Jay Leno, legendary television host and automotive enthusiast was officially inducted into the prestigious FIVA Heritage Hall of Fame at a ceremony held in Los Angeles at the Broad Arrow Auctions / Hagerty Garage + Social on June 23, 2026.
This prestigious honour, awarded by the Fédération Internationale des Véhicules Anciens (‘FIVA’), recognises individuals who have made a lasting impact on automotive heritage. Mr. Leno is the ideal exemplar of the Heritage Hall of Fame as evidenced by his promotion of an accessible, educational public experience through his media platforms for more than 15 years where he champions historic vehicle preservation, legislative advocacy for owner rights and trade education for the next generation of restorers. Mr. Leno is also known for leading by example, regularly driving or riding his wide ranging collection on public roads ensuring that the sight and sound of historic vehicles remain part of everyday American life.
FIVA President Alberto Scuro who awarded the FIVA Hall of Fame trophy to Mr. Leno, drew upon the parallels that exist between FIVA and Mr. Leno’s legislative advocacy, pointing out that both Mr. Leno and FIVA promote and protect not only the preservation, but also the responsible use of historic vehicles and young timers (vehicles between 20 and 30 years old) on public roads for the benefit of their owners, enthusiasts and the general public.
President Scuro drew attention to the fact that FIVA’s initiative to expand its presence in the United States through the organization, Friends of FIVA USA, could provide support to Mr. Leno’s initiatives and contribute FIVA’s resources and experience for the benefit of enthusiasts across North America. Scuro went on to state that “FIVA serves the global historic vehicle community and, I state emphatically, that American enthusiasts can count upon all that FIVA stands for, namely advocacy, education and community engagement, all serving to unite historical vehicles enthusiasts worldwide.”
Joining FIVA in the ceremony were Donald W. Osborne and Mark Gessler, the FIVA representatives for the United States who have undertaken the launch of Friends of FIVA USA. During the ceremony, Donald Osborne highlighted the fact that Friends of FIVA USA would serve to link the greater historic vehicle enthusiast community in the United States with FIVA, a global organization that is now celebrating its sixtieth year of achievement and experience. By doing so, Friends of FIVA USA would seek to more widely share the goals, objectives and benefits of the work of FIVA with the automotive enthusiast community in North America and bring the message of FIVA, its resources and ethos to as wide an audience as possible.
Mark Gessler highlighted the benefits and workings of the FIVA ID Card and how working collaboratively with organizations, entities and individuals to identify how the FIVA Technical Code could be used and combined with existing collector car evaluation and documenting programs. He highlighted how Friends of FIVA USA will further encourage an attitude of curation, care and accuracy in safeguarding the identity and history of historic vehicles, encouraging their responsible use and preservation by owners and the greater enthusiast community. Gessler then handed over a FIVA ID Card to Mr. Leno for his 1930 Duesenberg Model J - LeBaron 'Barrelside' Phaeton which had been scrutineered by FIVA.
The ceremony, attended by key representatives of important marque and model clubs in the United States, as well as other organizations, such as museums and the media, ended with a lively question and answer session and all in attendance were invited to continue the discussion on how FIVA might collaborate with their efforts.