THESE are the best pictures of this year's London to Brighton Veteran Car Run.
The event has now ended on Madeira Drive, where motorists have been arriving all day from London.
Pictures show the classic cars as they make their way through the city towards the seafront.
Drivers can be seen waving to spectators who have come out in their hundreds throughout the day.
Both participants and members of the public have been fortunate with the weather today as the sun has remained firmly in the sky, although the chilly temperature has meant that they have had to wrap up warm.
The event has proved to be a real family occasion with many cars filled with several generations.
While children and parents watched eagerly from the pavement, keen to catch a glimpse of the beautiful cars.
Motorists have set off from Hyde Park in London since sunrise this morning, reaching Brighton from around 10am.
This year marks the 125th anniversary of the run and crowds have come out all over Sussex to support the motorists.
One of the participants, Ben Collins drove in a 1898 Benz, one of the oldest cars in the run, with his father.
He said: "We're so lucky with the weather and it's so lovely to see so many people out here to watch."
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His father added: "It's so nice to see everyone, all their smiling faces."
More than 320 pioneering cars from the dawn of motoring made the same 60-mile journey from the capital city to Brighton.
The oldest car lining up in Hyde Park was the intrepid single-cylinder 1894 Benz.
Six zero-emission hydrogen fuel cell Toyota Mirai cars, including the clerk of the course, also debuted on the run, helping to showcase hydrogen as an effective technology for decarbonising motoring for both business and individual use.
Every vehicle that enters the run must have a VCC Dating Certificate or Passport issued by the Veteran Car Club of Great Britain’s Dating Advisory Committee advising that the vehicle was manufactured prior to 1905.
After the symbolic pre-dawn tearing up of the red flag at Hyde Park, the veterans drove through Admiralty Arch, down Constitution Hill, past Buckingham Palace and onto the Mall, before heading down Whitehall to Parliament Square.
Then, to alleviate congestion, the route split into two with half the field crossing Westminster Bridge and taking the traditional A23 route via Kennington, Brixton and Streatham.
The other half crossed the Thames via the neighbouring Lambeth Bridge and then follow the A3, A24, A217 and A236 over Clapham Common and then through Tooting and Mitcham.
The two routes then merged once again on the A236 north of Croydon with all cars reunited as they head south through Surrey.
After Burgess Hill, the run tackles the scenic roads through the villages of the South Downs, passing through Hassocks and Clayton.
Pubs in the villages have been raising funds for Ben, the charity dedicated to supporting the people of the automotive industry.
Among these pubs in the Friars Oak in Hassocks, where people gathered to watch the cars fly through.
In the crowd were several members of the South Downs TR Group who have been arriving in the car park all morning in their Triumph TR sports cars.
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Hugh Atkins, leader of the South Downs TR group said: "It's a wonderful day. This has been our regular meet point for the last five or six years and it's nice to be back after Covid.
"We love coming to watch the veteran vehicles coming past, giving them a wave. It's even better with the weather as beautiful as it is."
The final leg of the route snaked down the A23 into Brighton, where competitors were welcomed at the finish line on Madeira Drive with a warming wintry hot toddy of Aberfeldy single malt whisky.
There was a 4:30pm cut-off for those who wished to receive a finisher’s medal. There are no awards based on finishing order or specific timings.
The event has been running since November 14, 1896, when the historic Emancipation Run took place between London to Brighton to celebrate the passing of the Locomotives on Highway Act.
The Act increased the speed limit from 4mph to 14mph and acted as a defining moment in British transport history, effectively ending centuries of horse drawn transport and giving motorists the freedom of the road.
The historic event has attracted a large number of well-known personalities and international entries with more than 50 participants travelling from overseas to be part of this year’s celebrations.
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Notably, Andy Green OBE, famous for breaking the sound barrier and claiming the world land speed record, debuted his newly acquired steam-propelled 1904 Stanley.
Several of the makes represented at this year’s run – such as Fiat, Renault, Peugeot, Daimler, Vauxhall and Mercedes – will be familiar to today’s motorists.
However, there were plenty of long-forgotten marques there too such as Napoleon, Yale, Dennis, Flint, Maxwell, Star, Lambert and Gladiator.
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