A car with a past, for a day about the future
A vintage car does something no modern car can: it dates the photographs to nothing at all. Chrome, coachwork and a shape the eye reads as older than everyone standing beside it — that is why heritage cars keep being chosen for the days people intend to look back on. Ours are genuine cars, kept running and presented properly, rather than modern cars styled to look old.
Two very different kinds of classic
This part of the fleet holds two moods that share an era and nothing else. The Austin Princess and the Mercedes-Benz 220SE are the period cars: upright, chromed and ceremonial, the ones that suit a church, a garden and a long lens. The Shelby Mustang and the Fast 9 Dodge Charger are the American muscle end — stance, bonnet and V8 character, for a formal or a birthday that wants attitude instead of polish. Both are classics, they are not interchangeable, and the choice tends to make itself the moment you say what the day is.
Five Austin Princess limousines, which is the rare part
Most operators have one vintage car, so a heritage line-up is the booking they cannot take. We run five Austin Princess limousines in ivory and black, which makes matched pairs and full period convoys an ordinary booking rather than a favour. Ribboned and matched, that is the Vintage Line-Up — and it is why a traditional wedding can put the whole bridal party in cars of the same era, instead of one classic followed by three modern ones.
Which classic suits your day
The question is almost never which car is nicest. It is which era the day belongs to.
- Austin Princess
The period limousine — ceremonial, and there are five
Up to 6 passengersIvory & black
Best forTraditional weddings, convoys, portraits
- Mercedes-Benz 220SE
European elegance, chrome and character
Classic saloonChauffeur-driven
Best forProposals, anniversaries, shoots
- Shelby Mustang
American muscle — bonnet, stance and V8
V8Two-door
Best forFormals, milestone birthdays, film
- Fast 9 Dodge Charger
Full-size muscle with a menacing front end
V8Full-size
Best forBirthdays, shoots, bold arrivals
A useful shortcut: if the day has a ceremony in it, the period cars win; if the day is a party, the muscle cars do. And if you want the classic look with modern comfort in the same convoy, put the couple in an Austin Princess and the party in a Rolls-Royce behind it.
What booking a classic actually involves
Older cars are hired a little differently, and it is better said than discovered. They are quoted per booking rather than at a flat rate, shaped by the car, the date, the hours and whether you want more than one. Some of the Austin Princess cars are manual and some automatic, and two are air-conditioned — on a February wedding that is worth asking about, and we will tell you which car you are getting rather than which model. Every classic is detailed before it leaves, driven by a professional chauffeur who knows that particular car, and coordinated from our Lakemba showroom across Greater Sydney. The quickest route to a real number is to check your date.
Where a classic earns its keep
Weddings are the obvious one and the strongest: see vintage wedding car hire. But these cars do their best work on any day built around photographs — a milestone anniversary for a couple who married in that era, a proposal that wants character rather than horsepower, an engagement shoot, a christening, a film or a music video. If you are weighing old against new, our guide on classic versus modern wedding cars is the honest version of that argument.
