The Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance is an annual automotive event held on the
Pebble Beach Golf Links
Pebble Beach Golf Links is a public golf course located in Pebble Beach, California, U.S.
Opened in 1919, it is regarded as one of the most beautiful courses in the world. It hugs the rugged coastline and has wide open views of Carmel Bay, o ...
in
Pebble Beach, California
Pebble Beach is an unincorporated area, unincorporated community on the Monterey Peninsula in Monterey County, California, Monterey County, California, United States. The small coastal residential community of mostly single-family homes is also ...
. It is widely considered the most prestigious car show in the world and it is the pinnacle ''
Concours d'Elegance
Concours d'Elegance ( French: ''concours d'élégance'') is a term of French origin that means a "competition of elegance" and refers to an event where prestigious vehicles are displayed and judged. It dates back to 17th-century France, where a ...
'' competition worldwide.
It is the finale of
Monterey Car Week
Monterey Car Week is a week in August during which a number of car-related events are held in and around Monterey, California. It is globally recognized as one of the premier gatherings for auto enthusiasts, with auctions, rallies, races, competi ...
held in August every year. A ''Concours d'Elegance'' (
French, literally "a competition of elegance") is an event open to both prewar and postwar collector cars in which they are judged for authenticity, function, history, and style. Classes are commonly arranged by type, marque (manufacturer),
coachbuilder
A coachbuilder manufactures bodies for passenger-carrying vehicles.
The trade of producing coachwork began with bodies for horse-drawn vehicles. Today it includes custom automobiles, buses, Coach (bus), motor coaches, and passenger car (rai ...
, country of origin, or time period. Judges select first-, second-, and third-place finishers for each class in the event, and the judges confer the pinnacle "
Best of Show" award on one car from the group of first-place winners, which includes with an engraved trophy and engraved
Rolex
Rolex () is a Swiss watch brand and manufacturer based in Geneva, Switzerland. Founded in 1905 as ''Wilsdorf and Davis'' by German businessman Hans Wilsdorf and his eventual brother-in-law Alfred Davis in London, the company registered ''Rolex ...
watch.
In addition, a group of honorary judges—individuals who have made significant contributions to the automotive industry or motorsports—award a number of subjective awards to recognize standout vehicles regardless of class ribbons, as well as memorial awards created to honor specific automotive industry personages. Approximately 15,000 spectators attend the event.
Dozens of world-renowned luxury and
supercar
A supercar, also known as an exotic car, is a street-legal sports car with race track-like power, speed, and handling, plus a certain subjective ''cachet'' linked to pedigree and/or exclusivity. The term 'supercar' is frequently used for th ...
brands use the event to officially debut new models and showcase their future
concept car
A concept car (also known as a concept vehicle or show vehicle) is a car made to showcase new styling or new technology. Concept cars are often exhibited at motor shows to gauge customer reaction to new and radical designs which may or may not ...
s, with many of the participating
manufacturers
Manufacturing is the creation or production of goods with the help of equipment, labor, machines, tools, and chemical or biological processing or formulation. It is the essence of the
secondary sector of the economy. The term may refer to a r ...
having their own corporate display building for the duration of the event.
Participating brands have included
Aston Martin
Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings PLC () is a British manufacturer of Luxury car, luxury sports cars and grand tourers. Its predecessor was founded in 1913 by Lionel Martin and Robert Bamford. Headed from 1947 by David Brown (entrepreneur ...
,
Bentley
Bentley Motors Limited is a British designer, manufacturer and marketer of Luxury vehicle, luxury cars and Sport utility vehicle, SUVs. Headquartered in Crewe, England, the company was founded by W. O. Bentley (1888–1971) in 1919 in Crickle ...
,
Bugatti
Automobiles Ettore Bugatti was a German then French automotive industry, manufacturer of high performance vehicle, high-performance automobiles. The company was founded in 1909 in the then-German Empire, German city of Molsheim, Alsace, by the ...
,
Ferrari
Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello. Founded in 1939 by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988), the company built Auto Avio Costruzioni 815, its first car in 1940, adopted its current name in 1945, and be ...
,
Koenigsegg
Koenigsegg Automotive AB () is a Swedish manufacturer of high-performance sports cars based in Ängelholm, Skåne County, Sweden.
Koenigsegg cars have on several occasions broken various production car speed records.
Company
The company w ...
,
Lamborghini
Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A. ( , ), usually referred to as Lamborghini or colloquially Lambo, is an Italian manufacturer of luxury sports cars and SUVs based in Sant'Agata Bolognese. The company is owned by the Volkswagen Group through its su ...
,
McLaren
McLaren Racing Limited ( ) is a British auto racing, motor racing team based at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, Surrey, England. The team is a subsidiary of the McLaren Group, which owns a majority of the team. McLaren is best known a ...
,
Rolls-Royce
Rolls-Royce (always hyphenated) may refer to:
* Rolls-Royce Limited, a British manufacturer of cars and later aero engines, founded in 1906, now defunct
Automobiles
* Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, the current car manufacturing company incorporated in ...
, and dozens of others.
The 72nd Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance was on August 20, 2023.
History

The Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance was founded in 1950 as an adjunct to the
Pebble Beach Road Race, a race event sponsored by the
Sports Car Club of America
The Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) is a non-profit American automobile club and sanctioning body supporting Autocross, Rallycross, HPDE, Time Trial, Road Racing, RoadRally, and Hill Climbs in the United States. Formed in 1944, it runs ...
and conducted on a circuit of closed public roads. The 1950 and 1951 Concours were held on a practice tee and driving range adjacent to the Beach Club, a private club near the Del Monte Lodge (now known as "The Lodge at Pebble Beach"). Thirty cars were exhibited on November 4, 1950, and a smaller field of 23 on May 27, 1951. In 1952, the event was moved to the 18th green of the Pebble Beach Golf Links, between the Lodge at Pebble Beach and the Pacific Ocean, overlooking Carmel Bay.
The Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance has continued since 1950 with one missed year: in 1960, the show was cancelled due to scheduling conflicts. In addition, heavy rain at the event in 1963 and 1965 made the lawn area unusable, and so the cars were shown at the old start/finish line of the road race, near the horse stables now known as the Pebble Beach Equestrian Center.
In 2001, the event saw an introduction of a new category for preservation cars. This category was designed to "bear witness to the passage of time",
including the so-called
barn find
A barn find is a classic car, aircraft or motorcycle that has been rediscovered after being stored, often in decrepit car, derelict condition. The term comes from their tendency to be found in places such as barns, sheds, carports and outbuildi ...
car.

The 2006 event saw 175 cars lining the 18th green and hole of Pebble Beach Golf Links with 25 judged classes, with cars brought to Pebble Beach from 27 states and 13 countries (including the U.S.). The event describes itself as "''Exhibiting prewar and postwar automobiles along with the latest in concept car designs, the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance is the premiere concours in the world.''"
24 of the 175 cars in the field come from outside the U.S, representing Italy, England, France, Switzerland, Australia, China, Germany, Mexico, Czech Republic, Netherlands, and the Philippines. The total estimated cost of the vehicles spread across the 18th fairway at the 2006 event was US$200 million. From 227 cars in 2005, the 2006 event had a field reduced to 175 cars. Organizers said the change was made to allow more time to judge each car.
In 2009, the Pebble Beach Concours included classic motorcycles for the first time under the theme of pre-1959 British Motorcycles.
The Concours received the 2011 Motoring Event of the Year award by the International Historic Motoring Awards.
With the 2020 event being scrapped by the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
, the 70th was deferred to 2021.
Each year's Pebble Beach Concours honors a featured marque (manufacturer), coachbuilder, or type. Though the original European "Concours d'Elegance" events of the early 20th century focused on then-new cars and coachwork, the modern Concours show circuit focuses primarily on classic and vintage collector cars.
The competitive field
Prospective entrants must submit an application for each car, and the Concours field is selected from each year's pool of applicants. Many collectors spend years and hundreds of thousands of dollars purchasing and restoring a car in hopes of being chosen. Once a car is accepted to the Concours, it cannot again be entered in the event for ten years, with three exceptions; the ownership of the car has changed, the car has been restored, or if the featured marque is obscure, the Concours car selection committee can reach out to invite cars of varying restoration quality—or cars that have previously been entered in the Concours—in order to provide a healthy representation of the marque for exhibition.
Many of the competing cars are valued in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, and more recently into the millions of dollars. For this reason, along with its remarkable setting and amenities, the Pebble Beach Concours is considered the premier concours in the world, and is the centerpiece of over 50 related events spanning over a week, including vintage racing cars running at the
Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion
The Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion is an annual event held at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey, California. Its purpose is to provide an event in which historic racecars can compete. It takes place over the course of one weekend e ...
(formerly called the Monterey Historic Automobile Races) conducted at nearby
WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca
Laguna Seca Raceway (branded as WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, and previously Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca for sponsorship reasons) is a paved road racing track in central California used for both auto racing and motorcycle racing, built in 1957 ...
, as well as classic car auctions.
Awards
Best of Show
The Best of Show award is the pinnacle accolade given to the overall winner of the Concours that is chosen from a selection of the three highest judged vehicles from the entire event. It is considered the most prestigious award achievable at any car show worldwide.
J.B. Nethercutt has the most Best of Show awards with 6 wins, while
Bugatti
Automobiles Ettore Bugatti was a German then French automotive industry, manufacturer of high performance vehicle, high-performance automobiles. The company was founded in 1909 in the then-German Empire, German city of Molsheim, Alsace, by the ...
and
Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to simply as Mercedes and occasionally as Benz, is a German automotive brand that was founded in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a subsidiary of the Mercedes-Benz Group, established in 2019) is based in Stuttgart, ...
are tied as the most successful marque with 10 wins each as of 2024.
Elegance Awards
*
J.B. & Dorothy Nethercutt Most Elegant Closed Car
* Gwenn Graham Most Elegant Convertible
* Jules Heumann Most Elegant Open Car
*
Strother MacMinn
Strother MacMinn (1918 – January 19, 1998) was an American car designer, author, and educator. While noted for his contributions to Road & Track, Motor Trend, and Automobile Quarterly and for helping found Toyota's Calty Design Research studio ...
Most Elegant Sports Car
Other Awards
''Gran Turismo'' Award
Since 2008, Japanese-American
Kazunori Yamauchi
, nicknamed "Kaz", is a Japanese game designer and racing driver. He is the CEO of Polyphony Digital and producer of the ''Gran Turismo (series), Gran Turismo'' video game series.
Polyphony Digital
He became the president of Polyphony Digital a ...
and the president of
Polyphony Digital
Polyphony Digital Inc. is an internal Japanese first-party video game development studio for PlayStation Studios. Originally a development group within Sony Computer Entertainment's Japan Studio known as Polys Entertainment, after the succes ...
, creator of the ''
Gran Turismo'' series, has presented the ''Gran Turismo'' Award to the participant vehicle that stands out as exemplary among the competition, whether it be due to rarity, quality of restoration, or stunning appearance. The owners of the winning vehicle are then offered the opportunity to have their car featured in the ''Gran Turismo'' series. Yamauchi is also an honorary judge for the main awards.
In 2021, the ''Gran Turismo'' Award went to a 1969 Ferrari 512 S Berlinetta once driven by
Jacky Ickx
Jacques Bernard Edmon Martin Henri "Jacky" Ickx (; born 1 January 1945) is a Belgian former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Ickx twice finished runner-up in the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in and , and won eig ...
and
John Surtees
John Norman Surtees (11 February 1934 – 10 March 2017) was a British racing driver and motorcycle road racer, who competed in Grand Prix motorcycle racing from to , and Formula One from to . Surtees was a seven-time Grand Prix motorcycl ...
owned by Swiss-based Frenchman Pierre Mellinger.
The French Cup
This award, established in the 1980s (unknown year), is given to, as the name says, a car of French origin considered the most significant. In 2021 the award went to a 1937 Delahaye 135 M Chapron Cabriolet owned by Tom McGough Sr. and Tom McGough Jr. of
North Oaks, Minnesota.
Concept cars
World-renowned luxury and supercar brands use the event as an overarching
auto show
An auto show, also known as a motor show or car show, is a public exhibition of current automobile models, debuts, concept cars, or out-of-production classics. It is attended by automotive industry representatives, dealers, auto journalists a ...
to officially debut their new models and showcase their future
concept car
A concept car (also known as a concept vehicle or show vehicle) is a car made to showcase new styling or new technology. Concept cars are often exhibited at motor shows to gauge customer reaction to new and radical designs which may or may not ...
s, with many of the participating manufactures having their own corporate display building for the duration of the event.
Participating brands have included
Aston Martin
Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings PLC () is a British manufacturer of Luxury car, luxury sports cars and grand tourers. Its predecessor was founded in 1913 by Lionel Martin and Robert Bamford. Headed from 1947 by David Brown (entrepreneur ...
,
Acura
Acura is the luxury and performance division of Japanese automaker Honda, based primarily in North America. The brand was launched on March 27, 1986, marketing luxury and performance automobiles. Acura sells cars in the United States, Canada, M ...
,
Audi
Audi AG () is a German automotive manufacturer of luxury vehicles headquartered in Ingolstadt, Bavaria, Germany. A subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group, Audi produces vehicles in nine production facilities worldwide.
The origins of the compa ...
,
Bentley
Bentley Motors Limited is a British designer, manufacturer and marketer of Luxury vehicle, luxury cars and Sport utility vehicle, SUVs. Headquartered in Crewe, England, the company was founded by W. O. Bentley (1888–1971) in 1919 in Crickle ...
,
Bugatti
Automobiles Ettore Bugatti was a German then French automotive industry, manufacturer of high performance vehicle, high-performance automobiles. The company was founded in 1909 in the then-German Empire, German city of Molsheim, Alsace, by the ...
,
Cadillac
Cadillac Motor Car Division, or simply Cadillac (), is the luxury vehicle division (business), division of the American automobile manufacturer General Motors (GM). Its major markets are the United States, Canada and China; Cadillac models are ...
,
Czinger,
DeLorean,
Ferrari
Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello. Founded in 1939 by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988), the company built Auto Avio Costruzioni 815, its first car in 1940, adopted its current name in 1945, and be ...
,
Ford,
Hennessey,
Koenigsegg
Koenigsegg Automotive AB () is a Swedish manufacturer of high-performance sports cars based in Ängelholm, Skåne County, Sweden.
Koenigsegg cars have on several occasions broken various production car speed records.
Company
The company w ...
,
Lamborghini
Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A. ( , ), usually referred to as Lamborghini or colloquially Lambo, is an Italian manufacturer of luxury sports cars and SUVs based in Sant'Agata Bolognese. The company is owned by the Volkswagen Group through its su ...
,
Land Rover
Land Rover is a brand of predominantly four-wheel drive, off-road capable vehicles, owned by British multinational car manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), since 2008 a subsidiary of India's Tata Motors. JLR builds Land Rovers in Brazil ...
,
Lincoln,
Lucid,
McLaren
McLaren Racing Limited ( ) is a British auto racing, motor racing team based at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, Surrey, England. The team is a subsidiary of the McLaren Group, which owns a majority of the team. McLaren is best known a ...
,
Porsche
Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, usually shortened to Porsche (; see below), is a German automobile manufacturer specializing in luxury, high-performance sports cars, SUVs and sedans, headquartered in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Th ...
,
Rolls-Royce
Rolls-Royce (always hyphenated) may refer to:
* Rolls-Royce Limited, a British manufacturer of cars and later aero engines, founded in 1906, now defunct
Automobiles
* Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, the current car manufacturing company incorporated in ...
,
SSC, and several others.
The
Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport was revealed at the 2008 Pebble Beach Concours.
Pebble Beach Auctions
The event hosts the Pebble Beach Auctions, which is an
auto auction
Auto auctions are a method of selling vehicles based on an auction system. Auto auctions can be found in most countries and are usually exclusive to licensed automobile dealers. In a few countries, such as Japan, auto auctions are well known and ...
centered around high-end vehicles valued in the millions. In 2022 alone the auction's total sales accounted for $469 million USD.
Charitable performance
The proceeds of the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance have supported the United Way of Monterey County and the Pebble Beach Company Foundation for a combination of 56 years. It also supports a number of other local and national organizations.
The 2016 event raised over $1.75 million, and the Concours has given more than $23 million to charities through the years.
References
External links
*
Pebble Beach Concours in Perspective— one view of why Pebble Beach is the most important Concours d'Elegance. Denise McCluggage. MSN autos.
World's Finest Cars, Smithsonian Networks
{{Coord, 36, 33, 49, N, 121, 56, 18, W, source:kolossus-eswiki, display=title
Concours d'Elegance
Recurring events established in 1950
Auto shows in the United States
Charity events in the United States
Tourist attractions in Monterey County, California
1950 establishments in California
Pebble Beach, California
Annual events in California
Events in the Monterey Bay Area