Australia’s eighth edition of the Sydney Harbour Concours d’Elegance added a new element for 2026 with a free public preview event in the city’s Royal Botanic Gardens.
More than 30 concours cars were shown ahead of the main event. They then paraded past the Sydney Opera House and over the Sydney Harbour Bridge to mark the 70th anniversary of the iconic Ampol Trial, before being loaded onto barges to be transported to Cockatoo Island for the three-day concours.
Despite storms affecting the first day of the Sydney Harbour Concours 2026, the award and class winners were successfully chosen by the nine-strong international jury led by Alessandra Giorgetti. Making up the roster of judges were Sam Tromans, Ernesto Kloostra, Stuart Field, David Berthon, Ken Gross, Madan Mohan, Todd Gilmour and Octane magazine’s James Elliott.
Top prize was awarded to Peter Harburg’s 1936 Delage D6-70 Milord Cabriolet with coachwork by Figoni et Falaschi. The car, which has an electronic pre-selector transmission, had previously won The French Cup at Pebble Beach. It was crowned Sydney Harbour Concours Best of Show at a special awards ceremony on Saturday 28 February.
It just beat the Best of Show Pre-War winner, Dr John Milverton’s Freestone & Webb-bodied 1933 Rolls-Royce 20/25 and the Best of Show Post-War winner, a 1954 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Gullwing restored by Kienle. This Hellblau (light blue) metallic Gullwing of Barry Fitzgerald was the first example not sold to the US. It was bought new by Aston Martin owner David Brown and later owned by renowned racer and entrant Rob Walker.
The highly coveted Pre- and Post-War Passion awards to acknowledge exceptional owner dedication were won by David and Adele Cohen’s 1934 Bugatti Type 57 Graber Roadster and a 1968 Austin 1800 Ute respectively. The Austin’s restoration had been recently completed by18-year-old Bronte Pagano, who completed every element of the work herself. She now has her eye on her dad’s big-block Corvette that has been sitting in the garage for 11 years.
Bronte’s Ute was pipped to Best Restoration by Nick Grakini’s superb 1971 Toyota Celica GT, which also boasted every accessory, document and tool, all in mint condition. In contrast, the Preservation Award went to Dr Umberto Gallini’s
super-rare factory prototype 1989 Alfa Romeo ES 30 SZ, thought to be possibly the only one that escaped the factory or the crusher. It was brought all the way from San Marino to Sydney for the concours.
Event founder James Nicholls said the Sydney Harbour Concours 2026 had attracted more than 2000 car lovers to experience extraordinary vehicles and lifestyle elements across three days in the middle of Sydney Harbour.
“The eighth edition of the Sydney Harbour Concours d’Elegance has seen a wonderful atmosphere as people enjoyed the vehicles on display and the car parades with expert commentary. They love being able to talk with the owners and judges to discover more about these stunning cars,” he said.
“The event is growing and developing each year as we add experiences and interactions. Significantly, this year we added the special public preview opportunity ahead of the official event, and it was so fabulous to share around 30 amazing cars with people before a stunning convoy across the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
More information on the concours website here.
Sydney Harbour Concours award winners:
Best Of Show – 1936 Delage D6-70 Milord Cabriolet with coachwork by Figoni et Falaschi
Best Of Show Pre-War – 1933 Rolls-Royce 20/25 by Freestone and Webb
Best of Show Post-War – 1954 Mercedes Benz 300 SL Gullwing
Pre-War Passion – 1934 Bugatti Type 57 Graber Roadster
Post-War Passion – 1968 Austin 1800 Ute
Best Restoration – 1971 Toyota Celica GT
Preservation Award – 1989 Alfa Romeo ES 30 SZ
ASI Award of Best Italian Car – 1972 Maserati Bora
RIAR Trophy for the Best Alfa Romeo – 1962 Alfa Romeo 2600 Touring Spider
Touring Superleggera – 1964 Lancia Flaminia GTL
Ladies’ Choice – 1960 Aston Martin DB4GT
Sydney Harbour Concours class winners:
Interbellum – 1937 Rolls-Royce Phantom III by Windovers
The Ashes – 1957 Aston Martin DB2/4
Three-Pointed Star – 1957 Mercedes Benz 300 SL Roadster
Disegno Italiano – Lancia Flaminia Sport Zagato
Carrozzeria Touring – 1960 Lancia Flaminia GT
Plastic Fantastic – 1958 Chevrolet Corvette C1
Catch My Drift – 2011 Lexus LFA
Generation Alpha – 2023 Ford GT
Something For The Weekend, Sir? – 1969 Mercedes Benz 280 SL
