The Cobble Beach Concours d’Elegance… 2024 edition

10 Years of Concours in Cobble Beach!…

Cobble Beach Concours d’Elegance: Canada’s premiere automotive event.

It was a very special 10th Anniversary edition of the Concours this year, and like every year, Mustard Report always ponders, “how will Rob McLeese, his family, staff, and team of volunteers top themselves from previous years”… well Mustard Report is going stop pondering that question now, because every year they do it, and every year they do it better.


This year, the first cars to greet you on the 18th fairway of The Cobble Beach Golf Course, were all stunning, pre-war, works of art. The top prize this year (Best In Show), went to a pristine tuxedo black, 1947 Bentley MKVI Figoni et Falaschi Coupe that was brought up from Saint Louis MO. This car was a thing of beauty and well worthy of the accolade.

1947 Bentley MKVI Figoni et Falaschi Coupe

As Mustard wandered to the next grouping of fine automobiles, sitting there was a 1927 Austin 7 Saloon Type R “Top Hat”. Crazy thing is, Mustard knew someone that owned a black one these years ago, but this one was in mint condition (unlike the one remembered). Mustard wondered if there was any connection, but the owner was no nowhere to be seen, so it was time to move on, it was early in the day… and there was still a lot ground to cover.

1927 Austin 7 Saloon Type R “Top Hat

Mustard eventually circled back to the “Top Hat” to see if the owners were around… low and behold they were – and it turned out to be Mustard’s old friend; John Musson (seen here with co-owner and wife, Ms. Pam Musson).

Over the course of the pandemic, John had the car completely restored and re-painted! He did such an amazing job, the Top Hat placed a VERY respectable 2nd place in it’s category “Class 5 European Production pre 1980”. Congratulations John, you now own a Concours Award winning classic!

1927 Austin 7 Saloon Type R Top Hat – 2nd Place Finish: Class 5 European Production pre 1980

ok this is it on with The Show

The west side of the Fairway, heading south, brought more amazing Concours class vehicles, but tucked up behind the row of high money show cars, was this oddball, a 1958 Citroen 2CV named “Whimsy the Art Car”. It had no info placard, and the license plates were out of Maine, so it’s anyone’s guess on how this car ended up on the Concour de’Elegance show field. One thing is for certain, you just never know what you’re going to see at the Cobble Beach Concours d’Elegance… and that’s part of the magic!

“Whimsy the Art Car” – 1958 Citroen 2CV

speaking of oddball

While moving down the fairway, this little oddity appeared, a British racing green, 1971 Saab 96 (when’s the last time you saw one of these?).

What was most interesting about this car was how the side window glass was cut. It was a curve cut, leaving a small section of curved glass in the upper left part of the door frame. There must be a reason for this, because that can’t be cheap to manufacture and mass produce, plus, how well would it seal? (a bit of a head-scratcher here, but it certainly looked cool).

Speaking if British Racing Green, a few steps away was this Fire Engine Red 1952 MG TD, a stark contrast to the typical British Racing Green (or black) that you normally see on the vintage MG’s, it looked great.

Flip-floppin’ back to British Racing Green was this immaculate 1951 Jaguar XK120. This car showed that it was out of Toronto, just where exactly are the good people of Toronto hiding some of the Concours level, rare cars is beyond Mustard, but yea, keep em hidden, could you imagine dealing with a stone chip or door ding on one of these things…

…and while we’re talkin’ Jags, on full display was this stunning red wine coloured 1970 Jaguar E-Type! What can one say about the E-Type, not much, it simply speaks for itself in every sense of the letter “E”, from it’s classic design to its legendary performance. Simply a timeless works of art.


On with the show….

It would be too much to go over (in detail) every vehicle displayed on the show field, and at this point in the morning, the judges were starting to swarm the cars, and the throngs of spectators were building on the fairway, this increases the difficultly of capturing clean shots of the show cars, but thats ok, it’s more rewarding to see the enthusiasm of the owners and spectators that are amazed by all the unique vehicles displayed.


Lets keep walking

After a little gap in the first collection of cars, there was a full display of brass era coaches, the cars that brought us out of the “horse & buggy” era and into the “horseless carriage” (combustion engine) era, long before there was chrome. The pride and level of craftsmanship of the manufacturers of this time period is overly evident when you see these amazingly preserved machines up close.


wait whaaaaat?… hold on a second here

…just beyond the brass era collection, Mustard catches a glimpse of a little splash of white that looks like a car that’s been on Mustard’s radar for a loooong time, could it be?…

Holy!!… it is!, one of the coolest designed little cars (in Mustard’s humble opinion) ever produced, the 1968 Mazda Cosmos Series II/L10B. This was Japan’s “vision”, and contribution to the Atomic age of automobile design. This small scale beauty of a car featured Mazda’s (at that time) forward thinking, 2-rotor Wankel engine (many of us owned and built the clear plastic model of this engine as a kid, long before we even knew how an engines of any kind even worked).

1968 Mazda Cosmos Series II/L10B

This car has perfect proportions and stunning lines. The owner is from Richmond Hill ON, (just north of North York [home of the Mustard Report], so you can bet Mustard will be keeping a sharp eye out for this one). The owner said that he’d imported it straight from Japan (that makes sense, since there has never been a domestic or local listing for one of these that Mustard has ever seen?).

Simply a treat to feast the peepers on this little car, Cobble Beach Concours d’Elegance, this was a great get! (a personal thank-you for this one from Mustard Report)

Motorcycle time!…

This year the Motorcycle Class was categorized as “Japanese Vintage Motorcycles Pre 1990” and what was first up on display?… two magnificent Honda Z50’s!, a 1971 and a 1969. Another huge treat to see. For most of us, the very first twist of a throttle, was on a Honda Z50 Mini Trail…that experience, for any wee lad, will set the tone for a love of motorcycles that will last a lifetime.

ICONIC: 1969 Honda Z50A-K1 MiniTrail

And speaking of iconic, lets take a mental trip back to the high school parking lot for this unmolested white 1969 Mach III Kawasaki H1 500cc Triple! This bike kicked the doors open for the “muscle-bike” era of the ’70’s! The unforgettable sounds (and smells) of any Kawasaki Triple are permanently etched in the souls of anyone growing up in the 1970’s/80’s.

1st Place in the Motorcycle Class went to this beauty, a bone stock 1969 Honda CB750. It was an impressive specimen to see.


Mustangs, a “Class” of their own…

Concour put together a Class for; “Classic Ford Mustang pre 1974” …and at the start of this section, you were greeted by this woman that sat perched on the front fender of her pristine Mustang convertible, for the entire day. She was from west Michigan and said, when she was in high school, this car hit the market, and she wanted one from the first day she saw one, so when she got to a stage in her life that she could afford one, she bought one… THIS ONE!… and you can see, she’s as proud as proud can be to own it.

1964 1/2 Ford Mustang convertible

When Mustard Report caught wind that there was going to a “dedicated Mustang Class”, the immediate thought was (because this was Cobble Beach CDE of course), will they have that original white Mustang prototype on display, probably not… but wait??... is that it?? WOW!, there it was, sitting in all it’s early 60’s glory! The 1963 Ford Mustang II Prototype, shipped all the way up from Michigan just for Cobble Beach Concours!

…and not only that, the display had the 60’s IMC model kit and it’s Hot Wheel perched in front of the front wheel wheel, nostalgia at it’s very finest!

The front windshield had one evil lean to it, maybe 30 degrees?, quite a bit steeper looking than originally thought from seeing this machine in photos. It was super cool to see this prototype in real life, but for some reason, it just looked different in person.

It wasn’t until later in the day that it all came together. The car’s handler removed the removable hardtop… and viola that was the difference.

No roof changed the entire look of this car, dramatically! Now it looked far more familiar, and that windshield looked perfectly proportioned to the car.

1963 Ford Mustang II Prototype

and we walk on…

If Mustard was in charge of the Period Wardrobe Award, these two would have taken that trophy hands down, they looked like almost every photo, in every Hot Rod Magazine, of the 1960’s and 70’s.

Heading towards the bottom of the fairway and there they were, in all their atomic glory, (the display of the day) all the way up from the GM Heritage Museum, (6400 Center Dr, Sterling Heights, MI) – to Cobble Beach Ontario Canada… the 3 ‘very first’ Firebird Concept cars:

Firebird I, Firebird II and Firebird III.

Concours Class 19: Turbine Dream Cars – Oh YEA!

Firebird I, may be the the greatest example of Atomic Age Design that there is out there. It’s basically a single pilot bubble top fighter jet sitting on four bias ply tires. Mustard Report got goosebumps at Class 19 and spent more time at this display than any of the others.


Firebird II was a real oddball with gull winged door windows, the familiar full bubble top cockpit, and some sort of crazy rear trunk configuration. The overall design did fall a little short of that sleek “jet-like” design of #1 and it wouldn’t be much of a stretch to think that Dodge may have stolen a few design ques for their 1962 Lancer, but thats just Mustard speculation.

One thing Firebird II did do, was set the stage for what was about to come…


Firebird III, this!, hands down, was the coolest of the cool Firebird concepts! They threw everything “Jetsons” at this version of the concept line-up. Low and sleek with a dual bubble cockpit for two, front end stabilizer fender accents, rear fins and side tail wings, a lowered stance, and thin aerodynamic body… it’s as slick as they come. This car had no pedals to control speed or brakes, and no steering “wheel”, everything was controlled by a computerized joystick in the centre console that triggered hydraulic servos to manipulate this car. Joystick technology nowadays has become commonplace in the video game industry and with drone controllers, but it was unheard for cars of back in 1958.

GM Firebird lll Gas Turbine Car Promo Film – 1958

The 1959 Firebird III was such eye candy and (an impracticable) marvel of engineering and design, if you have the time to watch the above Promotional Video, you will see all the innovation that was put into this concept car. Incredible.


Now for the other side of the show field

Reluctantly strolling away from the Firebirds, it was time to head back up the fairway and see what we have on the other side. Station Wagons! Another Mustard fav (as a former wagon owner). The difference here is, these are Concours level wagons. What a treat, from the 1954 Mercury Monterrey Woody Wagon, sporting an authentic surfboard tied to the chrome racks…

…to the below, magnificent, metallic champagne coloured 1958 Buick Century Caballero, cherry picked from the Steve Plunkett collection out of London ON. This Wagon was hastily designed back in the mid/late 50’s and brought to market quickly by GM to directly compete with Chrysler’s new “forward Look” design(s), that were crushing their competition in sales. Not sure if it worked, but seeing this wagon 2024 was a true stand-out on the show field. Steve Plunkett has an inspired collection of cars… hope to meet him one day (just to shake his hand).

…and last (but not least) in Class 15: Classic Station Wagon Pre 1980, another Plunkett beauty, a beautifully restored 1969 Pontiac Safari Estate Wagon, with simulated wood siding, yellow line / white wall tires and a pristine chrome roof rack perched right on top like the cherry on a sundae. As a former wagon owner, Mustard knows, a roof rack is basically Station Wagon jewellery, and it don’t come cheap to try and find one thats not all rot’d and/or pit’d, and to have one re-chromed and restored is and undertaking and half (but totally worth it) this completes the look of any station wagon.


Continuing on…

Heading back up this side of the fairway brought more rare and exquisite vintage vehicles, including this pristine 1916 “Detroit Electric Model 60”.

1916 “Detroit Electric”

The 1916 “Detroit Electric Model 60” built by The Anderson Electric Car Company.

Back in 1916, this car came with a $600 “Edison Nickel-Steel battery option” (instead of a gas powered engine) which eliminated the need to hand crank a combustible engine, which made it very appealing to the wealthy women of the day. (nothing to do with Trudeau’s climate change initiative).

You drove it with 2 levers, one swung left to right to steer it, the other, forward & backward to control your speed. It was chain driven and could drive 80 miles between charges with a top speed of 20mph. (oh and it was the first production automobile to use curved glass, just like your grandmother’s favourite curio cabinet).

In 1916, a Detroit Electric cost between $3,000 and $3,800USD, that would be the equivalent of $109,745.00 in today’s dollars, so you’d have to be quite wealthy to own one. You could own one today for an estimated value of between $85,000 and $115,000USD (or $156,000CAD), so this car has basically had ZERO depreciation in over 100 years.


the Hits, they just Keep on Comin’

Resto-Mods! This category is always interesting, sort of a mullet, “party on top… all business underneath”. A RestoMod is a vintage car that is restored, but equipped and modified with a modern day drive-train for worry free cruising. It’s only Money.


and we walk (or cart) on…

There are simply too many incredible cars and motorbikes at the Cobble Beach Concours d’Elegance to cover every single one of them in detail, it would be too much for one article, so lets check out a few faves as we move further through the show.

Judging continues… nothing goes unnoticed


Awards time!

After a long, hot first half of the day, the judges retreat to go over all their notes and come up with the winners list, a process that seems like an impossible task. Then the official presenters gather and ready themselves to start handing out the prestigious Glass to all the lucky winners.

After the all the judges are recognized and take a well deserved bow, the cars start to cross the Winner’s podium.

Class by class, the cars each line up to accept their trophy and pose for a photo (with one of the stunning Trophy women) for the Judges gallery and gathered spectators.

The 1927 Austin 7 Saloon Type R “Top Hat” – Proud owners: John & Pam Musson

SMILES for miles! Great day for the Mussons.

and lets not forget the motorcycles….

A little Minibike LUV from Mustard Report.

The BIG winner in the motorcycle category, was the below pictured 1969 Honda CB750 time capsule. This bike was a well preserved thing of beauty – and absolutely deserved 1st place.

Congratulations to ALL the winners!

Cobble Beach Concours d’Elegance hands out so many ribbons & trophies – and every single recipient so deserves everything they’re awarded.


and at the end of the day…

When the awards are all handed out, there is nothing left to do but relax and mingle around on the back green by the creek that runs trough the Cobble Beach Golf Course grounds.

It’s at this point in the day, that the feet (from all the walking and the back from carrying the photo gear) are saying, “it’s time to start that 3 hour drive back to Mustard Report HQ”.


In Conclusion…

Mustard Report would once again like to thank Cobble Beach Concours d’Elegance, Rob McLeese, his family, staff and team of amazing organizers and volunteers for once again having Mustard Report out for another GREAT day in Cobble Beach! From top to bottom, front to back, this is one first-class event that all car enthusiasts, historians, photographers and just about anyone, of any age, should come out and witness.

In case you’re wondering, there will be an 11th annual in 2025, so mark it in your calendars NOW and make sure you come out and enjoy the experience!

Farewell Cobble Beach Concours d’Elegance 2024

Cobble Beach Concours d’Elegance, Mustard Report is forever grateful for the invitation to cover your event and is looking forward to seeing you again 09/14/25 (if not before!).