Hispano Suiza

Looking over the dramatic, retro-inspired "hyperlux" curves of the Hispano Suiza Carmen, the very last word to come to mind is "off-road." But Hispano Suiza announced this week that it plans to go full speed ahead with Extreme E off-road racing.

Earlier this year, the Hispano Suiza Carmen Boulogne became a favorite in the retrolectric hypercar trend, seamlessly bringing together modernized Dick Tracy-era looks with a ferocious 1,100-hp electric powertrain. Now we see it in action.

At last year's Geneva Motor Show, Hispano Suiza rose from the dead to present the Carmen, a retro electric hyper-GT. This year, it follows up with the more powerful Carmen Boulogne, a car in which Dick Tracy would look comfortable lapping tracks.

The 2019 Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance continued to grow in stature this year, but it was the symbiotic cluster of elite auctions that threw up the most interesting results. The collector car market is undergoing generational change, attracting a younger clientele driving prices below $500,000.

Hispano-Suiza was responsible for some of the most stunning automobiles of the early 1900s, and if you're somebody who laments the comparatively soulless design of modern cars, you might just love the art deco curves of this thousand-horsepower, retro-futuristic, electric luxury hypercar.

The Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance was held last Sunday, with 209 of the most celebrated examples of automotive art displayed on the 18th fairway of Pebble Beach Golf Course, just outside Monterey in California. ​Here are the pick of the pics taken by Angus MacKenzie and Somer Hooker at the event.

Rétromobile has been running since 1976, when the most expensive car in the world cost less than $100,000 and long before the term retro had become fashionable. It is one of those places where auctions truly can throw up some remarkable objets d'automotive art. This year it did not disappoint.

The press release touts Concorso d'Elegenza Villa d'Este as "the world's most exclusive beauty contest for historic automobiles and motorcycles," a statement which reflects the small number of elite vehicles chosen for display each year. This year just 51 cars and 41 motorcycles competed.

It's a simple concept yet at least four cars are regularly claimed to be the world's first sportscar. Mike Hanlon looks at the validity of the claims of the four contenders and adds another four, choosing a new winner.

Proof that priceless automotive barn finds are still out there is the discovery of 60 cars untouched for 50 years on a French farm included four Ferraris, eight Delahayes, a Hispano Suiza H6B, a Maserati A6G and nine Talbot Lagos. Sure enough, one of the Ferrari's was a California Spider.