The biennial Paris Car Show is not just the oldest and one of the largest in the world, but also one of the most glamorous events on the annual car show circuit.

The names are familiar to those of us who love cars. Earl’s Court, London, Geneva, Detroit, Frankfurt and Paris. Along with a growing number of Asian car shows these are the industry’s calling cards, the glamorous occasions when manufacturers from across the world show their imminent new models and the flights of fantasy that designers and engineers have moulded into physical shape. (more…)

Though yachting, power boating, tennis and a host of other sophisticated sports feature prominently in Monaco, it is motor sport that above all runs in the veins of this principality.

Over the years Monaco has built up a sporting tradition that far outweighs its size both in terms of area and population. Professional French League football club AS Monaco, the international athletics meets, tennis championships and offshore power boating competitions are fine examples of these, but if you mention sport and Monaco in the same breath the first association will undoubtedly be with motor sport. (more…)

Photos courtesy of RM Auctions

The RM Classic Auction in Monaco on 1 May is a date to put in your agenda – if you’re a lover of sublime classic cars…

A day to make your eyes weep, the Spring Classics of Monaco auction will bring together around 100 of the finest cars in the world, ranging from exquisitely restored models from the early years of motoring right up to recent releases. While most cars on offer from the 1980s and upwards are either super-fast or ultra-luxurious, it is the legendary sports cars and limousines of the immediate pre-war and post-war periods that will attract most attention. (more…)

The jeep has come a long way from the simple utility vehicle it once was. The original army jeep, and the early commercial models that followed it, may have been crude and devoid of any comfort, but it was meant to be a workhorse that could go anywhere, not a luxury car. This very clear division of labour was shattered in 1970 with the introduction of the Range Rover. Every bit as revolutionary as the original American Jeep, it was the first to combine luxury and true off-road capability.

For years, the Range Rover stood alone as the ‘Rolls Royce of four-wheel drives’, while the likes of Toyota, Fiat and even Mercedes continued to build conventional, truck-like jeeps. That is, until the early 90s, when a more pampered clientele made the switch and turned the humble jeep into a must-have status symbol. Manufacturers quickly responded to the executives and housewives who had embraced all-wheel drive, and started producing off-roads that were comfortable, opulent and above all, easy to drive. (more…)

In an issue dedicated to Italy we could not ignore the most famous maker of luxury sports cars in the world. After all, the very name Ferrari is synonymous with speed, power and beauty.

To many, Ferrari’s are the stuff young dreams are made of. Ask an ambitious young man to describe his ultimate goals and they could often best be summed up in the form of a gleaming red bolide from the scuderia in Maranello, for Ferraris symbolise success, ambition and dynamism. These cars simply are brio on wheels. The recently opened Ferrari World in Dubai is a living testament to that.

While lovers of classic cars may debate the merits of different models and eras, the Man of the Moment knows exactly what he wants: a brand new flaming red Ferrari. This means that the latest offering from Maranello is always hotly desired and intensely anticipated, making the launch of a new model just about the biggest news in the motoring world. (more…)