Star Cars

The Festival of Speed has an enviable reputation for attracting the world's most significant racing cars from every era. It is the only event of its type in the world where you can see steam cars and leviathan Edwardian racers running alongside top Formula One teams or the latest Le Mans challengers, plus many of the significant motor sport landmark cars between.

Expect to see a selection of the following:

Formula 1 Current cars from top teams, such as Ferrari, Honda, McLaren, Red Bull, Renault, BMW, Toyota and Williams. Plus key machines from the history of the World Championship: 1950s front-engined thunderers; dainty and daring 1960s mid-engined pioneers; early high-winged cars of the late 1960s; 1970s Ford DFV-powered aerodynamic innovators; ground-breaking ground-effects cars of the early 1980s; 1000bhp mid-1980s turbochargers; and high-tech, high-revving 1990s wailers.

		World rallying Historic and contemporary rally cars can be seen in action on both the hillclimb course and the Forest Rally Stage.  The latest contenders from some of the top works teams such as Ford, Subaru and Peugeot can be seen, along with rallying greats from yore: fire-spitting 500bhp Group B cars of the 1980s, including Audi's Sport Quattro, Lancia's Delta S4 and Peugeot's 205 T16; limited-production Group 4 chargers like the Lancia Stratos and Alpine-Renault A110; and 'standard saloons, sideways with spotlights' (from Allard P-type to Escort RS2000) representing the days before purpose-built homologation specials.

The glamour of Indianapolis Each year, the Festival of Speed features a selection of the world's most celebrated Indycars from the USA: pioneering pre-war Millers and Duesenbergs; archetypal front-engined roadsters from Watson and Epperly; plus later F1-influenced mid-engined aerodynamic monocoques, from Lotus 34 through to current cars.

		Bergspyders and endurance road racers Classic sports cars that competed in the great road races such as the Mille Miglia, Targa Florio and Carrera Panamerica, plus Europe's epic mountain-climbing races up tortuous and challenging passes. This includes everything from Lotus-Climax 19 to Mercedes-Benz 300SL prototype, from 700cc BMW RS to Ferrari 250 GTO.

Touring cars The most evocative European production racing cars from the Fifties through to modern times: Jaguar Mk2, Ford Galaxie, Lotus Cortina, Mini Cooper, BMW 3.0CSL 'Batmobile', 1970s Supersaloons such as Vauxhall Firenza ‘Baby Bertha’, Sierra RS500 Cosworth, BMW M3 and many others.

		Hot rods, salt flat racers, dragsters and Land Speed Record cars Alternative thinking from the vast open spaces of America, where the intricacies of braking and fine handling give way to the simple maxim of going as fast as you can in a straight line. The Festival has featured everything from cut-down 1920s street sedans and cars made out of aircraft belly tanks to tyre-frying, wheel-standing dragsters and the supersonic Thrust SSC Land Speed Record holder.

CanAm, TransAm and NASCAR A selection of landmark machinery from America's legendary National competitions: the world's most powerful road-racing sports cars; wild modified production coupes with stacks more power than grip; plus rumbling V8 stock cars from the heavy metal of the 1960s to awesome 'road car silhouettes' of modern times.

		Titans Herculean single seaters from motor racing's first Golden Age: separate chassis, superchargers, sit-up-and-beg or streamliner from the sport's legends. Alfa Romeo 8C; Auto Union V16; Bugatti Type 35, 51, 53 and 57; every conceivable ERA; Mercedes-Benz W25, W125, W154 and W165; front-wheel drive and four-wheel drive Millers: all are Festival favourites.

Vintage racers Legendary cars from the early years of international motor sport: chain-drive city-to-city road racers; thunderous aero-engined speed record cars; plus Grand Touring cars from such great names as Alfa Romeo, Bentley, Delahaye, FIAT, Mercedes-Benz, Napier, Peugeot and Sunbeam.

		Precursors The dawn of motoring produced some fabulously quirky innovations: steam-powered road racers; rickety 'horseless carriages' comprising little more than a pony cart with rudimentary engine; Edwardian motorcycles that live up to their name surprisingly literally; lightweight cyclecars that cross the boundaries between motorcycle and automobile. Even Roman chariots have featured at the Festival.

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