A one-off Ghia-bodied Ferrari once owned by Juan Perón, the only Duesenberg SJ bodied by Gurney Nutting, a factory-development Bristol 404 and several significant prototype supercars are among the machinery confirmed for Salon Privé 2026, which takes place at Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire, UK on September 2-6.
More than 70 collector cars are expected for the principal Salon Privé 2026 Concours on Wednesday and Thursday, while the five-day programme also includes the Concours de Vente, the White Collection, manufacturer launches plus separate club and supercar displays. Four UK debuts will be led by the newly revealed Lamborghini Revuelto SV.
Among the earlier cars, the 1952 Ferrari 212 Inter Coupé Speciale brings an unusual combination of Ferrari, Ghia and South American provenance. The car was built as chassis 0233 EU and clothed in one-off Ghia coachwork before being displayed on Ferrari’s stand at the 1952 Paris Salon. It was subsequently acquired by Argentine president Juan Domingo Perón. Before its export to Argentina the car was renumbered 0191 EL, assuming the identity previously attached to another Ghia-bodied Ferrari. RM’s detailed history states that this involved an administrative change of identity rather than an exchange of chassis, body or engine. The car retains 0191 EL today.
It remained in Argentina after Perón was overthrown in 1955, returning to Europe during the 1980s. A later restoration returned it to the yellow-over-black colour scheme it wore at Paris in 1952. It was sold by RM Sotheby’s at Arizona in 2018 for $1,187,500 and has subsequently undergone another restoration. At Pebble Beach in 2024 it finished second in the Ferrari Early class. It will compete in Salon Privé 2026’s Ferrari grouping.
Another car with a fascinating history is the 1935 Duesenberg SJ Speedster, chassis J-585/2614. It was commissioned by Maharajah Yeshwant Rao Holkar of Indore and is the only Duesenberg bodied by British coachbuilder Gurney Nutting. The long-wheelbase car incorporates details commissioned for its original owner, including chrome flagstaffs plus red and blue lamps on its front wings that indicated whether the Maharajah or Maharanee was aboard. It was completed in London before travelling via New York and Indianapolis, where Duesenberg carried out final preparation. The car was eventually delivered to India.
Of 481 Model Js produced, 38 were supercharged SJs, and Salon Privé records that 30 chassis were sent to European coachbuilders. J-585 is the highest-numbered Duesenberg chassis, although that distinction should not be confused with an unequivocal claim that it was the final complete Duesenberg assembled. The car returned to the US during the 1950s and scored 99.5 points at a Classic Car Club of America event in 1963. More recently it won the Peninsula Classics Best of the Best Award in 2023. Its appearance at Salon Privé 2026 on September 2 and 3 will be its first public showing since receiving that award.
Bristol’s 80th anniversary is represented in the main Concours by the 1953 Bristol 404 prototype (pictured above). One of 52 404s built, this was the first definitive example and was retained by Bristol as a development vehicle, testing three prototype engines. It was developed alongside the 450 competition programme and was also the first Bristol to carry the grille treatment subsequently associated with the marque’s post-war cars. The prototype later belonged to Bristol managing director Sir George Stanley Midelton White. It underwent a major restoration in 1965, including 16 coats of black cellulose paint, and was reconditioned again in 2021, when its rear fin was reinstated.
Another car returning after substantial restoration is a 1982 Lamborghini Countach 5000S. The car appeared on the cover of Paul Cockerham’s 1998 book The Spirit of the Bull, and was driven by Vicki Butler-Henderson and Tiff Needell for a Top Gear feature in 2000. When auctioned in 2021 it had been stripped of paint and substantially dismantled, with many of its components contained in more than 50 boxes. It has since been rebuilt in Modena under the supervision of former Lamborghini test driver Valentino Balboni.
Ferrari’s later front-engined cars include an unusually specified 365 GTC/4 (pictured above). Registered in January 1972 and delivered the following month to Baron Giovanni Silvestri, it is one of three GTC/4s originally painted Verde Blenheim and is believed to be the only one of those three paired with a beige interior. The car remained in Italy for more than 40 years before moving to Germany with its current custodian in June 2013.
A 1964 Porsche 901 is another of the confirmed post-war cars, together with an Arnolt-Bristol Deluxe, Alfa Romeo Sprint Berlinetta, 1969 Lamborghini Miura P400S and Ferrari 328 GTS. The 901 will form part of the air-cooled Porsche category. Several development cars will also be judged rather than displayed solely as manufacturer exhibits. A Bugatti EB110 prototype joins the Concours, as does an Aston Martin Valiant prototype.
The modern field will be judged under a revised structure. For the first time Salon Privé 2026 will present separate Best of Show awards for the traditional Concours d’Élégance and the newer Concours d’Excellence. The latter covers contemporary collector cars and will use the M100 judging system rather than the judging procedure applied to the historic field. Both Best of Show awards are scheduled to be presented on Thursday evening.
The Concours d’Excellence entries include the 2025 Rimac Nevera Time Attack, the first electric car to compete in Salon Privé’s Concours. It is one of 12 Time Attack editions and has already covered a 2700km journey from Yorkshire to the Dalmatian coast. A BMW Skytop is also confirmed – the production version was developed from BMW’s 2024 Villa d’Este concept and is limited to 50 cars. It will be joined by Lamborghini Sián FKP 37 Prototype 1, which Salon Privé says accumulated more than 47,000km during Lamborghini’s development programme before being restored and released into private ownership, while a 2025 Bugatti Bolide adds another track-only car to the field.
Outside the judged Concours, the Automotive Gallery has acquired a larger role for 2026. Lamborghini will give the Revuelto SV its UK debut following the model’s world premiere at The Quail on August 14. The latest SV produces a combined 1065CV from its naturally aspirated V12 hybrid powertrain, with production restricted to 1963 cars. Lamborghini quotes 0-100km/h in 2.4 seconds and a top speed above 345km/h.
BRABUS will stage two further UK debuts. The BODO (pictured above) is a carbonfibre-bodied 2+2 Gran Turismo powered by a 5.2-litre twin-turbocharged V12 producing 1000hp and 1200Nm, with the coupé limited to 77 examples (you can read more on this car via our interview with CEO Constantin Buschmann here). The BRABUS 800 Cabrio converts the current W465 Mercedes-AMG G63 into a four-door soft-top using more than 500 newly developed roof components. Its 4.0-litre twin-turbocharged V8 produces 800hp, and production is limited to 50.
Giamaro Automobili’s Krafla will provide the fourth currently announced UK debut (pictured below), appearing in GC specification. Electrogenic and Theon Design are also scheduled to unveil cars, while Petroyle and Talos will stage what Salon Privé describes as their first large public displays. Bristol Motors, Delage Automobiles, Koenigsegg and Elektron Motors are also listed for the Automotive Gallery.
The White Collection will remain on the South Lawn throughout all five days. Salon Privé’s current programme lists more than 20 cars, with the first ten identified in August. They include a Pearl White 2011 Lexus LFA, white and chrome 2008 Bugatti Veyron, Bianco Polo Park Dino 246 GTS, 1955 Porsche 356 Pre-A Speedster and 1963 Auto Union 1000 SP Roadster. The Aston Martin Valiant prototype is also part of the collection, while more recent entries include a Lamborghini Huracán STO and 2026 Radford 62-2 Coupé.
Lotus provides one of Saturday’s more concentrated displays, as six Essex Esprit Turbos (below) are due to appear together on September 5. Only 34 Essex Esprits were completed from an intended run of 100, with 23 in right-hand drive and 11 in left-hand drive, and the organisers state that 26 are believed to survive. The only Lotus Essex Elite produced will join them, while the current event programme also lists an Essex-liveried Lotus Formula 1 car.
A five-day Koenigsegg display presented by SuperVettura runs alongside the White Collection, while the weekend programme adds a Pagani and Bugatti display featuring cars from the Zonda, Huayra, Veyron, Chiron and Bolide families.
From Friday September 4, the Concours de Vente returns for three days. Entries are restricted to specialist dealers, every competing car must be offered for sale and eligibility is limited to machinery registered before March 1, 2011. Cars are judged in classes before the Prix d’Honneur is presented on Sunday. Amanda Stretton heads the judging team, with Richard Hammond and Jason Barlow joining the Sunday panel.
Salon Privé 2026 takes place at Blenheim Palace from September 2 to 6. The principal Concours runs on Wednesday and Thursday, Ladies’ Day follows on Friday, while the Club Trophy and larger private-car displays occupy Saturday. The organisers currently expect more than 1500 privately owned sports cars, supercars and hypercars across the Saturday displays, with more than 1000 scheduled for Sunday.
More information on Salon Privé 2026 can be found here.
