Bicester Heritage opened its gates to more than 6,000 motoring aficionados on Sunday for the final Scramble of 2019, which featured a glorious selection of vehicles from Abarth to Zagato, as well as historic F1 cars and a unique Aston Martin Vanquish designed by Ian Callum.
Among the wide range of vehicles that filled both the Bicester Heritage Technical Site and the airfield beyond it, were examples of world-class exotics through to now-rare models, such as the 1965 Ferrari 275GTB which sat alongside a wonderfully original 1964 Trabant saloon that had been driven from East Berlin by the original owner’s daughter.
Daniel Geoghegan, Chief Executive of Bicester Heritage, said: “Thank you to all who joined us for the October Scramble in what felt like a coming-together of all that is good in the historic motoring world. The combination of the relaxed atmosphere, opportunity to talk with the 40 specialists at Bicester Heritage and diverse collection of cars and motorbikes was clearly a winner for enthusiasts and their families.”
Creating a noisy spectacle and delighting motorsports fans were a pair of historic Formula One cars on open display. Mercedes-Benz AMG delighted crowds by programming one of its heritage F1 cars to play “God Save the Queen” with its engine.
Also on display were the 2011 Marusia MRV-02, eye-catching in its red and black Virgin livery, and the 1998 Minardi M198-V10 which could be heard across the site when it was fired up and put through its warm-up cycle throughout the morning.
There was something for everyone including supercar enthusiasts who were treated to a rare public viewing of the Ian Callum-designed Aston Martin Vantage 25, of which only 25 will be made. The legendary designer was also on hand to talk about the car and explain how he went about creating it.
BMW UK displayed the highlights of its UK Heritage collection. Stars of this were the 1938 BMW 328 roadster and the original BMW supercar, the 1978 BMW M1. The display of BMW Heritage examples was joined by a curated ‘Bavarian Motor Lawn’ that was provided by the BMW Owners Club UK. Highlight vehicles from this display included a 635CSi from the 80’s, and a wonderfully original 1939 328 Frazer-Nash, which was provided by on-site specialist, the Historic Endurance Rally Organisation.
New for the October Scramble was the classic bike display in the Events Hangar 113. The motorbike display drew enthusiasts of all ages, who explored the assembled machinery that ranged in eras from the dawn of motorcycling to the latest exotic superbikes. Also in the Events Hangar celebrated automotive artist Ian Cook, known as PopBangColour, held a live demonstration of his skills as he rendered a 2019 Honda Fireblade 1000RR superbike in acrylic paint on canvas using a remote-controlled car as his paintbrush.
Newly appointed Events Producer for Bicester Heritage, Laura Hamilton-Gould, said: “The wonderfully diverse selection of cars, and owners and enthusiasts of all ages who attended the October Scramble is phenomenal.
“As the home of historic motoring, it is a pleasure to be able to welcome such a broad selection of machinery to the Technical Site and witness the increasing enthusiasm from the public for the Scramble events. It has been a magnificent end to a year of great events on site and we are already looking forward to the first Sunday Scramble of 2020, which will be held on 5th January.”
