Cars

Blame it on the alcohol

Proving that where there’s a will – and almost certainly a blank cheque – there’s a way, Ferrari’s One-Off programme puts the customer in control of not just the specification of their new car, but the actual styling. Based on the track-focused 458 Speciale, the 458 MM Speciale was commissioned by a British enthusiast, who was apparently inspired by the 288 GTO homologation special of the mid-1980s.

The special website was developed by Pannhorst Classics and Kubikfoto Studios, and allows users to almost freely move around the Porsche and zoom into details, as though they were peering over the car themselves. We wonder if we’ll be able to explore all the cars in the Classic Driver Market so vividly in the future? 

This is not the first concours competition we’ve seen held exclusively for cars designed by Pininfarina – last year’s inaugural event at the Parco Valentino Salone & Grand Premio in Turin proved a success, prompting a second event to be organised for next weekend.

A tale of two halves

We’re in Tenerife to drive the McLaren 570GT, the third model in the Woking-based company’s lower-tier ‘Sports Series’ range, joining the 570S and the 540C. The ‘most road-biased McLaren yet’, the 570GT is a touch heavier, slower and quieter than the S, with emphasis on refinement and comfort on the road rather than shaving tenths on the racetrack.

We love it when a manufacturer recognises its heritage while focusing foremost on its future, and perhaps no company does this as well as BMW. It’s struck a fine balance with its ‘Hommage’ concepts, each of which pays tribute to a particularly significant model from the company’s illustrious back-catalogue.