While I don’t always see eye-to-eye with the design philosophy of Ugur Sahin, I cannot help but admire his spirit. He sees the world of luxury and high-design automobiles and think, “you know, I could do that better”. The Ugur Sahin Aston Martin Gauntlet Conceptis the latest in this designer’s vision for world class automobiles. While it is hard to improve on anything Aston Martin, Sahin has shown his own perspective on this legendary auto brand. The Aston Martin Gauntlet is a lovely facelift on the One-77 and the DB AR1 by Aston Martin, and the result is certainly worth a good, hard look. If Sahin succeeds in challenging the design philosophy of Aston Martin, we can at least hope to see a future product from this brand that represents the progressive movement of auto design culture. Like it or not, Sahin’s takes on luxury cars provides an interesting perspective on what these cars could be, and may just be in the future.
McLaren’s new 650S model now comes in three flavors, the standard road going 650S, the competition-spec 650S GT3 for serious racers, and now there’s the 650S Sprint which is aimed at track enthusiasts who still want a little bit of comfort. The 650S Sprint also replaces the MP4-12C-based 12C Sprint as McLaren’s track toy for the super-rich. Compared to the road model, the 650S Sprint features increased downforce and better cooling airflow to the 3.8 litre twin-turbocharged V8. It also features a competition-spec fuel tank and quick-fill cap, a larger radiator borrowed from the GT3 car, a new hood with additional cooling ducts for the radiator, front wing louvres for improved airflow, reduced ride height and recalibrated damping and spring rates, 19-inch center-locking race wheels with either Pirelli slicks or wet tires, onboard air jack system, and an upgraded braking system. On the inside the McLaren 650S Sprint features a stripped-out design with a FIA-approved rol...