Taking a Bite at the Big Apple
In celebration of its 50th year, Rétromobile Paris sets its sights on New York this November.
by Matthew Cottrell
A different kind of supermodel hit the red carpet at the Expo Porte de Versailles in the City of Lights this past January. Coinciding with the biannual Paris Haute Couture Week, over four days, the 50th annual Rétromobile drew close to 150,000 motoring enthusiasts to this comprehensive lifestyle motoring event. To mark the milestone, Rétromobile’s official 2026 poster featured BMW’s first Art Car, a BMW 3.0 CSL with graphics designed by Alexander Calder half a century earlier. Since then, BMW has teamed up with an esteemed roster of artists, including Frank Stella, Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol, and Jeff Koons, to name a few, whose one-of-a-kind works were displayed alongside one another in one of three sprawling halls at Rétromobile.
Gooding Christie’s stand / photo by Andre Ferreia / DPPI
Rétromobile organizers also used the anniversary to announce the first Rétromobile New York, scheduled for November 19-22 at the Javits Center. We sat down with Gerard Neveu, the former CEO of the FIA World Endurance Championship and the current CEO and Director of Rétromobile New York, to gain some insight into what classic car fans can expect in the Big Apple. “We are positioning the event as a new pilgrimage for both US-based and international car lovers, bringing together collectors, curators, brands, and lifestyle partners in a setting designed to foster meaningful encounters and spark future collaborations,” explained Neveu.
Photo by Alexis Perrin / DPPI
Expanding the world's most prestigious and largest annual classic car show to the United States, home to the world's largest market for classic cars, was an easy decision. Deciding on the host city and the date proved a little trickier, with organizers considering Miami and Los Angeles, among others, before opting for New York City the weekend before Thanksgiving. “At this moment, nothing similar to Rétromobile currently exists in the United States,” remarked Neveu, who added that, unlike a concours, a rally event, or a “Cars and Coffee” club meetup, the Rétromobile format is a “complete automotive ecosystem and the most exciting pop-up garage in the world.”
Andy Warhol’s 1979 BMW MI Group / photo by Bridget Cottrell
While exact details were limited at press time, the New York edition will follow a similar schedule to the Paris event, with the first few days reserved for VIP guests before opening to the general public. “It’s exciting to provide a wider audience with a rare opportunity to indulge their passion and love for cars,” remarked Neveu. The late November date is intended to make the event the grand finale of the classic car show calendar.
To give us an idea of what to expect in New York, including the level of expertise and motoring star power the event affords, we toured the show floor with Hervé Guyomard, who served as director of the Le Mans circuit from 1971 to 2006. As we walked, the affable Guyomard, whose continued enthusiasm for motorsports is contagious, was frequently stopped by racing fans and former drivers, and he was able to summarize the latter's stats, from placing to the make and model of their cars, with exceptional accuracy. One of my childhood racing heroes, Belgian driver "Jacky" Ickx, was on the show floor, but unfortunately, we didn’t cross paths while touring with Guyomard.
The world of Bugatti was one of four flagship exhibitions, the centerpiece of which was a Bugatti Autorail. Measuring 23 meters long and powered by four engines from the legendary Bugatti Royale, it remains the last surviving example of the 88 produced. In an era of slow steam locomotives, Bugatti’s train reached 140 km/h on the line and set a speed record of 194 km/h. Alongside the Bugatti railcar, the exhibition, organized with the support of the National Automobile Museum in Mulhouse, France, also featured seven unique prototypes created between 1928 and 1956.
As part of a retrospective tracing the world of rallying from the 1960s to the 1990s, a backdrop of immersive scenography, created in partnership with the Gino Macaluso Foundation and with the support of Oreca, Transport Prevost, and Motul, highlighted Lancia Stratos, Audi Quattro, Peugeot 205 Turbo 16, Toyota Celica GT-4, Renault R5 Turbo, and more, with each embodying a turning point in rallying history. Throughout the event, there were talks and presentations with drivers, engineers, co-drivers, and rally experts who shared their stories, memories, and anecdotes from the races.
An immersive exhibition entitled "Steve McQueen: A Passion for Speed" took visitors on a journey through the world of the King of Cool: his legendary motorcycles, his movie cars, his rare objects, but also the entire culture he inspired.
Two-wheelers were in the spotlight as part of a dedicated Motorcycle Village and the celebration of several significant anniversaries. Visitors discovered the heritage of Royal Enfield, which is celebrating its 125th anniversary, and the iconic brand Triumph. To mark Ducati's 100th anniversary, the Italian manufacturer presented one of the largest spaces ever dedicated to motorcycles at the show.
Gooding Christie’s held its inaugural European sale as Rétromobile’s official auction house, and they join Richard Mille as the first “signature” partners of the New York event. Stanchion ropes separated general admission guests from registered bidders who sipped champagne while perusing 80 exceptional vehicle lots from the world’s most esteemed automotive marques. Competition and track-only Ferraris had a robust presence, led by a 1984 Ferrari 288 GTO (Lot 67) that sold at €9.1 million ($11.1 million), a new high for the model, and a 2018 FXX K Evo (Lot 40) close to €7 million ($8.5 million), a record sale for this track-only variant.
The auction was one of four that took place in Paris during this time, with Ferrari accounting for seven of the ten highest-value transactions across four major auction houses: Artcurial, Bonhams, RM Sotheby’s, and Gooding Christie’s. The headline-grabbing gavel came at RM Sotheby’s, where a 1960 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider (Lot 140) sold for just over €14 million ($16.7 million).
When asked to provide additional details about Rétromobile New York programming, Neveu gave a very French reply: “Let’s enjoy a long dinner together before diving into dessert,” meaning they will course out programming information in the months leading up to the event on their website (retromobile.us). Neveu said that while the United States “has enough content for two decades to explore and produce,” his team is remaining “humble” for the New York debut, offering as much square footage as Paris (approximately 400,000) and between 200 and 250 exhibitors. “Our intention is to create an experience with the American market in mind, not a carbon copy of the European experience.”
