Hagerty Festival of the Unexceptional 2026: Japanese Gems

The 12th Hagerty Festival of the Unexceptional at Grimsthorpe Castle sold out for 2026, drawing 4,500 visitors and 2,500 mundane motors ranging from Ladas and Yugos to a Fiat Strada convertible, a Talbot Tagora, and a Toyota Corona Mark II pick-up. Gordon McNeill took the Concours de l’Ordinaire winner’s trophy with his battle-scarred 2001 Volkswagen Polo E, a base-spec car he bought as his first vehicle 20 years ago and has never replaced, covering 176,000 miles including laps of the Nurburgring, a trip to Spain, and his own wedding. Matt Swinn’s meticulously maintained 1992 Toyota Previa, still used to haul his band’s equipment across the country, took second, while Jake Seddon’s family heirloom 2001 Ford Focus, originally owned by his grandfather, placed third. The judging panel, which included Steve Cropley, Jon Bentley, and Richard Porter, also commended a 1991 Ford P100 TD, a 2000 Kia Clarus Wagon, a 1986 Citroen Axel, a 1982 Fiat 127, and a 1994 Honda Civic Bali. Special guest displays included British Leyland prototypes from the British Motor Museum, among them the very first Maestro off the production line and a pre-production Austin Metro built in 1980 for the Motor Show.

Here are some of our favourite Japanese entrants…