PUERTO BANÚS MOTOR SHOW
In summer 2020 the first Puerto Banus Motor Show took place. Located on the Costa del Sol in Andalucía, Puerto Banús is surrounded by incredible scenery, from the Sierra de las Nieves mountains to Gibraltar and the African coastline that can be seen on the horizon. It is an ideal place to hold this outdoor event. For a week, more than a hundred cars were on display in the middle of this beautiful landscape, with their colourful bodywork shining under the hot summer sun.
Magna Supercars brought for the inauguration three incredible cars: the classic Mercedes 300SL Gullwing, the Mclaren Senna in a special configuration and the Bugatti Chiron 110 ans.
BUGATTI CHIRON 110 ANS - 1 of 20
The Chiron 110 ans is limited to 20 units and features a " steel blue " matte paint finish, and is based on the elements of the Chiron Sport with a body made mostly of carbon and aluminium. One of the few generous features of the Chiron Sport 110 ans is the presence of the "Sky View", the special glass roof that is usually optional. Here, the grille has been customized with the addition of the Bugatti logo in blue and the new vertical grille.
MCLAREN SENNA - 1 of 500
The McLaren Senna is the most track-focused road car Mclaren has ever built. Inspired by one of McLaren's greatest drivers, the Senna is entirely dedicated to enabling the driver to be the best he can be. Production is limited to 500 vehicles. Based on the P1's carbon monocoque chassis but stripped of its heavy hybrid section, the Senna weighs less than 1,200 kg, making it the lightest car since the iconic F1 car.
This car features a unique spec to pay tribute to Ayrton Senna, using the colours of his helmet.
MERCEDES-BENZ 300SL - 1 of 1400
In 1953, under pressure from Maximilian Hoffman, the most famous foreign sports car importer in the USA and under contract with Mercedes since 1952, the star-spangled firm brought its "Sport Leicht" coupe out of the wardrobe. Hoffman met with Mercedes management and placed a firm order for 1,000 production cars derived from the 300 SL race car, confident that there would be sufficient demand. Mercedes-Benz, whose finances were at a low ebb after the war, decided to transform its fabulous 300 SL racing car into a luxurious GT suitable for road use. The design of the project began in September 1953. Since the new model clearly retained a close relationship with the racing car of the time, and not only its name, it took the project managers, Karl Wilfert and Friedrich Geiger, only a year and a half to create the new design on the basis of the W194 and end up with the production 300 SL coupé, code W198 in the Mercedes internal nomenclature. This was the first real post-war Mercedes-Benz Gran Turismo production and the beginning of a long SL tradition...
300 SL W194
The genesis of the W194 project is largely attributable to the engineering of Rudolf Uhlenhaut, who was commissioned to develop the first post-World War II Mercedes racing car. Given the post-war economic climate, such a project could only go into production on the lowest possible budget. The days of Mercedes' seemingly limitless racing budget were well and truly over and a return to success on the racetrack would require a great deal of ingenuity. The company's latest model, the 300 series saloon, proved to be an ideal starting point. Its gearbox, independent half-axle suspension at the rear and, above all, its three-litre six-cylinder overhead cam engine would be incorporated into Uhlenhaut's new sports projects. The main difficulty was the height of the engine, which was cleverly angled 45 degrees to the left so as not to penalise the aerodynamics. Thanks to direct injection, a world first on a 4-stroke engine, the power of the 6-cylinder Mercedes engine increases from 115 to 210 hp! The search for the lowest possible weight naturally required a new approach to the chassis. Uhlenhaut's racing cars benefited from his earlier work in which he had demonstrated that a chassis could be very strong by triangulating many small tubes, even of small diameter. In the end, the 300 SL chassis was very light yet extremely rigid, and the bodywork around the inclined engine had a very small frontal area. Interestingly, and the car's most distinctive feature, the hinged gullwing doors in line with the car's axis were much more than an incidental aesthetic advantage. They were integral to the strength of the chassis which required very wide sides. In order to lower the ride height, the exhaust system took advantage of these wide sides to pass under the body on the passenger side. Despite the fact that the motor sport governing bodies tried to ban this design, the door design still complied with the regulations. The 300 SL W194 Uhlenhaut was an immediate success. In its first race, the 1952 Mille Miglia, the 300 SL driven by Karl Kling finished second behind Ferrari. Numerous victories followed, the most memorable being the one-two finish at Le Mans. But the W194 also won at the Nürburgring and the Carrera Panamericana in Mexico.
300 SL W198 GULLWING
As was the case with many European sports cars of the same period, the importation and the very idea of producing the 300 SL would not have been possible without Max Hoffman. The production 300 SL coupe was presented to the public at the New York International Auto Show on February 6, 1954. 300 stands for the displacement of the three-litre engine, while SL stands for "sport leicht" (Light Sport). Initially presented as a coupe, Mercedes' most iconic sports car was a barely disguised race car for the road. Its body was made of steel, but the bonnet, doors and boot were made of aluminium. As an option, the customer could order a complete aluminium body which lowered the weight by 80 kg, but the extra cost involved limited the number to only 29 examples. The gullwing doors of the racing model were retained for rigidity and became the visual signature of the car while solving the accessibility problems in the passenger compartment by an ingenious steering wheel system that "breaks" at its hub to allow the driver's legs to pass through! However, these doors do not allow sliding windows. Introduced in 1955 in Europe, although the vast majority were sold in the USA, the Mercedes-Benz 300 SL is a true supercar with a price tag of over $7,000, or about 5 million francs at the time. But its success in the US was no doubt due to the burgeoning American fascination with smaller, more agile cars, a criterion that favoured European sports cars. Considering that the comparable stars of the time still ran on carburettors, rigid rear axles and tumbled engines, the 300 SL offered Bosch fuel injection, perfect weight distribution, independent rear suspension and a powerful 212 bhp 6-cylinder engine. 1400 Gullwing coupes were produced between August 1954 and May 1957.
ASTON MARTIN VANQUISH ZAGATO SHOOTING BREAK - 1 of 99 CARAGE MARBELLA
Aston Martin and Zagato have been creating jaw-dropping designs together for nearly six decades – beginning with the hugely successful DB4 GT Zagato in 1961. After a two-decade absence, the Milan-based carrosserie joined with Aston Martin again in the 1980s, presenting the V8 Vantage Zagato in both coupe and Volante versions, followed by the DB7 Zagato models in 2002. Subsequent Zagato models have cemented the partnership, and some of Aston Martin’s most exclusive models have had the Zagato touch. In 2016, the most recent collaboration was unveiled in concept form at the Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este on the shores of Italy’s Lake Como. Though unmistakable as an Aston Martin, the Vanquish Zagato coupe has bodywork that could only have come from the pens at Zagato, including that famous “double-bubble” roof and signature wraparound glass. 4 cars will be produced from this collaboration. The coupe, spider, speedster and finally the shooting break, for a total of 325 cars.
ASTON MARTIN VANQUISH ZAGATO SPIDER - 1 of 99
ASTON MARTIN DB4 SERIES 1
The DB3 and DB3S having made their mark in competition, the new Aston must not disappoint. With the competition sharpening their skills, the small British manufacturer has to keep up with the times, and even do better. At first sight, the release of the DB4 is the result of a labour of love. The series 1 is the DB4 in its purest form, especially for the first 50 of them. It had smooth chrome bumpers, and no chrome around the windows. Under the long, sloping bonnet is an all-new 3L7 6-cylinder engine, designed by engineer Tadek Marek, inherited from the DBR1s that raced at Le Mans. It delivers a spectacular 240 horsepower. The "Atom" chassis is also replaced by a new, much stiffer structure, albeit at the expense of weight: 1,326 kg despite the Superleggera aluminium bodywork. If the DB2s were closely derived from racing cars, the DB4 no longer owes much to its racing sisters. The objective was clearly Grand Touring, with the notion of comfort now integrated into the specifications, as with the synchronised gearbox and the refinement of the interior. The Aston Martin DB4 was produced in 5 distinct series, but these were difficult to identify because of the many customisations made at the request of customers.
KOENIGSEGG REGERA KNC - 1 of 80
(from Koenigsegg brochure)
The Koenigsegg Regera is specifically designed to be a luxury Megacar alternative to Koenigsegg’s traditional extreme, light weight, race-like road cars. The Koenigsegg Regera combines a powerful twin-turbo V8 combustion engine with three electric motors and cutting edge battery power via new powertrain technology called Koenigsegg Direct Drive. This revolutionary technology removes the traditional gearbox, making the car lighter and more efficient. The heart and soul of every Koenigsegg is its Internal Combustion Engine – the ICE.The Koenigsegg V8 is the most downsized homologated production ICE in the world, with 220hp per liter (using regular pump gas).The Regera is the first car in the world that operates all body closures completely automatically, at the touch of a button. They call this system ‘Autoskin’. Koenigsegg has managed to robotize the entire Regera with almost no weight penalty, thanks to the latest advances in compact lightweight hydraulic technology. The Regera features functions such as active front and rear wings, chassis control and lifting system as standard, so the hydraulic pumps and accumulators were already in place to implement automation of our doors and front/rear hoods. All openings and wing mirrors are fitted with proximity sensors to safeguard against the doors striking nearby objects (curb, low roof, etc) while opening or closing.
This version, called KNC for Koenigsegg Naked Carbon, is not painted. The carbon of the body is visible, so it has to be extremely well assembled. Once out of the mold, the part cannot be modified or repaired. This was the first one, today this finish is an option.
ALFA ROMEO SZ - 1 of 1000
In the 1970s, Alfa Romeo went through a crisis that would determine its future. The four-leaf clover was finally bought by Fiat who saved it from bankruptcy and sold its soul to the devil for many enthusiasts by abandoning rwd in favour of fwd. It was not until the end of the 1980's that rumours began to circulate that Alfa Romeo would return to rwd with an exceptional sports coupé.
The project, codenamed ES30 (for Experimental Sportscar 3.0L), was carried out jointly with Amato Zagato and the Fiat styling centre. At the 1989 Geneva Motor Show, the new Alfa Romeo sports coupé was unveiled to the public in its only available colour, Rosso Alfa, at a very high price for an Alfa at the time. The ES30 project gave way to the S.Z. name, with an "S" for "Sport" and a "Z" for "Zagato" of course. However, the famous coachbuilder's role was limited to the assembly of the model, as the Alfa SZ was designed and built in-house by Alfa Romeo. The SZ was not so much a technical revolution as an aesthetic one, as it was based on a significantly modified Alfa 75 platform. Production of the chassis-hull was carried out in the Zagato workshops in Milan, for a limited total of 1000 units. Despite its massive appearance, the SZ's bodywork was studied and refined in the wind tunnel, allowing it to achieve an astonishing Cx of 0.30 with very little overall offset. All the bodywork elements are made by moulding composite materials: a thermosetting metacrylic resin called "Modar" and fibreglass, with the exception of the roof which is made of aluminium and the spoiler of carbon. The highly technical curvature of the windscreen at the level of the roof is original and beautiful, to say the least.
The Zagato coupe appeared before the new 24-valve 3.0 V6 that will be used in the Alfa Romeo 164 Q4, and for lack of anything better, the Zagato coupe is condemned to use the Alfa 75 America's aluminium alloy V6. This is a very strange decision from Alfa Romeo, which seems to contradict the SZ's dazzling lines. In fact, despite a small power cure that makes it one of the best V6 of the time, this 3l V6 delivers "only" 210 hp, which is not "monstrous" considering the ambitions of the SZ.
The sporty character of the Alfa coupé is reflected in certain choices: no ABS, considered incompatible with sporty driving, suspensions mounted on Uniball ball joints as in racing, or the search for a ground effect thanks to an active hydraulic device on the rear suspension that allows the car's ground clearance to be lowered by 40 mm ( 6 cm from the ground in the lowered position) from the passenger compartment.
The Zagato coupe appeared before the new 24-valve 3.0 V6 that will be used in the Alfa Romeo 164 Q4, and for lack of anything better, the Zagato coupe is condemned to use the Alfa 75 America's aluminium alloy V6. This is a very strange decision from Alfa Romeo, which seems to contradict the SZ's dazzling lines. In fact, despite a small power cure that makes it one of the best V6 of the time, this 3l V6 delivers "only" 210 hp, which is not "monstrous" considering the ambitions of the SZ.
The sporty character of the Alfa coupé is reflected in certain choices: no ABS, considered incompatible with sporty driving, suspensions mounted on Uniball ball joints as in racing, or the search for a ground effect thanks to an active hydraulic device on the rear suspension that allows the car's ground clearance to be lowered by 40 mm ( 6 cm from the ground in the lowered position) from the passenger compartment.
BMW M3 E30 JOHNNY CECOTTO - 1 of 1989
This limited edition of 505 M3 was not a new evolution, it was a commemorative edition to the Venezuelan driver Johnny Cecotto and the Italian Roberto Ravaglia, for having won the German DTM European championship titles in 89 with two official M3s. The Cecotto/Ravaglia M3s are distinguished from the others by the same aerodynamics as the Evo 2, the same colours and a numbered plaque in the centre of the console, signed by the driver. The Cecotto was produced in 480 units and the Ravaglia only 25 in Misano red and they were exclusively destined for the United Kingdom.
The interior features: illuminated gear knob, interior adjustment of ellipsoidal headlights, rear-view mirror with map reading light, on-board computer (OBC II) with remote control from the steering wheel, door sill sills with the M3 logo and Motorsport colours, M footrest, half leather seats on the sides and headrests, half fabric in the centres with Motorsport colours, as well as the side panels.
The classics were present with some nice rarities, like this Lamborghini Espada. Built in only 1227 examples, it is a chance to see it in this beautiful burgundy colour. To consolidate its position against its rivals Ferrari and Maserati, Lamborghini had to widen its range and decided to create a large tourer, less exclusive and more spacious than the Miura, aimed at a wealthy clientele but also more sensitive to comfort than to pure performance. He then set a specification that many would have considered impossible to achieve: to design a sporty and comfortable car with four real seats capable of driving normally at 240 km/h. Carrozzeria Bertone was given the task of designing the car and presented a study called Marzal at the Geneva International Motor Show in March 1967.
The faster and grander successor to the 250 GTE, the 330 GT 2+2 was designed by a young Tom Tjaarda working under the Pininfarina banner. It was the designer’s very first Ferrari – Il Commendatore believed that an American designer up to date with the aesthetic trends from ‘across the pond’ would be perfectly placed to broaden his new car’s appeal in the incredibly lucrative US market. At the imposing Ferrari’s heart was the intoxicatingly powerful Colombo V12, now in 300HP four-litre guise. Disc brakes could be found at all four corners and performed a damned shade better than most of its competitors at the time (Jaguar E-type, we’re looking at you). While the 330 GT 2+2 was the first Ferrari to exceed a production number of 1,000, just 455 of them were the most desirable Series II versions. These cars were noticeably prettier, foregoing the ungainly quad headlight arrangement for two simple round lamps, and boasted the same style side vents as the 275 GTS.
LOTUS ELISE CUP 260 - 1 of 30
With 250 horsepower and 255 Nm of torque from its 1.8-litre four-cylinder engine and a weight of around 900 kg, the Elise Cup 260 covers 0 to 100 km/h in 4.2 seconds to reach a top speed of 243 km/h. It is derived from the Elise Race 250, which is the sportier, non-road-legal version of the Elise. It differs from the Race 250 in that it has increased power and downforce. Weight is 900kg, but can be reduced to 862kg in its lightest configuration. The lightweight carbon fibre components offered on the Cup 250 are standard on the Cup 260, as are the majority of the 250's options.
FERRARI 458 SPECIALE and APERTA - 1 of 499
Two Ferrari 458 Speciale were present, including the desirable Aperta, limited to 499 units. A radical version of the 458 Italia, it is the last V8 Ferrari in the world. I took advantage of the light and the dew of the morning to take some detail pictures. It's so much fun to play with the graphics of the shapes. The 458 is not as detailed as a Pagani, but it's a real pleasure to make them stand out. This car is a real visual and audio spectacle.
Among the supercars present, this Lamborghini caught my attention. It is a Lamborghini Gallardo LP550-2 50TH ANNIVERSARY, limited to 100 units. To celebrate 50 years of the notorious Italian marque and the success of the Gallardo, Lamborghini released this special example – The Gallardo 50th Anniversario which was limited to 100 units worldwide. The car was designated LP 560-2, meaning it produced 560 horsepower and was 2WD instead of 4WD. This car features the carbon fibre rear wing from the Superleggera, glass engine cover, and a lot more options.
All categories of vehicles were present: Classic, supercar, hypercar, 4x4s, luxury sedans, new models, preparations... there is something for everyone!
FERRARI 488 NOVITEC N-LARGO - 1 of 11
Novitec is a German tuner, specialising mainly in Italian brands. They focus on the performance of the vehicles. Here we have the opportunity to enjoy this 488 N-Largo, limited to 11 units. But this one is the only one in the world in full blue carbon fibre. The preparation includes, in addition to the mechanical preparation, a wide kit, 14 centimeters wider at the rear than the original 488. The engine goes from 670hp to 720hp, reaching a top speed of 340 km/h. Like it or not, you can't take away the fact that this is a concentrate of power.
FERRARI TESTAROSSA
The Testarossa is a car I have a love-hate relationship with. I don't find it particularly beautiful or well-proportioned, but it is so iconic and charming! I love its very pronounced shape and unique details. I can't resist spending a lot of time photographing her from all angles. I take the opportunity to use the light and the reflections to bring out its shapes and details. If you don't particularly like this model, I hope to have at least made you discover her shapes under a new angle.
