Chateau Impney is a grand 106-bedroom hotel designed to look like, well, a French chateau. It started hosting the Chateau Impney Hill Climb back in 1957 – an excellent year – and continued to do so through the early 1960’s. The hill was a short course of just 500 metres and attracted some of the UK’s biggest motorsport personalities of the day. The event stopped being held in sometime in 1967 but was revived in 2015, to considerable success, attracting ever-increasing crowds. However, the hotel was closed at least in part as a consequence of the pandemic and plans to re-open it have so far not gone beyond the publishing of a consultation paper.
This was my first visit to Chateau Impney, though I had seen the building when driving by a couple of times. Built in the 1870’s as a private residence, the chateau has been a hotel since 1925 and undergone various refurbishments and expansions, not least after WW2 left it in a dilapidated state. Unfortunately, in the 21st century it has endured its share of financial difficulties and the pandemic obviously didn’t help. It’s an extremely impressive building, and it would be good to have it properly open again.
Organising an outdoor event in the UK at any time of year, let alone early February, is fraught with weather-risk, and Sunday morning dawned grey and damp, so I donned my reasonably waterproof coat and set off into the gloom in my 280CE on the very pleasant half-hour drive to Droitwich Spa. The ticket price for this Coffee and Chrome morning – sponsored by Footman James – included a breakfast roll, so having parked alongside a cream 1981 Ford Escort Mk2 1600 Sport, I headed for the food stands and thus refreshed, started to wander between rows of lovely classics.
On such a damp day, open-topped cars kept their hoods firmly in place –but the weather gods were kinder than expected and although there was a bitterly cold wind, the rain stayed away, which was an unexpected bonus, and there was what looked like a full turnout of a wide variety of classics, some of which are highlighted below, starting with what was one of the most delightful surprises of the day, a beautifully turned-out mint green Alfasud 1.3. Pretty much everyone loves an Alfasud, and this survivor was in super condition, a joy to see. A pity the owner forgot to straighten the door mirror and check the seatbelt was inside the car when he closed the door…
While on the subject of Italian classics, one of the more exotic cars on show was a superb 1961 Lancia Flaminia convertible – this one was for sale, though no price was indicated. You can see where the team at Gordon Keeble took some of their styling cues from, and why wouldn’t you, from a car that looks this good?
Just a few cars along from these stylish Italian gems were two cars that could hardly have been a greater contrast; a pair of brutish Ford Mustangs, a couple of years apart. The bright orange 1970 was particularly eye-catching, almost putting its dark green 1967 4.9-litre neighbour in the shade. Other interesting Americana included a very bright two-tone gold over white ’58 Chevrolet Bel Air (which dwarfed the ’68 VW Karmann Ghia next to it), a smooth ’69 6.4-litre Ford LTD with concealed headlamps as well as a white-over-blue 1975 6.5-litre Ford Elite – not a car I’ve seen before, based on the Torino. Given the choice, I’d take the much cooler LTD.
There were quite a few Morris Minors about, including a number of Travellers – many years ago, some friends of my parents came with us to Germany in their Traveller; we were in a Sunbeam Rapier, and spent a lot of time slowing down for them to catch up…they remain very endearing little cars, as Dave Leadbetter found when he drove one recently
Sometimes I enjoy spotting connected pairs of classics parked together – I’ve already mentioned the two Mustangs and more than one pair of Morris Travellers, and another striking couple parked together were the silver Porsche 924 and two-tone green 924 Turbo. I think the 924 has aged really well and is steadily gaining credence as a proper classic Porsche, especially the turbo – quite right, too.
Another neat pairing was a duo of Volvo Estates – one a 1989 760 GLE, the other a 1996 930 Classic – so not yet actually a classic, but nearly – that had clearly had a minor incident at the rear end. Seven years between these two, yet practically identical to look at. However, the most interesting Volvo on display was a much earlier and very tidy 1965 pale blue 210. Finally in the pairs game, the ubiquitous MGB provided a couple of examples, my favourite being the two practically identical red roadsters, despite one having been built in 1971, the other in 1966.
Older UK residents may remember the 1960’s police series called Z-Cars (801 episodes produced over a sixteen-year span!), apparently so-called after the letter call-signs allocated to the Lancashire Constabulary, and not because the force used Ford Zephyrs and Zodiacs as their means of apprehending people engaged in criminal activity, which would have been a much better reason. It was a treat to see one of each – both from 1965 – parked together. Transatlantic influences were strong in these cars, with wide grilles and pronounced rear tail fins.
I think it’s inarguable that one of the reasons so many of us are drawn to classic cars is the powerful pull of nostalgia, a personal link with the past. For me there were two cars at Impney with which I felt that connection – the 1956 Morris Oxford, the first car I remember my father having, although his was black rather than green, and a pale blue 1974 Triumph Toledo, in one of which I passed my driving test. Not sure about the wheels on the Toledo, though.
Other notables included a yellow 1978 Renault 17 TS, complete with rear window louvres (which personally I think add nothing to the car’s looks). This car also carried a turbo badge on it’s right rear, but I can’t find any reference to a turbo version so either the owner has delusions of grandeur or this was an individually modified car. Oldest car on the day was what I assume – based on the number plate – was a 1924 Ford Model T in a matt black finish which looked very tall indeed next to a Wolseley 1300.
You don’t see many FIAT X1/9’s around (fewer than 300 on our roads here) – there was one at Chateau Impney but sadly it had the enormous (and ugly) US-regulation bumpers making what was originally a delicately pretty sports car look more like it was designed to drive through walls – I think only the rubber-bumper MG’s suffer more than the X1/9 from the imposition of these bumpers – if the car were mine, I’d have them removed.
The photos above and below should give you a good idea of the breadth of classics arrayed around the grounds of the chateau that morning, particularly the number of so-called unexceptional classics. However, after a couple of hours I could barely feel my fingertips so decided to head back home after what had been a very enjoyable meet, despite the cold; if there’s another Coffee and Chrome morning at the chateau in the next few months, I will definitely try to make it.
