AN EXTREMELY rare 1958 Pontiac Bonneville coupe was judged Best Overall Car on Display at the 2019 Knysna Motor Show.
The show was held at the Knysna High School Sports Fields on 28 April.
It was a huge achievement for owner Kobus Mostert as this year’s show attracted an extremely high standard of invited cars.
Among them, no less than five Mercedes-Benz 300 SL models from the 1950s. This was the biggest single gathering of these iconic sports cars yet in South Africa.
“I have rarely seen a car in this level of originality,” said chief judge Wayne Harley, Curator of the Franschhoek Motor Museum.
“Even the original labels, wire-fixed to hydraulic hoses, were present.”
Fellow judge Stuart Grant, Editor of Classic Car Magazine, remarked on the Bonneville’s high level of specification in a 1950s American car, including silver flecks in the original carpet, power windows, air-conditioning, cruise control and fuel injection.
The Best Old Car Trophy was a hugely popular choice. The sight of John White manhandling the 1928 Bentley 4½ Litre into position in front of the podium recalled Ettore Bugatti’s famous remark about these giant 1920s British sports racers resembling “flying lorries”.
The 91-year-old Bentley was one of over 20 Bentleys that celebrated 100 years of the famous British marque.
The trophy for Best Classic Car went, fittingly, to a 1957 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL, owned by Rick Garret and shown by Andre du Toit.
