Benedict Castle Concours Returns with a Powerhouse Roster of Cars and Collectors
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Three years after COVID-19 shut it down and more than three years after the loss of its beloved founder, Nicole Meguiar, the Benedict Castle Concours has returned, with a powerhouse roster of collector car luminaries and a complete cross section of autos from every era. The grounds of Benedict Castle in Riverside, California, are home to Teen Challenge, one of the most successful drug treatment and rehab facilities in the world. All proceeds from the concours go directly to that worthy cause. Collector car luminaries faithfully attend, too: Chip Foose, Wayne Carini, Mike Brewer, Corky Coker, and the great, 102-year-old Ed Iskenderian himself, all attended this year and no one got paid a dime. They did, however, get to see some great cars.
The Nethercutt Collection's 1931 Bugatti Type 51 Dobos not only won the 1931 Monaco Grand Prix in the third year of that race's existence, it also won Best in Show at Benedict, rightly so.
This was the coolest car of the year when it debuted at SEMA last year and it may still be the coolest this year: Luc De Lay's MarCel Roadster. Chip Foose offered some design direction, too.
"It's just my rendition of a late-'50s Ferrari, Maserati, Aston Martin, Scarab, whatever you like," said renowned metal shaper Luc De Lay. "I wanted to show off the metal shape."
Those in the know, those who actually have cars like this built, always have the bodies built at Marcel's Custom Metal in Norco, California. De Lay says this took three years to hammer out. The evocative shape was something well worth the wait.
The Mullin Automotive Museum's 1938 Delahaye 135 also won an award.
1934 Duesenberg in front of Benedict Castle.
Ron Perry's 1974 BMW 3.0 CSL "Batmobile."
The Motor City Shaker rules the drags!
The charity that is directly supported by the concours, Teen Challenge, for drug addiction treatment, is faith-based.
Lloyd Schultz's '31 Ford Coupe and Robert Bruns' '37 Chevrolet Business Coupe. Ford vs. Chevy!
The teens who are the beneficieries of the concours.
A Mini and a hot ro leave the show at the end of the day.
Graceful Cadillac glides through the grounds.
Everybody loves the BMW 2002.
The Chevrolet DeLuxe trim line was marketed from 1941 to 1952 and was the volume sales leader for the market during the 1940s.
102-year-old Ed "Isky" Iskenderian with Grand National Roadster Show owner John Buck.
The Barris family has always supported the show, and brought a Batmobile this year.
Retired Art Center transportation design chair Stewart Reed designed this Manx SR, with the SR standing for both Sport Roadster and Stewart Reed. It was one of three Manxes lined up here, along with the original Old Red. Reed was one of the auto celebrities at the show.
1934 Duesenberg.
Alan Tieg's '32 Ford Roadster.
1962 Studebaker Lark Daytona, as seen on the TV show Mr. Ed!
Donald Torrence's 1970 Lincoln Continental Mark III, perhaps the epitome of the Lincoln Personal Luxury Coupes.
These cars are Da' Bomb!
Tri-Five Chevy representin'.
Porsche 911.
The Jensen Healey was produced from 1972 to 1976, with a 2.0-liter Lotus DOHC engine making 144 hp, good for a naught to 60 mph time of 8.1 seconds in the US with emissions controls onboard. It died an unfortunate death due to inflation, labour difficulties, and the oil crisis (which doomed the V8-powered Jensen Interceptor).
The first-generation Ford Thunderbird was in production from 1955 to 1957, created to compete with the Corvette. You could get several different V8 engines under the hood-scooped hood, the mightiest including a Paxton supercharger making 300 hp, which was a lot for the day.
Keep on truckin'.
Another Chevrolet DeLuxe coupe.
The MGA was a British sports car made from 1955 to 1962.
This is the original Meyers Manx, Big Red. Bruce Meyers himself drove this the length of Baja many times and it's fitted here with the oxygen cylinder he used to carry fuel for the run. A new Manx EV is in the works.
Tom Neal's 1932 Packard 904 seven-passenger.
Ricardo Darosa's 1936 Packard Twelve.
