PistonHeads On The Beach | PH Review

Sun, sea, and superchargers assembled at our special-edition Brighton Sunday Service

By Adam Betteridge / Thursday, 28 May 2026 / Loading comments

Setting a 4am alarm on a bank holiday Sunday is usually a punishable offence, but for our first-ever PistonHeads On The Beach in Brighton, exceptions had to be made. Arriving on the seafront as the sun burned through the morning haze, the PH team witnessed a very British juxtaposition.

Bleary-eyed petrolheads were setting up gazebos while local nightclubbers were still stumbling out into dawn sunshine. Between deploying our tow truck, building the stand, and gently moving a few people who were fast asleep in their cars amid our road closure, it was a proper early morning scramble.

What followed was hands-down one of our best, public-facing Sunday Services ever. The turnout completely blew us away, with over 400 cars packed onto the seafront, creating a literal mile-long ribbon of automotive brilliance. Combined with the scorching hot weather, we welcomed over 1,700 spectators and even picked up some fantastic media coverage along the way.

The sheer variety on display was a testament to what makes PistonHeads great. We had a Lamborghini Countach rubbing shoulders with an original Ford Thunderbird, a classic Bullitt-inspired Mustang, and a perfectly at-home modified Beach Buggy. Walking the line, you couldn't miss the sun-soaked Volkswagen Campers, original Mini pick-up, a stunning one-of-one spec BMW E92 M3, a gorgeous green-over-tan Fiat Coupe, a Ferrari 328, and an absolutely unhinged LSV8-swapped Toyota GT86.

An event of this scale doesn't happen without a brilliant roster of supporters. Massive thanks to our Annual Service Modified Lawn sponsors, Regal Autosport, and Ranmore Fine Motor Cars for bringing serious class with the new Morgan Supersport and a restomodded Jensen Interceptor. We also had a stellar fleet of Fords from ZeroNine Design, top-tier audio from Huets In-Car Entertainment, and a racing Hillman Imp courtesy of the Brighton and Hove Motor Club. The PAAA turned heads with a flock-effect print Lexus, while Mark from Car Show Boards showcased our special edition Annual Service boards (available now). Huge props to the crew and cadets from St John Ambulance for keeping everyone safe in the heat.

Over on the PistonHeads stand, the staff cars were out in full force. Pete brought his iconic Escort Twin-Cam, Ben showed off his modified Fiesta ST, Matt represented the modern classics with his BMW Compact, and Nic C enjoyed the heavily contested air conditioning of the (press loaner) Range Rover Sport SV. We were also thrilled to host a gorgeous 1976 Porsche 911 Carrera 3.0 Race Car - which is now live on PistonHeads Auctions.

If you missed out on our limited-edition On The Beach t-shirts, don't panic - these will be landing on the PistonHeads store soon, and will also be available at the 2026 PistonHeads Annual Service.

That’s not all, we have provisionally booked to return to the beach in 2027, so watch this space. If you can’t wait an entire year for your next PistonHeads fix, the summer calendar is already packed:

PistonHeads Le Mans Friday Service: Friday 12th June - book now
PistonHeads at the 24 Hours of Le Mans: 10-14th June - more details
Sunday Service at Car Barn Beamish: Sunday 28th June - bookings coming soon
PistonHeads at the Le Mans Classic: 2-5th July - more details
The PistonHeads Annual Service: Saturday 8th August - selling fast!

To every single person who brought a car or just came down to support us in the heat: a massive, heartfelt thank you. You made our Brighton debut unforgettable.