CLASSIC car enthusiasts from around the country gathered in Evesham on Sunday (August 20) for the annual Cotswold Economy Drive.

The event, which featured over fifty classic cars, challenged drivers and their co-navigators to match, as closely as possible, a pre-rally fuel consumption estimate over a 120-mile route across the Cotswolds.

The winners were John and Liz Jenkinson from Sheffield who drove a 1969 Daimler V8 250 achieving 19.6 mpg over the duration of the route with just a 0.26% discrepancy on their original estimate.

The runners-up included a Rolls Royce Silver Spirit, Sunbeam Rapier, Lancia Appia and a rare 1956 Daimler Conquest Drophead that had had a gearbox replacement just two days before the rally.

Junior navigators also received their own special award.

The cars started and finished at the Evesham Hotel & Spa on Coopers Lane, Evesham, with nearby Taylor's Garage in Willersey used as the refuelling control point.

David Field, general manager at Evesham Hotel & Spa, said: "It was wonderful to see so many iconic cars from a bygone era."

"Many of the participants stayed with us for the entire weekend and enjoyed a gala dinner on Saturday night.

"It was quite a spectacle seeing the cars off on Sunday morning."

The Cotswold Economy Drive has over the years extended into neighbouring counties including Warwickshire, Oxfordshire and this year, Buckinghamshire where participants enjoyed a picnic lunch at the Claydon Estate, home of Nicholas and Alexandra Verney.