Nissan GT-R and Lewis Hamilton at Goodwood

The first UK appearance of the Nissan GT-R is among the star attractions and Lewis Hamilton will get up close to the public after his British Grand Prix win.

Trackside’s Keith Collantine has all the highlights.

We’ll be bringing you all the stars and cars from the Goodwood Festival of Speed this weekend. Here are some of the main attractions:

Nissan GT-R – Last year Nissan gave us a glimpse of the prototype GT-R at Goodwood. This year the awesome GT-R supercar will be unleashed in anger for the first time in Britain, tearing up the famous Goodwood hill.

View more images of the Nissan GT-R

Lewis Hamilton – Fresh from his stunning victory in the British Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton will be among the Formula 1 stars making a visit. Jenson Button will drive his Honda F1 car and motor racing heroes Sir Stirling Moss and Sir Jackie Stewart will also be there. Goodwood marks the fiftieth anniversary of the first British F1 champion – Mike Hawthorn.

Radical concepts – Some of the most astonishing and daring concept cars will take to the Goodwood hill. Some of the concepts expected to be seen in action include the Aston Martin V12 Vantage RS, Bentley Continental GTZ, Mazda Furai and the Ital Design Quaranta.

Bugatti Veyron 16.4 ‘Hermes’ – The ultra-exclusive version of the world’s most desirable car will certainly turn heads.

View the Hermes Bugatti Veyron slide show now

Colin McRae tribute – The 1995 World Rally Champion tragically lost his life in a helicopter crash last year. A special tribute will commemorate the rallying hero.

James Bond cars – The Cartier Style et Luxe automotive design competition will include a special class for cars used by Agent 007 himself, James Bond. They include the Aston Martin DB5 and Lotus Esprit.

Supercar debuts – Joining the GT-R are a wealth of other exotic supercars including the Breckland Beira, Ginetta G50, Shelby GT500 Super Snake, Artega GT and Ariel Atom 500. The Tesla Roadster, KTM X-Bow and Lotus 2 Eleven will also appear.

Classic touring cars – Celebrating 50 years of the British Touring Car Championship, some of the series most successful cars will be on display including the iconic Sierra Cosworth and BMW M3.

New vehicle debuts – Other new cars making their first appearances at Goodwood include the Morgan Lifecar, Abarth 595, Land Rover LRX, Peugeot RC-Z, Alfa Romeo 8C Spider, Dodge Challenger SRT8, Ford Kuga and Audi Q5.

Land Rover display – Taking centre stage in front of Goodwood House this year will be an extravagant display celebrating Land Rover’s diamond jubilee. The huge structure will stand 35 metres(115 feet) tall.

Historics – Among the oldest and most special cars on display will be a Ford Model T, celebrating the centenary of the car. Audi is bringing a restored 1939 Auto Union “Silver Arrow” Type D Dual Compressor. This was a hugely powerful racing at the time when it raced, with a 420bhp 12-cylinder engine.

Don’t miss our comprehensive coverage of the 2008 Goodwood Festival of Speed starting on Friday. You can keep up-to-date with Auto Trader by subscribing to our RSS feed.