Do you remember these once common but now vanishing cars? The show dedicated to dull motors from the past

By: dailymail Posted On: July 30, 2025 View: 76

Feast your eyes on these cherished mass-produced cars that were everywhere in the 1970s to the 1990s

Updated: 04:22 EDT, 30 July 2025

Owners of some of the rarest - but also most unremarkable - cars to have graced our roads in the last 50 years congregated in Lincolnshire at the weekend for what has been dubbed the biggest gathering of uninspiring cherished motors.

The Festival of the Unexceptional descended on Grimsthorpe Castle on Saturday, inviting drivers from around the world to showcase their mundane family cars from the seventies through to the 1990s.

Thousands made the journey to the idyllic 13th century country house in their contrastingly bland vehicles, with the event celebrating the most basic and boring models that have become forgotten products from our past - but are guaranteed to jog the memory of readers of all ages.

The show, now in its 11th year, is organised by classic car insurer Hagerty and has rapidly become a notable entry to the motoring calendar that's truly like no other automotive event.

And the 2025 rendition delivered in spades, with collectors displaying a bounty of once readily available dull cars of their generation that have since disappeared from our roads, some falling to single digit figures and now rarer than vintage Ferraris and Lamborghinis worth hundreds times as much.

We reveal the top three standout motors in attendance as voted by a panel of judges and show goers. But to take you on a nostalgic trip down memory lane, we've bundled in as many of the other unexciting vehicles that made the pilgrimage to Britain's least exotic car show.

The Festival of the Unexceptional descended on Grimsthorpe Castle on Saturday, inviting drivers from around the world to showcase their mundane family cars from the seventies through to the 1990s. Thousands attended the event

Owners of some of the rarest - but also most dull - cars to have graced our roads in the last 50 years congregated in Lincolnshire at the weekend for what is dubbed the biggest gathering of uninspiring motors. That includes vehicles like this 1998 Vauxhall Vectra V6

While the show's title suggests this is an event for unexceptional cars - Ferrari owners, you're not welcome here - the turnout on Saturday proves that there is an exceptional cult following for motors of this ilk.

While the 'Concours de L’Ordinaire' is the yearly major showpiece of the 50 rarest, best kept and surprisingly cherished vanilla vehicles, the show parking area is always a feast of cars that have gone from being commonplace to seldom seen in the 2020s.

Badges you'll almost never see on the road today - ranging from Maxi, Nova and Allegro - were all in attendance, mixing with the likes of Trabants, Ladas and Datsuns that only this show could endeavour to bring together in one place.

Organisers celebrated the appearance of several motors that would barely impact a petrol head's pulse rate back in the day.

This included a Mk1 Ford Granada in entry trim with a manual gearbox that the keeper has cocooned for years to retain its showroom condition.

And a young owner driving 1,000 miles to display one of three Talbot Solaras he has in his collection - all of which are in immaculate working order and all in the same trim and engine specification.

There truly isn't another event like it where owners are congratulated for lavishing time, money and extraordinary effort on such ordinary vehicles.

Owners of a 1990s Toyota Lucida - a narrower version of the more popular Previa - arrive at the castle. This is one of just 17 believe to still be on the road in the UK

Thousands made the journey to the idyllic 13th century country house in their contrastingly bland vehicles, with the event celebrating the most basic and boring models from forgotten eras that are guaranteed to jog the memory of readers of all ages

A precession of vehicles pictured arriving at the Lincolnshire castle grounds with a Ford Escort van heading a Peugeot 306 and Mazda Demio

The annual event offers rare glimpses of cars that have typically disappeared from the road over the years. Prime example of this is the 1984 Honda Jazz pictured, which was sold in other country as the Honda City

The proud owner of this banana yellow 1976 Datsun Cherry - one of the 50 cars entered into the concours competition - wipes away the rainwater from the bonnet

There are few - in fact no - other car shows where a pair of Millennium-period Daewoo Matiz will be on display together as a showpiece

This 1988 Peugeot family car is a perfect example of the type of motor the Festival of the Unexceptional wants to celebrate. It's grey, has a diesel engine, is a lower trim level and has an enthusiast owner desperate to keep it on the road despite the ageing vehicle clocking over 100k miles

The weekend's Festival of the Unexceptional is the 11th instance of the event, which is organised by classic car insurer Hagerty and has rapidly become a standout date on the annual motoring calendar. Pictured: a 1994 Vauxhall Astra Merit

This year's top three concours motors on show were an eclectic mix of vehicles you would have least expected to receive awards for their stardom if we'd asked you 30 years ago.

Third place was awarded to a bright yellow 1979 Citroen Visa Club.

It is one of only three still surviving in the UK with owner Andy Smith drawing plenty of attention as visitors marvelled at its immaculate condition.

Arriving in style...sort of. This 1974 Triumph Toledo - one of 153 believed to still be on the road today - trundles into the event grounds

The automotive showpiece has been a sell-out event for the last few years with nostalgic petrol heads enjoying stumbling across long lost motors from their past

The 'Concours de L’Ordinaire' is the yearly competition where owners of the 50 rarest, best kept and surprisingly cherished vanilla vehicles duke it out for best in show

Third place in this year's competition went to this bright yellow 1979 Citroen Visa Club. It is one of only three still surviving in the UK with owner Andy Smith drawing plenty of attention as visitors marvelled at its immaculate condition

Callum Bailey's 1999 Ford Mondeo - a car he spent £6,000 restoring having saved it from becoming a banger racer - picked up the second-place award at the 2025 event

A 1999 Ford Mondeo took second place.

This is another example of a car that was - for one reason or another - spared from the motoring graveyard that many of its Mk1 siblings are now residents.

Owner Callum Bailey said he spotted the red base model family saloon being transported on the back of a truck a few years ago, with the Mondeo destined to become a banger racer. He bought it on the spot and has spent £6,000 returning it to its former glory from 26 years ago.

The overall winner was this incredibly original 1992 Skoda Favorit Forum. The car is 11 years the senior of its keeper, 22-year-old Simon Packowski (pictured), who knocked the judges off their feet with a bright blue hatchback so basic it doesn't even have a radio as standard

The top three award winners in this year's Concours de L’Ordinaire proudly hold their prizes as they pose alongside their beautifully retained mundane modern classics

The British Motor Museum team also presented their own award for their choice of car of the show. Stephen Tearle took that trophy for his original, family owned from new, Micra 1.0 Celebration

But neither could match the 2025 Festival of the Unexceptional winner - a 1992 Skoda Favorit Forum.

The car is 11 years senior to its keeper, 22-year-old Simon Packowski, who knocked the judges off their feet with a bright blue hatchback so basic it didn't even get sold with a radio as standard.

Simon rescued the car, which was about to be scrapped for a failed head gasket, and brought it back to its former glory. He said its restoration included a 1,000-mile round trip to collect a set of original headrests for the Czech classic.

Enthusiasts and collectors brought along a bounty of once readily available cars of their generation that have since disappeared from our roads, some falling to single digit figures in recent years. This 1978 Peugeot 504 GL is a great example

A 1996 Volkswagen Polo arrives at the show three up leading a stream of vehicles of varying vintage, typically first registered in the seventies through to the nineties

A bronze Vauxhall Corsa from 2001 heads a stream of older motors into the show grounds. Following behind are meticulous examples of a 1995 Honda Accord Estate and saloon, a 1972 Rover Mini, eighties Peugeot 205, Mk1 Ford Focus and 1990s Jag

Showgoers look on at this 1999 Toyota Corolla arrives in the event car park. This particular car has over 120,000 miles on the clock - but you wouldn't be able to tell from its appearance

An entry trim level Ford Ka, fittingly displaying its contrasting black plastic bumpers, emerges on the hill of Grimsthorpe Castle

There are very few motoring events that will celebrate the arrival of a 1990s Vauxhall Vectra, but FOTU is one of them

An onlooker glances at the staggeringly clean engine bay of this late 1990s Renault Clio Grande entered into the concours competition

A picturesque view of the Lincolnshire country house grounds with 13th century Grimsthorpe Castle in the background could make for a lovely postcard - though probably not with a 1992 Rover 214 in the foreground. This is a very low-mileage example

A host of special guest cars appeared at the event too, including a selection of British Leyland prototypes, kindly supplied by the British Motor Museum.

A 1969 Mini 9X hatchback prototype was joined by a British Leyland ECV3 from 1981 and a 1975 Triumph SD2 concept.

They all provided a glimpse of motors that might have featured at the event had they made production, and a cult-like group of collectors maintained them for decades.

Pictured: A 2000-registered Perodua Nippa. Haven't seen one on the road before? That's no surprise, given just 28 are still registered in Britain. Almost 500 examples were still in use in the UK just a decade ago, showing just how quickly numbers can disappear

The Festival of the Unexceptional is now in its 11th year, with Grimsthorpe Castle in the Lincolnshire countryside its destination since 2021

The owner of the 1980 Rover Allegro stands proudly alongside the motor. Despite being 45 years old, it has covered just over 60,000 miles in its lifetime

A beige 1985 Nissan Micra pictured heading into the event behind a very rare Nissan Infiniti. Just eight examples of the latter are still on UK roads

The event attracts petrol heads from across Europe. The owner pictured drove this early 2000s Lancia Yipsilon from the Netherlands

One of the recurring features of The Festival of the Unexceptional is the growing number of younger owners of cherished older cars, which are typically more senior than they are

This Mazda 323 with its period-correct 1990s pop-up headlights might not be in the greatest cosmetic condition, but this trusty 100k-mile-plus Japanese motor is another cherished car driven to the event on Saturday

No, it's not a Panda. This well-aged nineties compact car is the rebadged Seat Marbella. Around 15 survive in the UK today

The British Motor Museum team also presented their own award for their choice of car of the show. Stephen Tearle took that trophy for his all-original, family owned from new, Micra 1.0 Celebration.

Speaking after the gongs had been awarded to the best motors in show, Mark Roper, managing director of Hagerty International, said: 'Festival of the Unexceptional continues to grow bigger with every year.

'Over the past 11 years we have seen FOTU-era cars become recognised as proper classic cars, and the younger owner demographic shows this is a new movement in car culture.'