While traditional car shows are fading away, automakers have been turning to alternatives events to roll out new products — and few have connected like the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. Along with a series of additional events, what has come to be known as “Monterey Car Week” brought the debut of nearly two dozen different cars and concepts this past weekend.
As you might expect, there was an emphasis on premium products, with plenty of new offerings running upwards of $250,000 — and some, like the Bugatti Mistral, pushing into the millions.
Here’s a look at the most outstanding new launches:
Acura ZDX
Based on the Japanese automaker’s Precision Crafted Performance Concept, the ZDX will become its first long-range all-electric model. If the name triggers a moment of déjà vu, no surprise. It was used back in 2013 for a short-lived coupe-like SUV. Acura is hoping to have more success with the new battery model.
Like the more mainstream Honda Prologue, the ZDX is part of a joint venture with General Motors and will ride on GM’s Ultium platform – also used for the new Cadillac Lyriq. Specific details have yet to be released but expect to see both rear and all-wheel-drive and upper-end range likely to top 300 miles. The Acura ZDX will go on sale in 2024.
Aston Martin V12 Vantage Roadster
Okay, we’re cheating a bit here. The British marque debuted two models at the Pebble Beach Concours but you can’t buy either one. The V12 Vantage is a “lust-worthy” take on the familiar Vantage, said TheDetroitBureau.com’s Larry Printz in a more extensive look at the ragtop. Each is fitted with a V-12 engine producing 690 horsepower and 555 pound-feet of torque, making it the most powerful Vantage Roadster ever built. It’ll hit 60 in 3.5 seconds, topping out at 200 mph. Only 249 of the roadsters will be built, and all have been accounted for.
As for the Aston Martin DBR22, it’s just a concept – for now. But the open cockpit two-seater – which celebrates classic Aston racers like the DBR1 – might serve as the model for a production model from the brand’s Q by Aston Martin custom division.
Bugatti Mistral
These are dramatic times for Bugatti. The brand was sold to Croatia’s Rimac and that exotic EV maker is planning to phase out Bugatti’s distinctive W16 engine in a shift to battery power. But Bugatti isn’t letting that exotic engine fade away with a whimper. Under the hood of the hand-built Mistal, it will reach an incredible peak of 1,600 horsepower – enough to propel it to a top speed of 261 miles per hour.
As has been the case since the Bugatti brand was revived by the Volkswagen Group in 1998, only about one Mistral will be produced each week, 99 in total. And, despite a $5 million price tag, all already have been purchased.
Cadillac Celestiq
We’ve long heard about the “Cadillac renaissance,” though the General Motors flagship continues to struggle to regain its place among true premium luxury brands. The new Caddy Lyriq marks a major transition point as the marque begins shifting to all-electric propulsion. The battery-powered Celestiq takes things to the next level.
Shown publicly for the first time, Celestiq picks up on some of Lyriq’s design cues, including the backlit front grille, but it is lower, longer, wider and far more lavishly appointed. It will be a largely hand-built ultra-exotic when it goes on sale in 2024 or 2025, with a price tag north of $300,000 putting it into contention with the likes of Bentley and Rolls-Royce.
DeLorean Alpha5
It’s been nearly 40 years since the last DeLorean DMC-12 was built and, over the years, there’ve been numerous attempts to bring the notorious brand back to life. If the Alpha5 concept shown in Pebble Beach is any indication, that finally might happen. After decades of legal hassles, the name has finally been acquired by a Texas startup that has revealed a distinctive new look and plans to go all-electric – though not the flux capacitor system that we saw in the DeLorean that become an essential part of the plot in the “Back to the Future” movie franchise. Alpha does retain the original DeLorean’s large gullwing doors and is said to launch from 0-60 in under 3 seconds. It’s promised to reach market in 2024.
Kia EV6 GT
This all-electric crossover is about as close to the mainstream as one might find at Monterey Car Week. But it gives one big bump to the performance of the original Kia EV6 model that went on sale for the 2022 model year. The GT – not to be confused with the earlier GT-Line – delivers a serious punch, with 576 hp and 546 lb-ft of torque. That will get you from 0-60 in a factory-estimated 3.4 seconds. You do pay for that in several ways. Expect to see a significant price increase over the $51,000 GT-Line. Meanwhile, range falls to 206 miles, down from 274 for the GT-Line.
Koenigsegg CC850
While it may not have the name recognition of exotic brands like Aston Martin, Ferrari or Lamborghini, the Swedish automaker has serious street cred with those who crave maximum performance. And the CC850 pays homage to Koenigsegg’s two-decade history.
The twin-turbocharged 5.0-liter V-8 produce 1,185 horsepower using conventional gas. That jumps to 1,385 hp on E85 ethanol and 1020 pound-feet of torque. But one of the more unusual features of the Koenigsegg CC850 is its Engage Shift System. It’s a super-fast nine-speed manual – at least you can run through the gears that way. But it actual uses shift-by-wire technology and otherwise can be operated in completely automatic mode.
Lincoln L100
Making its debut at Pebble Beach, the L100 Concept arrives at a significant moment for Lincoln, marking the brand’s 100th anniversary. Like Detroit rival Cadillac, Lincoln is struggling to regain its once-lofty status among luxury buyers. And, at the same time, it is getting set to start shifting to battery power.
This is purely a concept, Lincoln officials insist, though they also suggest it offers insight into the brand’s future design direction. Few technical details have been revealed but the show car is said to use “next-generation” battery technology – likely range-boosting solid-state cells. It also appears to feature Level 3 autonomy as the driver can turn their seat around to face rear-seat passengers.
Lucid Air Sapphire
The first two all-electric sedans from EV start-up Lucid offer some impressive stats. The Air Dream Range model gets up to 520 miles per charge, according to the EPA, while the Air Dream Performance package hammers out 1,111 hp and hits 60 in 2.5 seconds. The Lucid Air Sapphire is for those who don’t think that’s fast — or exclusive — enough. Its three motors produce a combined 1,200 hp and can drive the sedan to 60 in less than 2 seconds, while hitting 100 in under than 4. It’s directly aimed to shame Tesla’s Model S Plaid. Carbon ceramic brakes and specially designed tires help a motorist deal with the extreme performance the Sapphire is capable of. Reservations begin this week for the $249,000 sedan.
Maserati MC20 Cielo Spyder
While the Pebble Beach Concours is the classic anchor of Monterey Car Week it’s getting competition from the performance-focused “The Quail: A Motorsports Gathering. And that was the backdrop for the unveiling of the Maserati MC20 Cielo Spyder. As you’d expect, it’s the ragtop sibling of the earlier MC20 Coupe which was Maserati’s first true supercar in a decade. The Spyder features a retractable glass roof which, while striking in its design, does add nearly 150 pounds of weight. But it has the muscle to handle that, its 3.0-liter Nettuno V-6 delivering 621 hp and 538 lb-ft. Pricing and availability have yet to be disclosed.
McLaren Solus GT
If you think the new McLaren Solus GT looks like it belongs in a videogame, well, you’d be right. It’s the production version of a virtual car that originally debuted in the Gran Turismo Sport race series for Sony’s PlayStation game console. Power is reasonably impressive, at 829 hp and 479 lb-ft from its naturally aspirated 5.2-liter V-10.
But it’s the extreme design of the new McLaren’s body that really draws a crowd. Like a number of other exotics debuting at Monterey Car Week, it’s a limited-edition, just 25 copies of the McLaren Solus GT are set to be built. And as with the Bugatti Mistral and Aston Martin V12 Vantage Roadster, all have now been sold.
Meyers Manx
The original dune buggy is set to make its return. But there’s one notable difference with the Meyers Manx that made its debut at the Pebble Beach Concours. It’s now all-electric. The new model retains surprisingly true to the original sand crawler’s minimalist design, though the fiberglass shell has been replaced by an aluminum one. The back end has been updated and there are more modern wheels and tires. But the new Manx 2.0 retains the classic bug-eye headlights. Buyers will get a choice of either a 20 kWh or 40 kWh battery pack, delivering an estimated 150 or 300 miles per charge, respectively. Fast-charging is an option. Twin motors, one on each axle, produce a combined 202 hp and 240 lb-ft.
Porsche 911 GT3 RS
The python green accents on the new Porsche aren’t just an accident. They’re meant to pay tribute to the original RS launched five decades ago, the Carrera RS 2.7. It shares the GT’s flat-6 making 518 hp and 346 lb-ft. But it also gets some performance-oriented details, including the massive rear wing. Produced through Porsche’s Exclusive Manufaktur program, the 911 GT3 RS will be offered exclusively in the U.S. And it will come as an option package for the automaker’s GT3 model. Pricing has yet to be revealed but the “base” GT3 starts at $225,250. Porsche also showed off its “Tribute to Carrera RS Package,” adding bigger brakes and more weight-saving carbon fiber and magnesium parts.
And there were more…
Monterey Car Week saw plenty of other debuts, including the first collective public appearance of the three Audi Sphere Concepts expected to influence both the looks and technology that the automaker will be bringing to market in the years ahead. From Britain, we had the Bentley Mulliner Batur, a 730-hp limited-edition version of the GT Grand Tourer priced at $2 million. Only 18 are being built. And the California-based Czinger Hyper GT turned heads with features like its 3D-printed wheels and gullwing doors.
Determined to prove it can stay in business and begin production this coming model year, we were treated to a supposedly production ready version of the all-electric Faraday Future FF91. And Hennessey showed off its fangs with the Venom F5 Roadster. It can punch out 1,817 hp and hit 300 mph, the carmaker claims. With the Lamborghini Urus Performante, the Italian automaker takes its current SUV to new levels of performance. That means 0-60 in 3.3 seconds and a top speed of 190 mph.
For those who want to have a truly lavish driving experience, we got to see the new Land Rover Range Rover Carmel Edition. Specifically designed for the North American market, $346,475 limited-run SUV comes complete with Titleist golf clubs. No word on whether buyers also get tee time at one of the legendary Pebble Beach courses. And, finally, we saw the North American debut of the Rolls-Royce Phantom Series II. The new model is designed to let customers choose from a broad range of bespoke features.
Paul, the top photo with the three vehicles what is the one all the way to the left? Thanks
Hi, Tony,
From left to right they are the Audi skysphere, grandsphere and urbansphere.
Paul E.