Salon Retromobile 2025 kicks off the Classic Car Season
Images: Ameya Vikram Mishra
The official poster of this year's Salon Retromobile celebrated 70 years of the Citroën DS, a symbol of French design elegance and technological prowess. The poster presented the DS Balloons designed by advertising executive Claude Puech, which were used as a marketing campaign by Citroën in 1959 to highlight the car's hydropneumatic suspension technology which provided Rolls-Royce-level of comfort and ride quality, at a fraction of the price.
A live model of this poster was presented at the Retromobile with a DS 19 in the orange ‘Écaille Blonde’ colour resting on four large balloons in place of its wheels, symbolising the wonders of the hydropneumatic suspension.
Accentuated by a beautiful chandelier, the presentation looked absolutely stunning.
Also gracing the occasion was the winner of the Peninsula Classics Best of the Best Award 2024, a 1964 Ferrari 250 LM. The Ferrari was chosen from a select group of 9 cars which had won awards at major concours events last year (and was the youngest car of the lot).
One of only 32 ever produced, this particular example enjoyed a successful racing career between 1965 and 1967, winning at Brands Hatch, Snetterton, and Silverstone in 1966. It also participated in Le Mans in 1968.
Mercedes got its A-game to the Retromobile with a 1971 Mercedes-Benz 600 (W 100) which was owned by the famous opera singer, Maria Callas, looking elegant with blue velour seats and high-gloss polished wood. The 600 was accompanied by the Bruno Sacco-designed C111 prototype, with its rotary engine on display for the public, along with a 300SL gullwing body shell adding to the aesthetic.
Yet, the mind-blowing collection of some of the finest pre-war Mercedes at the Axel Scheutte stand managed to overshadow Mercedes' own display. Featuring two majestic pieces of art on wheels from Sindelfingen – a menacing-looking black 1934 500K Special Roadster (ex-Sir Ronald Gunter) and a very original red 1937 540K Special Roadster – the Mercedes specialists truly stole the show.
The most interesting car from the stand was a Saoutchik-bodied 1928 680 S Torpedo-Sport Roadster, Type 'Cannes'. One of just 12 ever produced, this example is the only survivor of the three unique short-windshield variants, representing the peak of Art Deco design in the late 1920s. It was displayed at the 1929 New York Auto Salon and won Best of Show at the 2012 Pebble Beach concours.
The leading auction houses didn't hold back either, with Gooding & Co. presenting a 1989 RUF CTR ‘Yellowbird’ along with a 1954 Fiat 8V Berlinetta, and Artcurial offering a barrage of V12 Ferraris and special coach-built Derby Rolls-Royces and Bentleys.
What stood out for me from the Artcurial lot was a 1967 Alfa Romeo 2600 Sprint Zagato, which looked striking in black. One of just 105 examples ever built, this was not only more powerful than the regular model but also showcased a more athletic and sporty design, demonstrating Zagato's magic touch. Sold for 250,000 euros according to the Artcurial website, this Alfa was my pick for the ‘Best of Show’ (in case anyone asked!).
Just like last year, the star of the Lukas Hüni stand was a rare pre-war Bugatti. This time a supercharged, aluminium-bodied 1937 Type 57C Atlante with dramatically streamlined Jean Bugatti Art Deco design. Being one of only two recorded surviving examples of its kind, it is believed that only 10 were built entirely in aluminium as opposed to the steel variant.
This year's edition also featured a special Formula 1 display, with some legendary cars from the golden era of the melodious V10 engines. Seeing Michael Schumacher's 1995 Benetton and Jacques Villeneuve's 1997 Williams – two world championship-winning cars, right next to each other – was simply incredible!
The cherry on top was the ‘surprise’ (for me) appearance of the great René Arnoux for a short interview. As he was shown a clip of his fierce duel with the flat-12 Ferrari of Gilles Villeneuve at Dijon in 1979, the crowd cheered, celebrating the local hero. Even decades later, his passion for the sport was palpable as his eyes lit up when a young fan asked him about his first win at Interlagos in 1980.
Of course, yours truly didn't miss the chance to click a quick selfie with the French legend.
Incidentally, the Renault RS10 from the same year which was driven by Arnoux's teammate Jean-Pierre Jabouille, the winner of Dijon 1979, was also on display.
Talking about Formula 1, this year FIVA took the opportunity to induct Jean Todt, the man behind Ferrari's unprecedented success in the 2000s, into its Hall of Fame.
The 5-day event concluded on Sunday, marking the end of the 49th edition of Salon Retromobile. As always, I will be looking forward to next year!