Ever since Carl Benz's 'Patent-Motorwagen' took to the road, the human race has had a fascination with cars. Arguably one of the most significant commercial inventions in history, the car has changed the world we live in. The history of the car is a rich tapestry, not all of it good, but equally, there is much to celebrate. And celebrating the car is what the Retromobile show in Paris has been doing for some time. This year marked its 50th anniversary.
The Porte de Versailles expo was absolutely bursting at the seams with people and cars, demonstrating how, at a time when even the presence of cars on the streets on certain European cities is coming under increased scrutiny, the car itself as an object, a mode of transport, a vehicle that drives memories and not just people, can still be celebrated in the most positive way.
Like so many other things in life, Retromobile has changed and adapted over its five decades and, of course, there is a commercial element to it nowadays. Perhaps the single biggest blot on its copybook for 2026 was charging visitors an additional €21 fee to enter a separate supercar garage where many of the cars that today's younger generation, camera-phone in hand, dream of seeing. A real instance of cashing in on the next generation, which left a bad taste.
Bugatti's new one-off reimagining of the Veyron, called the F.K.P. Hommage, is from its Solitaire programme that creates bespoke cars for very lucky (and wealthy) customers. It is an interpretation of how the seminal Veyron might look were it launched today. F.K.P stands for the initials of Prof. Dr. Ferdinand Karl Piëch, former Volkswagen Group CEO, who personally oversaw the acquisition of the defunct Bugatti brand, its resurrection and the creation of the Veyron. The Hommage looks stunning and remains remarkably true to the original, which was displayed alongside it.
There were other modern cars to see, such as the Lamborghini Fenomeno, yet another 'few off' hypercar series to continue milking its ultra-wealthy customer base by making them feel that bit more special than its 'regular-wealthy' customer base.
But there were glimpses of companies doing more interesting things, such as Donkervoort's P24 RS and Nardone's reimagined Porsche 928 - proving that not every restomod needs to be a 911.
To say there's something for everyone at Retromobile would be a massive understatement. This show is an odyssey in itself, in getting lost down rabbit holes you didn't know existed before you walked through the venue doors.
Want to buy a classic and drive it home after the show? Not a problem, there's a whole hall dedicated to cars that cost below €30,000, some of which are substantially below that figure, and all wonderfully quirky in their own right.
One of the real draws for the 2026 show was another Bugatti, but not the type you might expect. The world's sole-remaining Bugatti Autorail was transported to Paris for the event, and it was spectacular. When the Type 41 car failed to be quite the sales success that Ettore Bugatti expected, the company found itself with a surplus of 12.8-litre in-line eight-cylinder engines. So it did what any car company would do and set about designing a train to sell to the national railway company.
A far cry from what we'll one day end up with for the Metrolink, "Le Présidentiel” is a glimpse of how glamorous public transport once was; admittedly, this was used to transport the nation's president at the time, but it was still wonderful to see.
If you did want to spend money in the same way that the government does on massive infrastructure projects, then there were plenty of auction houses on hand at Retromobile to help relieve you of some of that wealth.
All the usual players were there, each trying to outdo one another in how rare and how expensive a show stand it could present. One of the smaller outfits, Girardo & Co, had a sublime collection of the most important Ferraris for any would-be collector who's just come into a tsunami-like financial windfall. Besides the obligatory F40, F50 and 288 GTO, there was a 1963 275 P, the only Ferrari to have won Le Mans twice.
You could have gotten bored of seeing McLaren F1s there were that many of them, and the same could be said for Ferrari 275s and Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Gullwings. But there were so many other beautiful objects there, from companies such as Voisin and Talbot-Lago, with a T26 Grand Sport by Figoni & Falaschi being the car of the show for me.
But what Retromobile does best is celebrate the past, and there were plenty of current car companies there doing just that. Peugeot dedicated its entire stand to the GTi, and while the forthcoming 208 GTi https://www.completecar.ie/car-news/article/14184/Peugeot-E-208-GTi-revealed-with-280hp took centre-stage, it had every variant of its much-loved 205 GTi there too, along with a mouth-watering 205 T16 homologation special.
Last year, the DS Automobiles Nº8 made its public debut; this time around, the company demonstrated its Nº8 Presidential, which it uses to shuttle the current French head of state, Mr Emmanuel Macron, around Paris. This car sat alongside a previous fleet of DS-based presidential cars, including a phenomenal open-topped SM Presidential, commissioned by then-French President Georges Pompidou.
Naturally, the home advantage was played to good effect, and Renault created an entire world dedicated to the new Clio, called 'Cliorama'.
Pride of place was given to the all-new generation Clio, but surrounding it were some of the greats and the rarer variants. The Clio V6 remains an epic car both visually and dynamically, but the Phase 2 is the one you want to drive. There were motorsport models too. The highlight wasn't the Clio Williams (fantastic as it is) but the Clio Baccara, a luxuriously appointed 1.8-litre Clio that flies gracefully under the radar.
Mazda leaned fully into the motorsport brief by rolling out its most famous racer, the Renown-liveried 787B, which won Le Mans 35 years ago. If ever there was a car that looked fast while stationary, this is it. Flanking it was a selection of its beautiful past, including the Cosmo Sport 110S and Luce R130.
If, on the off-chance, you began to get bored with seeing some utterly beguiling cars, there were entire halls dedicated to curating your dream garage with items ranging from vintage fuel pumps to ten-foot-high art deco artwork, some of which cost more than your average car. However, there's time to be spent trawling through the yards of model car stands where you can pick up some absolute bargains and find your dream car at a scaled-down price.
But perhaps the most refreshing aspect of visiting Retromobile was seeing so many young people there, often in awe of the creations on display. Cars remain wonderful things, and while many of today's contemporary vehicles might not inspire in the same way, it's vital to preserve their history for future generations to see.
Retromobile also highlights one of the major differences between established brands and the latest newcomers to the market: heritage. While these days selling new cars is a more competitive business than ever, what can make some brands more appealing is longevity and history, something any new brand, no matter how good, simply can't recreate.
If you've never been to the Retromobile, now is a good time to mark it in your calendar for next year; it'll take place from 3-7 February 2027. See you there.