The Geneva International Motor Show will be the theatre of an original exhibition because of its scope. From 6-16 March the Le Mans 24 Hours will take over a whole hall in the context of a special operation backed by Rolex. More than 20 extraordinary cars that have written the legend of Le Mans since 1923 will be on display. The Automobile Club de l’Ouest will take full advantage of this to unveil a few new surprises starting with the poster of the 2014 race!
The 84th Geneva International Motor and Accessories Show in Switzerland will take place between 6-16 March 2014. With the Detroit, Paris and IAA (Frankfurt) Motor Shows it is one of the most important of its kind in the world.
Thanks to a special exhibition backed by Rolex, more than 20 cars that have taken part in the Le Mans 24 Hours will be on display in the 1800m2 Plexpo Hall 3. Thus visitors can all experience the legend of the Le Mans 24 Hours and get close to the cars that have written the history of the event since 1923, as well as discovering the latest information about the 2014 race on 14-15 June.
The oldest representative of the race’s glorious past is a Chenard & Walcker Sport dating from 1923, identical to the car that emerged victorious in the first race whose name was the 24-Hours Endurance Grand Prix. A total of nine cars that have won the Le Mans 24 Hours will be highlighted in this exceptional exhibition, the most recent being the Audi R18 e-tron quattro hybrid that came first in 2013 driven by Kristensen-Duval-McNish.
In 2013, the ACO launched a big poll to celebrate the 90th anniversary of the greatest endurance race in the world to elect the 10 cars (one per decade since 1923) that have written the history of the event. Six of these exceptionally rare cars will be on show in Geneva including a Bentley Speed 6 from 1929, a Ferrari 166 MM from 1949, the Mazda 787B winner in 1991, etc.
All these cars were among the front-runners in the races in which they took part and they have all left their mark on the Sarthe classic.
List of cars on display*
Chenard et Walcker Sport 1923
Bentley Speed Six – 2nd in 1929
Alfa Romeo 8C 1933 (Type Le Mans)
Ferrari 166MM 1949
Jaguar D-Type – 2nd in 1954
Ford GT40 – 3rd in 1966
Porsche 917 K – 1st in 1970
Matra 670B – 1st in 1974
Renault Alpine A442 – 1st in 1978
Rondeau M379 – 1st in 1980
Sauber Mercedes 1989
Jaguar XJR9 – 2nd in 1991
Mazda 787 B 1991(replica of the winner)
Peugeot 905 – 1st in1992
Porsche GT1 – 1st in 1998
Audi R8 – 1st in 2000
Peugeot 908 – 1st in 2009
Audi R18 e-tron quattro – 1st in 2013
*May be subject to modifications
This previously unseen retrospective backed by Rolex will also provide the opportunity to present the 2014 Le Mans 24 Hours and unveil the official poster of the 82nd race.