A century-old car from a Brazilian museum has won a recognized award for automotive elegance in the United States. The 1925 Isotta Fraschini, belonging to the Carde Museum in Campos do Jordão (São Paulo state), placed second in its category at the 75th Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance—the world's most prestigious automotive elegance competition, held Sunday in California. This result was officially confirmed by the organization in the list of winners.
The Carde Museum car, supported by the Lia Maria Aguiar Foundation, participated in Class J-2. This category is designated for European cars manufactured before World War II, featuring bodies built by independent coachbuilders and engines with displacement exceeding 4000 cm³. It was only surpassed by a 1938 Delahaye 165 Figoni et Falaschi Cabriolet from the Swiss Pearl Collection, which not only won the class but also became one of the four finalists for the main Best of Show prize.
A total of 218 vehicles were presented at this event, including 33 international entries from 14 countries. The Best of Show award went to a 1935 Duesenberg SSJ Special Speedster, owned by actor Clark Gable and presented by American collector Harry Yeagie. This is one of two existing examples of this model.
The Brazilian specimen is a Tipo 8A Cabriolet d’Orsay, chassis 810, considered unique in the world in this specific configuration. The seven-seater body was created by Carrozzeria Castagna from Milan, and the engine is an eight-cylinder inline engine with a capacity of 7.4 liters and 110 hp, which placed the car among the most powerful in operation in the 1920s.
This limousine has been in Brazil since the 1920s. It was imported by industrialist Henrique Lage as a gift to the Italian opera singer Gabriella Besançoni, his wife, for whom he converted his property, now known as Lage Park in Rio de Janeiro. Luiz Gosima, director of Carde, described it before traveling to California as 'the result of a beautiful love story.'
After restoration in the 1950s, Eduardo André Matarazzo kept the car in a private collection for decades in Bebedouro (São Paulo state) before it entered the museum fund in the city of Jordão. For participation in the current competition, it underwent new treatment, which included replacing chrome with nickel plating and restoring the original gray paint color.
This is the second consecutive year the museum has returned from California with a trophy. In 2025, during the first Brazilian participation in the event, Carde received the Lap of Luxury Award—a special prize given to the most luxurious car of the competition, which was another Isotta Fraschini: a 1928 Tipo 8A SS Cesare Sala Guida Interna Super Sport. The same week, a Ferrari F50 from the collection won the category dedicated to the model's 30th anniversary.
To be admitted onto the 18th green of Pebble Beach golf course, vehicles undergo a rigorous selection process that analyzes over a thousand applications annually.
