Ex-farmyard Toyota Hilux wins 2024 Festival of the Unexceptional

A pristine 1982 Toyota Hilux has been named the winner of the 2024 Hagerty Festival of the Unexceptional, which celebrates ordinary family cars from the 1970s to the 1990s.

The event, which has been held at Grimsthorpe Castle in Lincolnshire since 2021, marked its 10th anniversary this year. It was founded to highlight vehicles from 1969-1999 that would never be seen at the likes of the Hampton Court Concours of Elegance.

This year's winning Hilux is owned by Mitch Lewis, who bought it from an elderly lady who used it on a strawberry farm. The machine had done around 10,000 miles when Lewis purchased it, and he has since added another 10,000. Lewis noted that it still has small dents made by strawberry punnets in the bodywork, but otherwise it took “just a wash” to ready the vehicle for the event.

On his win, Lewis said: "I was expecting one of the lower prizes at the very best. I didn't expect first. It's a lovely car, my pride and joy. And I love it." 

Jon Bentley, who served as one of the judges this year, said: “Most Hiluxes get used and abused and ultimately scrapped, but here is one which has actually been preserved during life on the farm.

"It did a lot of work but has been treated very gently. And so despite the fact all of its contemporaries have disappeared, here is one in all of its perfect, prestigious condition. Therefore the exceptional has survived and become unexceptional.”

The judges, which included Autocar editor-in-chief Steve Cropley, summarised it as “surely the best one in the world”.

This year's festival attracted more than 4000 people, with around 2000 cars in attendance. The Hilux was chosen from a list of finalists that included a Zastava Yugo, a Volvo 145 and a Vauxhall Nova. 

Second place went to Amy Jaine's Renault Clio, while the Retro Repmobile prize was given to a Nissan Primera that originally came from Hanover in Germany. Highly commendable mentions were given to a Fiat Panda, Citroën Visa and Austin Metro.