A 96-Year-Old Car Just Beat the Whole Field at Ngong — Meet the Winner of Kenya’s 54th Concours

It was built when Kenya was still a colony, before the Second World War, before most of the cars it beat were even imagined. Yet a gleaming 1930 Essex Super Six, owned by Veronica Duder, has just been crowned best in show at the 54th Concours d’Elegance at Ngong Racecourse — proof that at Kenya’s most elegant motoring tradition, age is not a weakness but the whole point.

The Concours d’Elegance is not a race. Nobody wins by being fastest. It is a contest of preservation and presentation — a judged parade of classic and vintage cars and motorcycles where owners are rewarded for how faithfully and beautifully they have kept a piece of history alive. To take top honours with a 96-year-old machine is to have kept every panel, every fitting and every stitch of a near-century-old car in a condition its makers would recognise.

What makes the Concours d’Elegance Kenya’s classiest day out

Held on the lawns of Ngong Racecourse in Nairobi, the Concours d’Elegance is one of the oldest events of its kind on the continent, drawing collectors, families and the merely curious for a day among machines that most people only ever see in old films. Vintage saloons sit beside classic motorcycles; owners polish chrome that is older than they are; and judges move slowly down the rows scoring originality and finish. As Citizen Digital and Mozzart Sport reported, this year’s 54th edition once again turned the racecourse into an open-air museum of rolling heritage.

For the Duder name, success at Ngong is familiar territory — the family has long been among the standout entrants at the show — and this year’s best-in-show for the 1930 Essex Super Six adds another chapter to a genuinely Kenyan story of dedication to the vintage-car craft.

A tradition worth keeping on your calendar

Beyond the trophies, the Concours d’Elegance is exactly the kind of clean, all-ages day out that is easy to love: no drama, just craftsmanship, curiosity and a picnic on the grass. Events like this are also a reminder of how much work goes on behind the scenes — ticketing, gates and crowd management — to make a big open day run smoothly.

If you are planning your own event and want that side handled properly, you can sort ticketing through UlizaTicket and event wristbands through Wristbands.co.ke — just call 0111052810 or email sales@ulizaevents.com. For now, though, the takeaway from Ngong is simple and rather lovely: a car older than independence itself is still the most beautiful thing on the lawn.

Sources

Reporting: Citizen Digital — Veronica Duder’s 1930 Essex Super Six wins 54th Concours d’Elegance; Mozzart Sport Kenya. More on ULIZA LINKS: latest lifestyle and events news.