The world’s largest automotive garden party gets under way today, set against the spectacular backdrop of Goodwood House in West Sussex, UK. 

Over 600 cars and motorcycles – from supercars to F1 cars, classic cars, rally cars, and motor cycle racers – spanning the history of motoring, are taking part in the three-day Goodwood Festival of Speed (FoS) with some of the most legendary figures from the sport as well as international celebrities in attendance. 

A record number of world and UK debuts are to be revealed as the sold-out 24th edition of the FoS and Moving Motor Show (MMS) get under way. In addition. In addition the 50-plus debuts, FoS visitors can expect to see one or two world debut surprises, so watch this space.   

The event includes the famous Goodwood hill climb, Cartier’s Style et Luxe Concours d’Elegance and a Bonhams auction. New for this year’s FoS will be a ‘Race Cars for the Road’ class of affordable sports cars and track-day machines, supporting the hugely popular Michelin Supercar Run and First Glance classes.


BENTLEY

Bentley Motors returns to festival with a trio of powerful and luxurious UK debuts. 

The award-winning Bentayga SUV and new Flying Spur V8 S sedan will demonstrate their credentials on the Goodwood hill climb, while both models will also be displayed on the Bentley stand alongside the new Continental GT Speed – the fastest production Bentley ever.

The Bentley Bentayga will be put through its paces on Goodwood’s hill by Derek Bell.  The renowned racing driver and Bentley Boy was involved in the Bentayga’s development, helping to ensure it delivered the brand’s trademark combination of luxury and performance.

The new Flying Spur V8 S will also be challenging the hill climb on its UK debut.  With an increased power output and revised suspension, the Flying Spur V8 S can reach 62 mph in just 4.9 seconds, ensuring effortless performance.

Bentley racers past and present will also give fans a taste of the brand’s rich motorsport heritage. The 4 ½ Litre ‘Blower’ originally driven by Tim Birkin at Le Mans will make its way up the hill, while the present day Continental GT3 race car will be driven by modern day Bentley Boy, David Brabham.

The fastest production Bentley ever makes its first UK public appearance. The new Continental GT Speed raises the bar even further in terms of exclusivity and performance with increased power and torque that drops the car’s 0-60mph sprint time to just 3.9 seconds.

Joining the latest additions to the Bentley range on stand will be a selection of pre-owned models, demonstrating the continued appeal of the marque long after a car’s first ownership.  Visitors will also see interactive displays of the traditional craftsmanship techniques used by some of Bentley’s factory colleagues, alongside innovative technology displays – including facial recognition technology designed to help customers specify their ideal car.

Away from the main Bentley stand, tomorrow, a Continental GT V8 S Convertible designed by the father of British pop-art, Sir Peter Blake, will go under auction by Bonhams, with all proceeds going to the Care2Save Charitable Trust. The Trust promotes the development and growth of supportive, palliative and hospice care around the world.


JAGUAR

Visitors will be the first to witness the new Jaguar F-Type SVR as it makes its UK dynamic debut. The 200-mph Jaguar will be demonstrating its supercar prowess as it makes its very first UK appearance at the hill climb event. Engineered by Jaguar Land Rover Special Vehicle Operations, the supercharged 5-litre V8 powered sportscar is the first to wear the prestigious ‘SVR’ badge and takes performance to the next level.

Capable of sprinting to 60 mph from standing in just 3.5 seconds and with an exhaust note synonymous with its racing pedigree, the newest Jaguar represents the best of heritage and engineering expertise.

For visitors to the Press & Preview Day today, there is opportunity to get up close and personal with the newest “Big Cat” on the Jaguar Land Rover stand where it will take pride of place throughout the weekend.


MCLAREN

The recently announced McLaren 570S Sprint will make both static and dynamic global debuts as part of the largest presence by McLaren to date. The track-only model will thrill crowds on the famous hill run and be on public display in the Supercar Paddock alongside the McLaren P1 GTR, 650S Can-Am, 570S Coupé and the 675LT Coupé which only recently set the fastest ever time around the BBC Top Gear track. 

A second example of the 570S Sprint will be on private view for McLaren guests at its central location, adjacent to Goodwood House.

The 570S Sprint is the most track-focused model in the McLaren Sports Series line-up.  It has been conceived purely for owners to enjoy on the track and without the restrictions of any race series. Power and torque levels have been optimised to ensure the ultimate levels of driver engagement and the best levels of noise, too, as visitors to Goodwood will soon hear. 

Finished in McLaren Orange as standard, the 570S Sprint can be optioned with any of the colour palette available on the Sports Series, along with a unique range of liveries through MSO Defined. Deliveries commence in 2017 and pricing starts from £148,000 ($220,000).

Bugatti’s new Chiron supercar too will be making an appearance on the hill climb, hot on the heels of hitting 236 mph at the Le Mans 24 Hours.


DRONE COVERAGE

Meanwhile, visitors and fans of the FoS will be granted an entirely new and exciting perspective on the iconic event, thanks to a new partnership with global drone and aerial photography leader DJI.

A team of experienced DJI drone pilots will use the firm’s innovative Inspire 1 drones to gather images and video content taken from angles never before seen at the Festival.

This will create unique vantage points and aerial photography taken from above the glorious Goodwood Estate, providing stunning new coverage of the event.

DJI also has its own stand at the festival, where visitors will be able to peruse the company’s range of drones and state-of-the-art cameras.

DJI is the world leader on camera drone technology and already has experience in capturing major motorsport events, including the World Rally Championship and Nurburgring 24 Hours, in exciting and dynamic new ways.


50+ DEBUTS

Here is a summary of the more than 50 new debuts:

Abarth: Abarth’s new 124 Spider makes its UK dynamic debut.

Alfa Romeo: The new Giulia will be seen in action for the first time in the First Glance class.

Arash: The AF10 supercar makes its dynamic debut.

Arrinera: The Polish Arrinera Hussarya GT supercar makes its UK dynamic debut.

Aston Martin: As well as the much-anticipated DB11 making its world debut, the Vulcan track-only hypercar will return to FoS in its ‘production’ form (limited to 24 examples) 12 months after making its worldwide debut at Goodwood.  Aston Martin’s Vantage GT8 will also make its dynamic debut at FoS.

Audi: A number of all-new Audis will be seen for the first time in action at FoS, including the Q2 SUV, S5 Coupe, TT RS Coupe and R8 Spyder.  New models will also be revealed on the Audi stand.

Bentley: The new Bentley Flying Spur V8 S will make its dynamic debut, with the new GT3 and Blower appearing in First Glance.

BMW: With the admired Bavarian car brand celebrating its centenary in huge style at the Goodwood event, a number of surprises can be expected.

Bugatti: The highly-anticipated UK debut of the new Bugatti Chiron in motion will be at FoS.  Brace yourself!

Caterham: The new extreme Seven 620R will make its world debut at FoS in the Race Cars for the Road class.

Chevrolet: The new Camaro ZL1 debuts.

Ferrari: The Maranello marque will have an extensive display in the Michelin Supercar Paddock, with new models including the 458 MM, California T Handling Special and F12 TDF.

Ford: As part of its 40^th anniversary celebrations for the Fiesta, the new Fiesta ST200 will debut.

Honda: The new NSX supercar will make its European dynamic debut at FoS.

Jaguar: The new F-Pace SUV will make a memorable dynamic debut in its final production form, whilst the F-Type SVO debuts.

Lexus: The new Lexus ‘F’ series models will be introduced at FoS, along with the LC 500.

Maserati: The Italian marque’s first-ever SUV, the Levante, will makes it dynamic debut.

Mazda: The new MX-5 RF makes its active debut.

McLaren: Expect to see the very latest McLaren models in action for the first time.

Mini: The Mini Seven will makes its world premiere at Goodwood.

Nissan: Versions of the new, updated GTR will be in action at FoS.

Porsche: The new 911 Turbo S and 718 Boxster S will be in action.

Renault: The French car maker will have a number of new model debuts at the event.

Riversimple: The new hydrogen-powered Rasa will make its world dynamic debut.

Rolls-Royce: The Wraith Black Badge edition makes its moving debut.                                     

Singer: A more powerful version of Singer’s modified 911 Targa will debut.

Tesla: Fresh after its recent TV appearance, the innovative Model X debuts.

Toyota: Toyota’s new C-HR, Mirai and 2017 GT86 will all debut at Goodwood.

Vauxhall: The Vauxhall GT Concept will make its static UK debut, as will the 544hp Maloo LSA.

Volkswagen:  The 40^th anniversary of the influential Golf GTi will be marked with a special GTi Clubsport Son the Goodwood Hill.

VUHL: The upgraded 05RR supercar will make its world debut.

The FoS has been staged every summer since 1993. Highlights of the 2015 event, which took place on June 25-28, included the Moving Motor Show presented by the AA in association with The Telegraph, Forest Rally Stage, Michelin Supercar Paddock, Michelin Supercar Run, F1 paddock presented by Sky Sports F1, Drivers’ Club presented by TAG Heuer, GAS Arena powered by TomTom Bandit, Cartier Style et Luxe Concours d’Elegance, Aviation Exhibition and Bonhams auction.

From 2017, the Festival of Speed will be presented by MasterCard, who will be the first headline sponsor the world’s most luxurious motoring event has had since it first began 24 years ago.