Features

McLaren W1 First Drive: Ferocious Hypercar Transcends the Track

You know things are getting serious when McLaren rolls-out the ‘1’ suffix. The origin story is, of course, the very first road car McLaren ever built, the F1. Designed by visionary Formula 1 aerodynamicist and engineer Gordon Murray, it arrived in 1992 and rendered all other supercars obsolete. The tiny, lightweight F1 embraced carbon-fibre material technology, adopted a radical centre seat driving position with two passengers set back and either side and was powered by a 6.1-litre V12 engine from BMW that might as well have been passed down directly from the Gods. Game-changer? That doesn’t even come close to describing its impact, even if at the time sales didn’t come easy… The P1 was very different. Rather than a unique side project from the Formula 1 team, it was instead a statement piece for McLaren Automotive, a new road car division still in its infancy. It arrived in 2013 and was a wild-eyed showstopper. It traded the long-legged gait and supple suspension of the F1 for a weaponized hybrid system capable of delivering 903bhp and huge blue flames from its drainpipe exhaust. In Race mode, it lowered by 2-inches and its massive concave rear wing extended into the sky. The P1 was all about aerodynamic downforce, crazed acceleration and a snorting, angry soundtrack that mixed venomous twin-turbocharged V8 with the manic whirr of electric motors. Not so much a car as a force of nature. And now there’s this: The W1. It’s a true successor to the P1 with a similar brief and, on the face of it, it evolves rather than radically reinvents McLaren’s vision for the ultimate hypercar. This is not a criticism. How could it be when the result is this dramatic and has such staggering, other-worldly potential? The W1 has 1258bhp delivered to the rear wheels. It’s capable of 0-124 mph in 5.8-seconds, the quarter mile in 9.6-seconds at 167 mph and produces 2205lbs of downforce at 174 mph. The active aerodynamics – particularly a rear wing that extends way out beyond the rear of the car – are pure performance art and deliver massive aerodynamic efficiency. The result, aside from looking extremely cool, is that the W1 is McLaren’s fastest road car around a racetrack. Ever. Their benchmark circuit is the breath-taking Handling Track at the Nardo proving ground in southern Italy, where the W1 beats their previous benchmark, the flyweight McLaren Senna, by three seconds per lap. Or “a lifetime” as they call it in racing. Maybe two lifetimes! Core to the W1’s performance is the new ‘Aerocell’ carbon fibre tub. With integrated seats and a raised footwell to allow for inboard pushrod-operated front suspension – which in turn gives air a clean path to the huge underbody diffuser – it’s light, stiff, space efficient and has been instrumental in McLaren realising a full ground-effect concept. Just like last year’s F1 cars, which were the fastest ever made. There is also an active front wing and the aforementioned complex rear wing dubbed ‘Active Long Tail’. All of which is very admirable. But the ‘anhedral’ or gullwing doors and the fantastically shirnked-wrapped feel to the minimalist, highly-focussed interior are a pretty good side effect. The W1 feels special. Those fixed seats are perhaps a shade more upright than expected, and the driving position is less obviously racecar than, for example, the Aston Martin Valhalla or Ferrari F80. However, once you’ve adjusted the pedals (they move on a slider) and the delicate, slim-rimmed and alcantara-trimmed steering wheel, there’s an overwhelming sense of purpose. The cabin is so tightly tailored and imparts a sense of lightness and agility before you so much as start the all-new 4.0-litre twin-turbocharged V8 engine, which makes 916bhp all on its own and revs to 9200rpm. Reach up to a roof-mounted control panel to find the starter button. Maybe this fighter plane trope is a little corny, but somehow you feel thrilled rather than manipulated. The W1 has a sense of humour as well as all that motorsport-derived sophistication. There’s a short delay, but when the engine does fire it’s instant – as the high-powered hybrid system negates the need for an old-school starter motor. A sharp flare of revs tells you that this engine is hyper-responsive and angry. On some deep level your brain and body have been sent all the signals required to prepare for something new and intense. Ahead of us, an empty Mugello racetrack, so press and hold the blue button next to the red starter to select Race mode. The centre display graphic shows the W1’s transformation in real time as it lowers by 37mm at the front and 17mm at the rear whilst simultaneously undocking all that active aero goodness. Race mode is not road legal and is geo-locked. You can show your friends and neighbours the aero dance, but it won’t allow you to select a gear to actually drive unless you’re at a circuit. Incidentally, the rocker switches either side of the display binnacle allow further options now: Toggle up the Handling control on the left for Race+ (for F1-spec super smooth tracks) or stick to Race for gnarlier ones. On the right toggle select ‘GP’ for sustained performance over a stint or ‘Sprint’ to unleash all 1258bhp for a time attack. There’s also a DRS and Boost function on the steering wheel. But I guarantee you won’t have the mental capacity to use them… Exit the pitlane, pin the throttle and W1 takes maybe a millisecond or two to gather its might (the gearing stretches to around 60mph in first, nearly 100mph in second, primarily to aid traction), but then lunges at the first turn with incredible ferocity. It instantly feels light, almost like inertia is no longer a thing. McLaren really does prize lightweight engineering, and at 3084lbs (dry) the W1 has a 278lbs advantage over the Ferrari F80. Plus, Ferrari uses figures for cars fitted with every single carbon fibre option. In reality, the gap is probably wider still. The impression of agility and stunning control continues as the track is unravelled at startling pace. The electric motor mounted to the side of the new 8-speed dual-clutch transmission is good for 342bhp and 324lb ft and it boosts any low rev lethargy the new flat-plane crank V8 might have (spoiler alert: It doesn’t appear to have any), so the W1 just feels massively, almost impossibly powerful at any revs. Even so, there’s real reward for wringing it out to 9200rpm and the power curve feels superheated but organic, too. In Race mode the steering – still hydraulically powered – has less assistance and it is noticeably heavier than other McLarens. However, that resistance is welcome as it gives you something to push against and imparts so much information about the front grip level. New Pirelli Trofeo RS tyres with a bigger front footprint than P1 or Senna really help. The front-end feels incredibly secure and the rear-axle follows with perfectly-aligned precision. The whole car feels super-stiff, completely locked into the surface and inspires confidence, but there’s an inherent agility and adjustability that means you’re quickly confident to push at its limits and really impose yourself on the chassis. It’s such a complex car but the driving experience is intuitive, and the driver feels a key contributor rather than just amazed (or terrified) observer, holding on for dear life. Every dynamic ingredient really is shockingly effective and yet has a subtlety and lightness of touch. From that delicious steering to the incredible brakes, the W1 just feels so mission-focussed, so hooked-up. Only the new 8-speed gearbox is a slightly disappointment. It’s fast and punchy, but after the scintillating energy of the Ferrari F80 ’box it feels competent rather than inspired. Other quibbles – it’s okay to quibble when the starting price is $2.1-million before tax and destination charge. Well, that new twin-turbocharged V8 sounds tightly wound and aggressive but if you have a P1 tucked in the garage you’ll miss the snorting, Darth Vader-style soundscape and all the drama that goes with it. Ferrari does this better, too. The F80 sounds deathly dull from the outside but is a riot of turbochargers, electric motors and all sorts of mechanical fury within the cockpit. Even so, the W1 is wildly entertaining on track, and the rear-drive configuration makes it more of a challenge and more satisfying than the F80 when chasing lap times or just sliding around for fun. In the Ferrari, you must second-guess what the front e-axle might do, whereas in the W1 it’s all on you. There are plenty of tools to help, including the ingenious Variable Drift Control, but somehow the W1 is more heroic. Or at least fools you into feeling more heroic – which is surely the point! On the road? Nimble, loaded with feel and sublime response. The ride is noticeably tougher than, say, a 750S but the control is ramped-up too, and with a bit more speed the whole car finds a delicious rhythm. Sport mode for the drivetrain brings some nice turbo whooshes and chirps, but the noise remains high-quality rather than extreme excitement. It is perhaps the one area the W1 feels just a little too tame. Of course, there’s nothing tame about the raw performance… which is genuinely shocking and literally hurts your neck muscles after a few hours. How McLaren has given the W1 such immense traction through just two driven wheels is beyond me. So, is it worthy of that ‘1’? I think so. Perhaps we won’t be talking about $25-million auction results for the W1 in 30 years from now, as we are for the F1. Perhaps it doesn’t quite have the amazing presence and jaw-dropping star quality of the simply gorgeous P1. But it is such an intense experience and the way it marries stunning track performance with delicate poise and entertainment on normal roads is something akin to magic. Maybe not ‘the one’ but definitely a searing, outrageous addition to McLaren’s fiercest family line. Just 399 W1’s will be built and they’re all sold. I’m not surprised at all. View All McLarens For Sale Images: McLaren Automotive

By Sponsored Article – September 04, 2026

Jim Marietta and OVC are Still Building the GT350 They Started in 1965

There is a version of the 1965 Shelby GT350 competition car that never made it out of Venice, California. The hood scoop that got shot down. The redesigned front fascia. The brake ducts fed off the side of the body. The independent rear suspension that Ford costed out and walked away from. All of it existed as sketches, clay, hacksawed metal and black-and-white photographs, and then the shop moved to the airport, budgets arrived, and that was the end of it. Original Venice Crew is building that car now. Only 36 of them, each one starting life as a real 1965 Mustang fastback, each one assembled by people who were in the Venice shop when the first one was built. That last part is the whole proposition. As Jim Marietta puts it, "Ted Sutton and I and Peter Bryant built the first car, and now Ted and I built the current car. There's no other manufacturer in the world that I'm aware of that's doing that." (Since this interview, we are sad to announce that Ted Sutton has passed. We at duPont REGISTRY send our condolences to his family, friends and those at OVC.) Jim Marrieta (left) and Ted Sutton (right) - Photo by Evan Kline Marietta's way into Shelby American was not conventional. He had quit high school, was working a shop job during the day and a service station at night, and spent the money on getting himself to races in 1964. He was 17. Al Dowd, the competition administrator, finally asked him what he was doing there all the time. Marietta told him he wanted to work for them. What he got was an arrangement: sign in on the roster instead of jumping the fence, and the team would find him a room and feed him. "He sticks out his hand. He says, 'Deal?' And I shake his hand, and I said, 'Deal.' Oh, he says, 'By the way, we're not going to pay you.'" He took it. "My pay was just being part of the crew and the experience and working with these guys." At the end of the season came the offer to come on full time, followed by a letter in December of 1964 telling him to show up on January 2, 1965, with his tools. His primary assignment was the GT350. The three hands-on guys on that car were Ted Sutton as crew chief, Peter Bryant, and Marietta as the young one. Bryant is worth knowing about. He was a British-trained welder good enough that when Marietta asked where he had learned, the answer became a line Marietta has never forgotten: "My welding instructor taught me how I could weld bananas to glass. I can weld anything." GALLERY-EMBED Gallery Photos by Evan Kline The Venice shop was small, loud, and permanently full. Cobras, a Sunbeam Tiger, coupes, a dyno, a lathe and a mill, and the two Mustangs parked in the entryway by the overhead door. "We had no lifts in the shop. Everything we did was on jack stands." Instructions were thin to nonexistent. The car needed a larger radiator, which meant cutting the core support down by an inch and a half on each side. Marietta did it with a hacksaw, which in a building that size sounded like a drum. Flaring the driver's side fender meant a muffler chisel, and another round of noise complaints from everyone trying to work around him. The best illustration of how the place ran came from Dick Lins, the primary engineer for the original GT350 competition model, who handed him two bare aluminum window frames for the Mustang. Marietta asked what he thought. "He looked at me with a smile and said, 'Yeah, you worked in shops, so I guess you'll be able to figure that out.' There were no blueprints, and there were no attachment pieces. It was two empty aluminum frames. Put it in, make it work." Only two mechanics went to its first race so as not to make a scene with a giant team taking on locals. Ken Miles took it to Green Valley in Texas, found a bump on the front straight, and got all four wheels clear of the ground with daylight underneath. That is how the car became known as the Flying Mustang. The engineering story at the center of these cars is the independent rear suspension. It was designed by Klaus Arning, the Ford engineer who also did the IRS for the 427 Cobra and originated what everyone now calls the Shelby drop. The geometry was complicated enough that, as the story was passed down, the only machine at Ford with the capacity to run the calculations was the payroll computer, so the work got done in the middle of the night on punch cards. There were two brand-new Mustangs handed over by Ford that were destined to be equipped with the independent rear suspension, and the team was given a budget of $50,000 for each. The crew ended up spending the budget on one car, which was neither of the two the budget was meant for, but instead their GT350 competition model. So the whole $100,000 went into one Mustang. It never reached production, and the reason was arithmetic. Marietta was told by Ford's Jim Owens that the IRS would add roughly $14.10 to the cost of building a Mustang. Ford was already selling every car it could make. There was a second problem, and OVC only solved it 60 years later. Arning's geometry carried a little toe steer, which helps a road car turn and unsettles a racing driver. "When you go around a corner with toe steer, the car kind of helps you turn left or right. And race car drivers apparently don't need the help." At the time, nobody knew that was the cause. "Instead of adjusting the rear end, we used to be up in Willow Springs during the 2:30 in the afternoon dust storms changing spring rates in the front of the car." Working from a few original units and their own testing with John Morton and Rick Titus driving, OVC and Maeco Motorsport got the toe steer out. "Once we got it out, John went, 'Okay, we got it. I feel comfortable now.'" They invited Arning's son Ralph to Willow Springs to ride in it. "Ralph was overjoyed that this was his father's independent rear suspension that we had developed, that we had tweaked to make it work just the way we're sure Klaus would have wanted it." The other unfinished business is on the outside of the car. The reverse hood scoop was tested the old way with wool tufts taped to the bodywork. The front fascia Peter Brock redesigned so the brake cooling ducts run straight down the outside of the frame rail and dump onto the discs, providing more efficient aerodynamics, instead of the original 3-inch hole and two 90-degree bends that made the whole exercise pointless. Rear brake ducts fed from a small scoop in the body indent. Headlight covers to cut front-end drag, still in development, and traceable to Brock's clay mockup from 60 years ago. And, most importantly, it was Brock's idea to add in the iconic blue stripes running down the center of the car. "Sixty years later, we're still doing development work that is meaningful. We're not just putting flames on the fender." What separates this from a tribute build is that OVC can show its work. Marietta has the period photographs: the reverse hood scoop, the IRS installed in a brown test Mustang, an early side scoop that went nowhere, several attempts at the front fascia, Freedman's pictures. "None of this is made up. I have pictures of all these things." He also credits the people who are usually left out. Gale Halderman designed the Mustang, and Marietta is direct about what the crew did with it: "We took Gale Halderman's design and tweaked it and added things to make the car he designed the car it is today." Authenticity extends to the fabrication. The plenums and the fuel tank splash guards on OVC cars are hand-welded in .030 aluminum with an oxyacetylene torch, done by Jere Kirkpatrick, another Shelby American alumnus, exactly the way it was done in the 1960s. "It's a lost art," Marietta says, and he includes himself in that. He could never do it either. In 2016, OVC took its prototype to the Shelby Ford Nationals in Tulsa. Vince LaViolette drove after Rick Titus got tied up, and turned down the offer of new sticker tires on Sunday morning. He won the race ahead of a field of around 20 cars. The pattern was not lost on anyone. LaViolette pointed it out afterward: qualified third on Saturday, won on Sunday, the same way Ken Miles did it at Green Valley. OVC Competition Model Mustangs start with a genuine 1965 fastback. These are titled cars that get reconditioned and built up, not bodies off a shelf. The standard car starts at $329,000, and the K-Code fastback that the original competition car was based on is $359,000. Every one gets a 331 cubic inch aluminum V8 making 465 horsepower, a Borg Warner T-10 style four-speed, Kelsey Hayes brakes, Torque Thrust wheels, aluminum window frames with Plexiglas, a five-point harness, and the Wimbledon White and blue livery. The independent rear suspension comes standard, but the 364 cubic inch Shelby aluminum engine is an option for anyone who wants the version Ford declined to build. A traditional 9-inch solid axle is there for the purists. Thirty-six cars, and then the run is finished. Marietta's case for them is not really about the spec sheet. "We have the pedigree and the history with the original guys." And on what the original car means to everything Ford has built since: "The Mustang that Peter and Ted and I built is the cornerstone for every Mustang that comes off the line today." To order or to ask questions, OVC can be reached directly at ovcmustangs.com or by calling (714) 305-8578. Learn More

By Sponsored Article – September 02, 2026

When the Car Matters, the Transporter Matters More

For more than two decades, Dealer’s Choice Auto Transport has built its reputation in precisely that world. Trusted by luxury and exotic automobile dealerships across the country, Dealer’s Choice understands that moving a Ferrari, Lamborghini, Porsche, Bentley or irreplaceable collector vehicle demands something beyond getting it from Point A to Point B. It requires experience, accountability and, perhaps most importantly, trust. That distinction has become increasingly important. In a previous conversation with duPont REGISTRY, Dealer’s Choice founder Steve Yariv discussed one of the automotive industry’s most troubling developments: increasingly sophisticated vehicle theft during transportation. Fraudulent carriers, rerouted deliveries and falsified credentials have turned what was once a relatively straightforward transaction into another potential point of vulnerability for dealers. Yariv’s message was simple: when hundreds of thousands of dollars are riding inside the trailer, choosing a transporter based solely on the lowest quote can be an extraordinarily expensive gamble. Dealer’s Choice built its business around a different philosophy. The company provides nationwide transportation throughout all 50 states, with both open and enclosed carrier options and specialized services designed for dealerships, auctions, exotic automobiles, classics and individual vehicles. For high-value cars in particular, enclosed transportation provides protection from the elements while placing the vehicle in an environment appropriate for something far removed from ordinary freight. And now, Dealer’s Choice has considerably more horsepower behind it. In late 2025, Dealer’s Choice Auto Transport was acquired by RPM Freight Systems, now operating as RPM Moves. The combination brings together two complementary strengths: Dealer’s Choice's high-touch expertise in luxury and exotic vehicles and RPM’s national logistics infrastructure, technology and carrier network. Dealer’s Choice continues to operate under its established brand while gaining expanded capabilities and reach. Perhaps the best description of the relationship came from RPM President John Perkovich. Speaking after the acquisition, he drew a distinction between traditional vehicle logistics and what Dealer’s Choice does every day: if RPM moves metal, Dealer’s Choice “moves art.” For the dealers and collectors Dealer’s Choice serves, that difference matters. A transporter entrusted with a seven-figure automobile isn't simply delivering inventory. It is being entrusted with an asset, a customer relationship and, in many cases, an automobile that may be difficult—or impossible—to replace. That is why the choice of transporter matters. And it is precisely why so many of the country’s leading luxury and exotic automobile dealers choose Dealer’s Choice Auto Transport. Get A Quote Now

By Sponsored Article – August 12, 2026

Skip Barber Racing School and GMS Track Experience Launch the Skip Barber GTX Academy

GMS Track Experience (GTX), the experiential motorsports division of GMS Race Cars, and Skip Barber Racing School, one of the world's most respected names in motorsports education, today announced the formation of the Skip Barber GTX Academy. The program will be an innovative driver development platform designed to redefine stock car and oval racing education and experiences across North America. The partnership brings together over five decades of racing education leadership from Skip Barber Racing School with GMS Race Cars' championship-winning engineering expertise and purpose-built GTX race cars. Together, the organizations will establish the nation's first scalable, curriculum-based stock car and oval racing academy capable of serving aspiring drivers, racing enthusiasts, corporate clients, content creators, and future professional racers through a standardized national program. The Skip Barber GTX Academy will include a comprehensive progression of programs ranging from introductory driving experiences and multi-day racing schools to advanced racecraft instruction, youth development initiatives, NASCAR-oriented development pathways, and corporate motorsports experiences. This formula will then be used to build a nationally recognized platform capable of a natural expansion into premier racing facilities across the United States. Drawing upon the expertise of both organizations, this new partnership will also consist of a race series utilizing the GTX fleet. "Our vision has always been much bigger than building race cars," said Joey Cohen, President of GMS Race Cars. "GTX was created to make the excitement, discipline, and technology of professional motorsports accessible to everyone—from first-time drivers to future champions. Partnering with Skip Barber allows us to combine two organizations with complementary strengths to create something the industry has never seen before: a truly national platform for oval racing and stock car education, driver development, and unforgettable motorsports experiences." GMS Race Cars will provide the academy's purpose-built GTX race car fleet, purpose-engineered Late Model race cars, technical operations, engineering support, fleet maintenance, vehicle preparation, and curriculum development. Skip Barber Racing School will contribute its nationally recognized brand, student acquisition platform, instructor systems, booking infrastructure, insurance framework, event operations, simulator integration, and educational expertise. "The opportunity to expand Skip Barber's educational philosophy into the world of oval and stock car racing represents an exciting evolution for our company," said Anthony DeMonte, Chief Executive Officer of Skip Barber Racing School. "For over five decades, Skip Barber has helped drivers develop the skills, confidence, and discipline required to succeed at the highest levels of motorsports. Partnering with GMS Track Experience allows us to bring that same proven educational model to stock car racing through a scalable, professionally managed platform that creates new opportunities for drivers, enthusiasts, partners, and the sport." Beyond driver education, the Skip Barber GTX Academy will serve as a platform for sponsor activations, media productions, creator experiences, executive leadership programs, and long-term licensing opportunities. This ecosystem of programs will support both grassroots participation and professional driver advancement while introducing new audiences to the sport of stock car racing. The initial rollout will include prototype academy events, curriculum validation, fleet deployment, strategic sponsor partnerships, and a phased national expansion strategy. Learn More

By Sponsored Article – August 10, 2026

The World's Most Iconic Luxury Cars and Where to Experience Them

Where was the car signed off, and does that location still show once it leaves the factory? For the machines that define this category, it shows all the time. Suspension settings were signed off in Crewe, Goodwood, Maranello and Weissach, and those locations remain legible in how the completed vehicle performs years and even decades down the road. A Phantom on a potholed B-road feels a bit remote and somewhat pointless; on the roads it was calibrated for, the full design intent all arrives at once. The pairings below take each car to the road that explains it better than a specification sheet: Rolls-Royce Phantom: London and the Home Counties Bentley Continental GT: the Cotswolds, then the Alpine passes Lamborghini and McLaren: Dubai and the Hajar mountains Ferrari: Maranello and the Apennine roads above it Porsche 911: a derestricted stretch of German autobahn Rolls-Royce Phantom, and the roads out of Mayfair The eighth generation of the Phantom is built upon the aluminum spaceframe that Rolls-Royce refers to as the Architecture of Luxury. It is powered by a 6.75-litre twin-turbo V12 engine that produces 563 hp and 900 Nm of torque. Goodwood in West Sussex is where the vehicles are manufactured. The Phantom is best suited for central London where the dimensions and rear-hinged coach doors were obviously designed for ease of passenger egress at the curb rather than parking the vehicle. The Phantom becomes significantly more engaging once the metropolitan areas begin to open up. The A3 in Surrey, the Ascot and Henley by-pass, and the approach to Goodwood itself, are all examples of smooth, gently, landscaped flowing roadways that engineered for air, springs and two and a half tons of mass, are designed to clear. At a true cruisable speed, Silence and a tactile experience are the rewards of the engineering effort. Bentley Continental GT, the Cotswolds and the passes beyond Bentley has been making the same claim since the R-Type Continental of 1952: \u201cA car that can cross a continent in a day and be presentable at the other end.\u201d As for the Continental GT Speed, built at Crewe, it has \u201cretired\u201d the W12 for a 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 plug-in hybrid, boasting 782 PS and 1,000 Nm, which altered the character of the car less than one would expect given those figures. Begin your journey along the Fosse Way, and the honey-coloured villages located between Stow-on-the-Wold and Cirencester, as this is where the low-speed refinement is most crucial. From there, continue your journey to the Grand St. Bernard, the Furka, or the Stelvio. While the Alpine passes can be torturous for heavily loaded vehicles, the Continental will be heavy. That said, its four-wheel drive and active anti-roll system Dubai, where the exotic set became routine There are logical reasons for the ownership of new supercars in the UAE, such as the expansive multi-lane roads, fresh asphalt, and the absence of frost or salt. Then, there is the Jebel Jais road (which has tarmac laid down for each of the last 10 years) that is finished up to 1750m above Ras Al Khaimah and has hairpin turns. One can reasonably consider a Lamborghini Urus on Sheikh Zayed Road, whereas it would be unreasonable to consider the same on Knightsbridge. A McLaren, likewise, finds room here that Europe no longer offers. Density explains the rest: exotics are common enough locally that booking a luxury car rental Dubai reads as an ordinary line on a week's itinerary, not an event. Trinity Rentals demonstrates the operational structure. Delivery can be made to any point within the city—be it an airport terminal, an office, or a hotel—and a dedicated manager is on duty 24/7. Clients wishing to have a car with driver instead of a set of keys can request this, and one order can include a VIP arrival, a request to rent car in Dubai for the day, and a mountain road at dusk. The unusual part of this segment is that nothing is withheld against a card limit for the duration of the stay. No deposits are taken at all. Payment can be made in cash, by Visa or Mastercard, or through cryptocurrency. As per the quoted rate at the time of the booking, the 300 km daily allowance, insurance, tolls, and VAT are all included, so the price agreed upon at the time of booking is the price paid. The Trinity car rental fleet, over 80 cars, none of which are old, with the majority being 2024 model registrants or newer, ranging from prestige saloons to the premium tier and elite supercar end, is what keeps this from being exceptional. A vehicle with a full tank of fuel is complimentary, and the car being handed over has months of usage, not years. Ferrari, and the Apennines above Maranello Ferrari road cars are still signed off at the Fiorano circuit on the via Abetone Inferiore, and the rest of the instruction is supplied by the surrounding province. The via Emilia is flat and fast; the real challenge is the ascent southwards towards the Passo della Futa and the Raticosa, both of which are on the original Mille Miglia route to Florence. The roads are narrow, have a camber, and with little to no sight distance, they can be daunting to drivers. That is why Ferrari seems to design their steering to be faster than one would expect. With their 830 PS V6 plug-in hybrid, the 296 GTB will feel a bit twitchy to drive on a motorway and makes complete sense on these roads. The reputation is earned within 50 kilometres. The Ferrari Museum at Maranello and the Enzo Ferrari Museum at Modena fit well into a 2-day itinerary. Porsche 911, and the case for the autobahn Around 70% of the German autobahn network has no permanent speed limits, only an advisory limit of 130 km/h. This fact, more than any racing series, shaped the 911. Rear engine stability at 250 km/h and brake fade resistance, along with straight-line serenity at speeds most cars never reach was a commercial requirement in Stuttgart, not engineering arrogance. In regard to easy driving and a well-maintained road surface, the northern A7 in Lower Saxony continues to provide unrestricted stretches. Take a 992 Carrera there, sustain a cruise control on the engine, and the marginally nose-light steering along with the stiff damping will stop being perceived as drawbacks and will start being perceived as solutions to a particular problem. A Phantom, a Continental or a 911 used to be something you either owned or admired from the pavement. What replaced ownership is narrower and easier to arrange: a week with the car in the country that built it, or a weekend on the road it was calibrated for, which returns most of what ownership offered without the depreciation that came with it. The cars have not changed. The way people reach them has.

By Sponsored Article – July 24, 2026

The Best Exotic and Luxury Cars to Rent in Dubai in 2026

There is a specific conversation that happens whenever someone who has spent time in Dubai talks to someone who has not: the uninitiated asks, incredulously, how much it actually costs to rent a Lamborghini or a Rolls-Royce there. The answer is always met with the same look — disbelief, then rapid recalculation of priorities for the next international trip. Dubai's exotic car rental market is genuinely unlike anything else in the world, and it is worth understanding why before getting into the cars themselves. The city's combination of a hyper-competitive rental market (100+ licensed operators), a permanent population of ultra-high-net-worth residents who have normalised these vehicles, a zero-deposit policy from the market's top-rated provider, and a road infrastructure that was built for this kind of driving creates conditions where renting a Lamborghini Huracán for a day costs $150 — a figure that would be considered impossible in London, Monaco, or Los Angeles. The infrastructure catches up with the aspiration: Sheikh Zayed Road was engineered for 140 km/h, Yas Marina Circuit is 13 km from the airport, and the Palm Jumeirah ring road exists specifically for the kind of sunrise drive that requires 600 horsepower and an open throttle. This guide covers the best exotic and luxury cars available to rent a car Dubai through Octane Rent — Dubai's highest-rated direct provider at 4.9/5 from 1,618+ verified Google reviews, no deposit on any vehicle including hypercars, and a fleet that spans 400+ vehicles across 31 brands. World Luxury Travel Awards 2025: Best Luxury Car Rental Dubai MENA. The Market in Numbers: Why Dubai is the World's Exotic Rental Capital All prices current June 2026. AED/USD at pegged rate 3.67. London and NYC estimates based on aggregated market data for equivalent self-drive exotic rentals in those cities. The Best Exotic Cars to Rent in Dubai 2026 Lamborghini Huracán EVO — The One That Started It All $150 per day. The number looks wrong until you check it. The Huracán EVO — 5.2-litre naturally aspirated V10, 630 horsepower, 0–62 mph in 2.9 seconds — is the most-rented supercar in the UAE by booking volume, and the reason is simple: it represents the accessible entry point to a genuinely Italian supercar experience at a price point that is available to anyone who wants it. The EVO refinement over the base Huracán is meaningful: Lamborghini Dinamica Veicolo Integrata (LDVI) coordination of the rear-wheel steering, torque vectoring, and active aerodynamics makes the EVO measurably more manageable in urban traffic than its predecessor without diluting the sensation of a high-revving atmospheric V10 clearing its throat through the mid-range. That sound — distinct from any turbocharged alternative — is what people remember six months later. In Dubai specifically: the Palm Jumeirah ring road early morning before the temperature builds. Sheikh Zayed Road southbound toward Al Ain at midnight when the lane markings disappear into the distance. These are the drives the Huracán was made for, and Dubai provides both within 20 minutes of any central hotel. Lamborghini Urus — The Daily Supercar $300/day. The Urus occupies a category that did not exist a decade ago and now defines how a certain kind of person in Dubai thinks about a weekday car: 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8, 650 horsepower, three children and their school bags in the back, 0–62 in 3.6 seconds. Sant'Agata Bolognese's first SUV since the LM002 is not a concession to practicality — it is a genuine performance machine that happens to have four doors and a raised ride height. The demand profile for the Urus in Dubai reflects the city's demographic: it is booked equally by families wanting a week of performance with luggage capacity and by corporate visitors who want to arrive at ADNEC or Yas Island in something that makes an impression without the commitment of a two-seat supercar. The Urus does both fluently. Ferrari Roma — Understated Brilliance $191/day. The Roma is what happens when Ferrari decides elegance matters as much as performance: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8, 612 horsepower, a 2+2 grand tourer body that references the Pininfarina-designed Ferraris of the late 1950s and early 1960s. In Dubai's context, the Roma represents the counterpoint to the Huracán: quieter (at low speeds), more refined, more suited to the Burj Al Arab valet, the DIFC restaurant circuit, the Jumeirah beach road at dusk. The performance credentials are unambiguous — 0–62 in 3.4 seconds, 199 mph maximum — but they are expressed through a chassis that rewards precision over aggression. The Roma is the Ferrari for people who appreciate that the Prancing Horse does not need to announce itself. Rolls-Royce Cullinan — The Definitive Dubai Statement $681/day. The Cullinan has become the definitive Dubai luxury rental. Not because it is the most exclusive car available here — it is not — but because its combination of physical presence (2.6 tonnes of imposing British metal), genuine off-road capability that is never needed in Dubai, and the interior environment that insulates its occupants from the outside world with near-complete acoustic perfection makes it the vehicle most associated with the city's particular brand of prosperity. The 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 is, at this price point in Dubai, offered without a security deposit. Nowhere else on Earth does this sentence make sense. In London, Cullinan rental requires a deposit of £10,000–15,000 on the card. In Dubai, Octane Rent has removed the deposit entirely — for the Cullinan as for every other vehicle in the fleet. The self-closing doors. The Starlight Headliner with 1,340 hand-stitched fibre optics. The cabin pressure differential when the last door seals. The sound of a 6.75-litre V12 pulling 2.6 tonnes to 60 mph in 4.5 seconds while the cabin remains quieter than most offices. These are the specific sensory details that 47 TripAdvisor reviewers, 1,618 Google reviewers, and 44 Trustpilot reviewers have tried, in various ways, to describe. Rolls-Royce Ghost — The Connoisseur's Choice $651/day. If the Cullinan is the declaration, the Ghost is the statement made to those who know the difference. The Architecture of Luxury — the Ghost's space-frame construction with aluminium panels — produces a body stiffness that is the foundation for an acoustic environment that Rolls-Royce engineers spent years calibrating. The result: road noise at motorway speed that measures approximately 32 decibels. For reference, a quiet library measures 30 decibels. The Ghost's 6.75-litre V12 produces 563 horsepower in standard specification, expressed through a behaviour that Rolls-Royce calls 'waftability' — the ability to cover ground at significant speed while generating the sensation of floating rather than driving. The E11 between Dubai and Abu Dhabi at night in a Ghost is one of the more rarefied automotive experiences this city offers. Bentley Continental GT — The Grand Tourer $218/day. The Continental GT occupies the point where supercar performance meets genuine grand touring comfort — a space that no other manufacturer inhabits quite as convincingly. The 6.0-litre W12 biturbo produces 635 horsepower and 900 Nm of torque; the 48-volt active anti-roll system keeps the body flat through corners that would upset lesser machinery. 0–62 in 3.6 seconds, 207 mph maximum. In Dubai, the Continental GT is the choice for the drive to Abu Dhabi, the coastal road to Fujairah, the mountain route to Hatta that most visitors never find. The 12-cylinder engine at highway speed produces a sonic signature unlike any turbocharged four or eight — a deep, layered harmonic that fills the cabin at exactly the right volume to be present without being intrusive. Mercedes-Maybach GLS 600 — The Chauffeur's Choice, Self-Driven $272/day. The Maybach GLS exists in the space between production luxury and bespoke coachbuilding: a GLS 600 extended and re-engineered by Maybach into a full-size luxury SUV with rear-seat comfort that rivals a business jet. The E-Active Body Control suspension uses forward-facing cameras to read the road surface and pre-emptively adjust each damper before the wheel reaches the imperfection. The result is a ride quality that seems physically impossible given the vehicle's mass. For Dubai's corporate market — Etihad Towers meetings, Yas Island hospitality suites, ADNEC summit transfers — the Maybach GLS is the vehicle that communicates the correct register before the door opens. The fact that it can be self-driven, without a deposit, through Octane Rent, makes it the most efficient expression of this level of presentation. Porsche 911 Turbo S — The Engineer's Argument $1,226/day. The 911 Turbo S is the car that renders the 'supercar vs everyday usability' debate irrelevant. 650 horsepower from a 3.8-litre biturbo flat-six. 0–62 in 2.7 seconds. All-wheel drive. Fully functional rear seats. A boot large enough for a weekend bag. Air conditioning that works. The Turbo S does all of this without drama and without compromise, which is either the most impressive engineering achievement in modern automotive history or evidence that the Germans have fundamentally misunderstood what makes sports cars interesting, depending on your point of view. In Dubai, the 911 Turbo S is the car for someone who wants the most performance available per dollar spent and has no interest in the theatre. The E311 ring road at legal speeds on a clear night is where the Turbo S demonstrates why six decades of refinement to the same basic architecture produces something that nothing else quite replicates. Practical Matters: What You Need to Know The No-Deposit Policy Octane Rent's no-deposit policy — across every vehicle in a 400+ car fleet including the Rolls-Royce Cullinan and Lamborghini Aventador — is genuinely unusual in the global luxury rental market. The practical implication: no hold of $5,000–15,000 on your card for the duration of the rental. The rate quoted is the rate paid, with nothing reserved against the vehicle. Booking and Delivery Documentation sent via WhatsApp; confirmation same day. Vehicle delivered to any Dubai or Abu Dhabi address within 60 minutes. Handover at the hotel entrance or airport arrivals: five minutes, walk-through, keys, drive. Return is the same process in reverse. The administrative overhead of renting a Rolls-Royce in Dubai is genuinely lower than renting a mid-range vehicle at most European airport desks. The Roads Sheikh Zayed Road: ten lanes at 120 km/h (140 posted on sections), maintained to the same standard as the vehicles that use it. Yas Marina Circuit is accessible to paying visitors outside race weekends. The Palm Jumeirah ring road has no traffic lights. The E44 mountain road to Hatta is genuinely scenic and the only escape from Dubai's flatness within 90 minutes. The highway to Abu Dhabi is straight, smooth, and 130 kilometres long. The Rules Speed cameras are everywhere and the limits are enforced. Fines are efficient, significant, and added to the rental account — budget for them if you plan to explore the upper register of what a Huracán or a Continental GT will do. The T&C prohibit track use, off-road driving, and cross-border trips to Oman without written authorisation. Within these boundaries, the roads of the UAE provide more appropriate driving surface than most places on Earth. What is the minimum age to rent an exotic car in Dubai? 25 years for most luxury and supercar categories. 21 years for standard vehicles. Some providers charge a young driver supplement for renters aged 21–24 on standard vehicles. Confirm at booking for the specific vehicle category you are considering. Can I drive a Dubai rental car to Abu Dhabi or other emirates? Yes. Inter-emirate driving is standard under most UAE rental contracts with no additional documentation required. Dubai to Abu Dhabi is 130 km via E11 — approximately 80 minutes. Confirm the specific inter-emirate clause in your contract before driving to Oman, which requires written authorisation. How does Dubai compare to Monaco or London for exotic car rental? Dubai is the most accessible exotic car rental market in the world by any metric: lowest daily rates (Huracán at $150 vs $900+ in London), no deposit requirement at the best providers, fastest booking process, and road infrastructure suited to performance driving. The limiting factor in Dubai is not the car or the cost — it is the traffic on Sheikh Zayed Road during rush hour, which afflicts the Cullinan and the Corolla equally. Dubai does not apologise for being excessive. Its car rental market is the most concentrated expression of that philosophy: the best cars in the world, available at accessible prices, with a procurement process that takes 15 minutes and a delivery time of 60 minutes. If you are in the business of driving exceptional machines in interesting places, this is the most interesting place to do it in 2026.

William “Bill” Montgomery: Champion of Culture, Innovation, and Legacy Through Hidden Pioneers

By Sponsored Article – February 20, 2026

William “Bill” Montgomery: Champion of Innovation

William “Bill” Montgomery is the visionary founder of Hidden Pioneers, a groundbreaking organization dedicated to uncovering and celebrating unsung heroes in science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics (STREAM). With a career spanning entertainment, automotive culture, and education, Montgomery uniquely blends storytelling, mentorship, and innovation to inspire future generations and preserve overlooked legacies. His mission is deeply personal. Montgomery is the cousin of Katherine Johnson, the legendary NASA mathematician whose calculations helped propel America into the Space Age. That connection to Johnson—one of the central figures highlighted in Hidden Figures—shaped Montgomery’s lifelong commitment to honoring pioneers whose brilliance has too often been excluded from mainstream history. Just as Johnson overcame systemic barriers to make history, Montgomery works to elevate innovators, particularly people of color, whose contributions deserve recognition and remembrance. Through hands-on experience in vehicle design, motorsports, and engineering, Montgomery recognized the power of vehicles and media as tools for education, mentorship, and cultural restoration. That insight became the foundation for Hidden Pioneers. Today, Hidden Pioneers preserves and amplifies the legacies of Black and Brown innovators across American history, with a strong emphasis on transportation and STREAM fields. Montgomery brings these stories to life through live events, educational programming, documentary-style media, and immersive exhibits that connect historical achievement with modern innovation. At the heart of the organization is access—connecting students, especially from underrepresented communities, with real-world professionals, career pathways, and inspiration they may never have imagined possible. More than a preservationist, William Montgomery is a pioneer in his own right—honoring the past while actively building bridges to the future. duPont REGISTRY® has proudly supported the mission of Hidden Pioneers for more than five years, united by a shared commitment to education, inspiration, and legacy.You are cordially invited to a memorial presentation honoring Ed "Isky" Iskenderian, presented as part of the Hidden Pioneers STREAM Family Night. The evening will feature a keynote address by Rodney Allen Rippy and will be hosted at the Downey Space Museum in Los Angeles, California. This special gathering brings together an extraordinary community of automotive legends and creative pioneers, including Bob Rosas, Barnaby Brokaw, David Earhart, Kris’s FM, and Arnold Yu, Vice President of HISONG, among many others. The memorial will take place on Friday evening, February 27, from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM. Please join us as Hidden Pioneers continues its mission to honor legacy, inspire innovation, and open pathways for future trailblazers, celebrating the enduring impact of those who built the foundations of transportation and creative culture. Visit Website GALLERY-EMBED

By Sponsored Article – September 11, 2023

Spellman Signature Auctions: 2001 Dodge Viper GTS

Spellman Signature Auctions is offering up this 2001 Dodge Viper GTS at their upcoming event at the Newport Car Museum on September 30, 2023.

By Sponsored Article – September 11, 2023

Spellman Signature Auctions: 1932 Auburn 8-100 Boattail S...

Spellman Signature Auctions is offering up this 1932 Auburn 8-100 Boattail Speedster at their upcoming event at the Newport Car Museum on September 30, 2023.

By Sponsored Article – September 09, 2023

Spellman Signature Auctions: 1966 Ford F-100 Custom Pickup

Spellman Signature Auctions is offering up this 1966 Ford F-100 Custom Pickup at their upcoming event at the Newport Car Museum on September 30, 2023.

By Sponsored Article – September 07, 2023

Make Your Next Investment a Tri-Level Parking Lift

Both the BendPak HD-973P and HD-973PX are tri-level parking lifts capable of parking three vehicles in a single parking space.

Features

duPont REGISTRY News

duPont REGISTRY Group

Support

Subscribe