours 2027 classes can be found here.
