Aston Martin’s Q4 & Full Year 2020 Results
Aston Martin announced their Q4 and full year 2020 results this week. In December, Executive Chairman Lawrence Stroll gave an interview to the Financial Times in which he stated that “demand right now is phenomenal” so I have been eagerly waiting to find out what Stroll’s definition of phenomenal is as certainly the first three quarters of 2020 were a…
5- Karenable
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Ranking the Ferrari 288GTO, F40, F50, Enzo, & LaFerrari
Two things have happened recently that have generated a discussion on Ferrari’s hypercars. The first was a question whether the Enzo are now “lost gems”. The second was a good friend, with a spectacular collection and who’s taste in cars is unmatched, bought a LaFerrari. These discussions always have a tendency to start with a debate on the pros and…
- 5
- Karenable
The New McLaren Artura – 1st Impressions
Last night McLaren introduced their newest supercar, the Artura (McLaren Artura Global Launch) via a live streamed event at the McLaren Technology Center in Woking, UK. As per many events these days, it was done without a live audience in attendance which does tend to flatten the atmosphere. The event was quite well constructed, informative, about the right length, and…
- 5
- Karenable
Ferrari & Tesla’s 2020 Results
In the last two weeks, both Ferrari and Tesla have reported their 2020 full year results. This article is the first time I have analyzed Tesla’s results. I decided to do so alongside Ferrari’s as these are the two car companies that Wall Street values very differently from other car companies. Tesla’s current market capitalization of $820 billion is larger…
- 5
- Karenable
Our Four McLarens, How? Why?
Recently I been asked several times why we have four McLarens? This is normally followed by why we currently don’t have more diversity in the garage. My smart aleck answer normally is we have four because the fifth hasn’t arrived yet. When asked what the fifth will be, I normally reply a 765LT Spider, if McLaren decides to build one. …
- 5
- Karenable
Aston Martin’s Q4 & Full Year 2020 Results
Aston Martin announced their Q4 and full year 2020 results this week. In December, Executive Chairman Lawrence Stroll gave an interview to the Financial Times in which he stated that “demand right now is phenomenal” so I have been eagerly waiting to find out what Stroll’s definition of phenomenal is as certainly the first three quarters of 2020 were a…
- 5
- Karenable
5 Supercars I’m Looking Forward to Driving in 2021
Sitting here on a cold wet Saturday morning with sheets of rain sweeping across the front lawn brings back fond memories of summer drives in Scotland. The potential that we might be able to take a long road trip or two later this year is incredibly appealing. With 2021 bringing hope that normalcy may return at some point, it has…
- 5
- Karenable
Options for Buying & Selling Supercars
Recently I was having a discussion with a gentleman on the different options for buying a supercar, the benefits of each, the potential negatives, and the costs. Over the years I have bought and sold supercars through official dealers, brokers, independents, at auction, and privately. Each of these have there own positives and negatives. If you were going to plot…
- 5
- Karenable
The SSO Awards: 2020
As the final article of what has been an unprecedented year hopefully never to be repeated, at the goading of a good friend, I’ve put together a short 2020 awards list covering the automotive universe in general. In putting the awards list together, I would like to first acknowledge that I have no real basis to be doing so (that’s…
- 5
- Karenable
A Few Thoughts & Observations
As 2020 is thankfully coming to a close, I thought I would share a few thoughts and observations on a number of things in the auto universe. I didn’t think any of these had enough depth for a full blog in their own right but thought they were still worthy of sharing. What 2021 will bring is anyone’s guess but…
- 5
- Karenable
Monterey Car Week Report 2019
This was our first time at Monterey Car Week. I would probably best describe Car Week as combination of the Goodwood Festival of Speed and the Goodwood Revival spread out over multiple stunning locations and then supersized in the best American tradition. We arrived on Wednesday late afternoon and departed the following Monday morning (see: McLaren 675LT Spider Road Trip). In between, it was…
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Bentley Continental GT Speed Convertible
Weekend With A Bentley Continental GT Speed Convertible Courtesy of Park Place, our local supercar dealer, we recently spent a few days living with a Bentley Continental GT Speed Convertible. Bentley is a brand that has been slowly growing on me over the last couple of months. This transformation started with the Mulsanne short termer we had last autumn. While…
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Bentley Bentayga
Weekend With A Bentley Bentayga We recently spent 36 hours living with a Bentley Bentayga. Our loaner car was a pearly white and instantly earned the nickname “Beluga”. Going in, it was a car I wanted to hate. It represents just about everything I try to avoid when choosing a preferred mode of transportation. It is huge, heavy, and about…
- 5
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Ranking the Ferrari 288GTO, F40, F50, Enzo, & LaFerrari
Two things have happened recently that have generated a discussion on Ferrari’s hypercars. The first was a question whether the Enzo are now “lost gems”. The second was a good friend, with a spectacular collection and who’s taste in cars is unmatched, bought a LaFerrari. These discussions always have a tendency to start with a debate on the pros and…
- 5
- Karenable
Ferrari & Tesla’s 2020 Results
In the last two weeks, both Ferrari and Tesla have reported their 2020 full year results. This article is the first time I have analyzed Tesla’s results. I decided to do so alongside Ferrari’s as these are the two car companies that Wall Street values very differently from other car companies. Tesla’s current market capitalization of $820 billion is larger…
- 5
- Karenable
Our Four McLarens, How? Why?
Recently I been asked several times why we have four McLarens? This is normally followed by why we currently don’t have more diversity in the garage. My smart aleck answer normally is we have four because the fifth hasn’t arrived yet. When asked what the fifth will be, I normally reply a 765LT Spider, if McLaren decides to build one. …
- 5
- Karenable
Supercar & Hypercar Market Update – January 2021
Back in October 2020, I summarized the situation among supercar manufacturers Supercar Market Update Q3 2020 as: So, how does this square with record levels of unemployment and economies that are officially in recession? When you stand back and look at both the actions governments have taken to date and the profile of the average supercar buyer, it actually makes…
- 5
- Karenable
Planning Our 1st Epic Drive of 2021
I have hope that things will get better this year with the roll out of the Covid-19 vaccines and that by September or October a road trip will be possible. In great anticipation, I reached out to a group of friends with whom we have been doing road trips for over a decade now to gauge interest. It’s a great…
- 5
- Karenable
Planning Our 1st Epic Drive of 2021
I have hope that things will get better this year with the roll out of the Covid-19 vaccines and that by September or October a road trip will be possible. In great anticipation, I reached out to a group of friends with whom we have been doing road trips for over a decade now to gauge interest. It’s a great…
- 5
- Karenable
To Cork or Not to Cork?
Editor’s Note: The following article was written by my brother, the Wine Collector (his wine cellar is probably worth more than my garage). The Wine Collector is a bit of a car enthusiast himself and he has owned a Ferrari 430 Spider for many years. Do screw cap wines and supercars go together? You don’t buy a Ferrari or a…
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Supercar Road Trip: Part 3
We recently moved from Texas back to near where I grew up in New England. As part of the move, Mrs. SSO and I decided to drive the Maserati Granturismo Cabrio and the McLaren 650S Spider respectively the 1,800 miles northeast. This would be the first time Mrs. SSO and I had done a road trip driving in tandem. As…
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Supercar Road Trip: Part 1
We recently moved from Texas back to near where I grew up in New England. As part of the move, Mrs. SSO and I decided to drive the Maserati Granturismo Cabrio and the McLaren 650S Spider respectively the 1,800 miles northeast. This would be the first time Mrs. SSO and I had done a road trip driving in tandem. As…
- 5
- Karenable
Chicago
Chicago: A Great American City By Mrs. SSO While I normally write about Hotels, that was just a functional aspect of a recent trip to Chicago with Mr. SSO. Chicago is right up there with other great International Cities. It is so much more than being home to the Chicago Bears Football Team or the Chicago Cubs Baseball Team (although when you…
- 5
- Karenable
The Use Case Rule of Car Collecting
Earlier this year I met a wise experienced car connoisseur over zoom (it is 2020). This gentleman has owned a number of cars that have also passed through our garage over the years (including a Ferrari F50, 16M, McLaren 675LT) along with at least one that I can only dream of (McLaren F1). He introduced me to the “Use Case…
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Our Other Sports Cars
Almost all of the articles I’ve written have been on the supercars we have owned over the years. Both before and alongside these cars, we have also owned a number of other sports cars over the years that have remained anonymous. I thought I would do a bit of a trip down memory lane on the rather eclectic group of…
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Ferrari F50 to the Jaguar XJR-15
Car Collecting Journey: Ferrari F50 to the Jaguar XJR-15 Recently I wrote an article on our experience owning a Ferrari F50 (The Ferrari F50). Looking back today, owning the F50 was a watershed experience in our car collecting journey. It both changed the direction, and has heavily influenced, all our car buying since. The F50 firmly cemented several critical attributes we look for in…
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Collecting Supercars
Recently I exchanged a few messages with a gentleman who was looking for a bit of advice on plans for his car collection. I quite enjoyed the exchange and hope I was able to provide at least a modicum of useful insights. I found the experience fascinating as it forced me to reflect back on our car collecting experiences over the last…
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Supercars We Have Sold
Supercar Ghosts With the McLaren Senna arriving shortly, I have been reflecting back on the different supercars I have owned over the years. They basically fall into three groups; missed and would like it back, enjoyed owning but it was time to move on, and thank god it’s gone. For the sake of brevity, I will only touch upon my…
- 5
- Karenable
The New McLaren Artura – 1st Impressions
Last night McLaren introduced their newest supercar, the Artura (McLaren Artura Global Launch) via a live streamed event at the McLaren Technology Center in Woking, UK. As per many events these days, it was done without a live audience in attendance which does tend to flatten the atmosphere. The event was quite well constructed, informative, about the right length, and…
- 5
- Karenable
Our Four McLarens, How? Why?
Recently I been asked several times why we have four McLarens? This is normally followed by why we currently don’t have more diversity in the garage. My smart aleck answer normally is we have four because the fifth hasn’t arrived yet. When asked what the fifth will be, I normally reply a 765LT Spider, if McLaren decides to build one. …
- 5
- Karenable
Supercar & Hypercar Market Update – January 2021
Back in October 2020, I summarized the situation among supercar manufacturers Supercar Market Update Q3 2020 as: So, how does this square with record levels of unemployment and economies that are officially in recession? When you stand back and look at both the actions governments have taken to date and the profile of the average supercar buyer, it actually makes…
- 5
- Karenable
Planning Our 1st Epic Drive of 2021
I have hope that things will get better this year with the roll out of the Covid-19 vaccines and that by September or October a road trip will be possible. In great anticipation, I reached out to a group of friends with whom we have been doing road trips for over a decade now to gauge interest. It’s a great…
- 5
- Karenable
5 Supercars I’m Looking Forward to Driving in 2021
Sitting here on a cold wet Saturday morning with sheets of rain sweeping across the front lawn brings back fond memories of summer drives in Scotland. The potential that we might be able to take a long road trip or two later this year is incredibly appealing. With 2021 bringing hope that normalcy may return at some point, it has…
- 5
- Karenable
Ferrari & Tesla’s 2020 Results
In the last two weeks, both Ferrari and Tesla have reported their 2020 full year results. This article is the first time I have analyzed Tesla’s results. I decided to do so alongside Ferrari’s as these are the two car companies that Wall Street values very differently from other car companies. Tesla’s current market capitalization of $820 billion is larger…
- 5
- Karenable
Options for Buying & Selling Supercars
Recently I was having a discussion with a gentleman on the different options for buying a supercar, the benefits of each, the potential negatives, and the costs. Over the years I have bought and sold supercars through official dealers, brokers, independents, at auction, and privately. Each of these have there own positives and negatives. If you were going to plot…
- 5
- Karenable
The SSO Awards: 2020
As the final article of what has been an unprecedented year hopefully never to be repeated, at the goading of a good friend, I’ve put together a short 2020 awards list covering the automotive universe in general. In putting the awards list together, I would like to first acknowledge that I have no real basis to be doing so (that’s…
- 5
- Karenable
The Use Case Rule of Car Collecting
Earlier this year I met a wise experienced car connoisseur over zoom (it is 2020). This gentleman has owned a number of cars that have also passed through our garage over the years (including a Ferrari F50, 16M, McLaren 675LT) along with at least one that I can only dream of (McLaren F1). He introduced me to the “Use Case…
- 5
- Karenable
A Few Thoughts & Observations
As 2020 is thankfully coming to a close, I thought I would share a few thoughts and observations on a number of things in the auto universe. I didn’t think any of these had enough depth for a full blog in their own right but thought they were still worthy of sharing. What 2021 will bring is anyone’s guess but…
- 5
- Karenable
Supercar & Hypercar Market Update – January 2021
Back in October 2020, I summarized the situation among supercar manufacturers Supercar Market Update Q3 2020 as: So, how does this square with record levels of unemployment and economies that are officially in recession? When you stand back and look at both the actions governments have taken to date and the profile of the average supercar buyer, it actually makes…
- 5
- Karenable
Planning Our 1st Epic Drive of 2021
I have hope that things will get better this year with the roll out of the Covid-19 vaccines and that by September or October a road trip will be possible. In great anticipation, I reached out to a group of friends with whom we have been doing road trips for over a decade now to gauge interest. It’s a great…
- 5
- Karenable
5 Supercars I’m Looking Forward to Driving in 2021
Sitting here on a cold wet Saturday morning with sheets of rain sweeping across the front lawn brings back fond memories of summer drives in Scotland. The potential that we might be able to take a long road trip or two later this year is incredibly appealing. With 2021 bringing hope that normalcy may return at some point, it has…
- 5
- Karenable
The SSO Awards: 2020
As the final article of what has been an unprecedented year hopefully never to be repeated, at the goading of a good friend, I’ve put together a short 2020 awards list covering the automotive universe in general. In putting the awards list together, I would like to first acknowledge that I have no real basis to be doing so (that’s…
- 5
- Karenable
The Use Case Rule of Car Collecting
Earlier this year I met a wise experienced car connoisseur over zoom (it is 2020). This gentleman has owned a number of cars that have also passed through our garage over the years (including a Ferrari F50, 16M, McLaren 675LT) along with at least one that I can only dream of (McLaren F1). He introduced me to the “Use Case…
- 5
- Karenable
To Cork or Not to Cork?
Editor’s Note: The following article was written by my brother, the Wine Collector (his wine cellar is probably worth more than my garage). The Wine Collector is a bit of a car enthusiast himself and he has owned a Ferrari 430 Spider for many years. Do screw cap wines and supercars go together? You don’t buy a Ferrari or a…
- 5
- Karenable
Supercar Road Trip: Part 2
We recently moved from Texas back to near where I grew up in New England. As part of the move, Mrs. SSO and I decided to drive the Maserati Granturismo Cabrio and the McLaren 650S Spider respectively the 1,800 miles northeast. This would be the first time Mrs. SSO and I had done a road trip driving in tandem. As…
- 5
- Karenable
Supercar Road Trip: Part 1
We recently moved from Texas back to near where I grew up in New England. As part of the move, Mrs. SSO and I decided to drive the Maserati Granturismo Cabrio and the McLaren 650S Spider respectively the 1,800 miles northeast. This would be the first time Mrs. SSO and I had done a road trip driving in tandem. As…
- 5
- Karenable
Chicago
Chicago: A Great American City By Mrs. SSO While I normally write about Hotels, that was just a functional aspect of a recent trip to Chicago with Mr. SSO. Chicago is right up there with other great International Cities. It is so much more than being home to the Chicago Bears Football Team or the Chicago Cubs Baseball Team (although when you…
- 5
- Karenable
McLaren 650S Spider Road Trip to Houston
By Karen Our weekend road trip to Houston was inspired by SSO finding out that a Yauatcha Restaurant (a sleek, modern Chinese resturant serving spectacular dim sum) had recently opened. Yauatcha is one of our favorite restaurants in London, so we thougth it well worth a trip to Houston to check out this new location. I had no issue making a…
- 5
- Karenable
5 Supercars I’m Looking Forward to Driving in 2021
Sitting here on a cold wet Saturday morning with sheets of rain sweeping across the front lawn brings back fond memories of summer drives in Scotland. The potential that we might be able to take a long road trip or two later this year is incredibly appealing. With 2021 bringing hope that normalcy may return at some point, it has…
- 5
- Karenable
The SSO Awards: 2020
As the final article of what has been an unprecedented year hopefully never to be repeated, at the goading of a good friend, I’ve put together a short 2020 awards list covering the automotive universe in general. In putting the awards list together, I would like to first acknowledge that I have no real basis to be doing so (that’s…
- 5
- Karenable
A Few Thoughts & Observations
As 2020 is thankfully coming to a close, I thought I would share a few thoughts and observations on a number of things in the auto universe. I didn’t think any of these had enough depth for a full blog in their own right but thought they were still worthy of sharing. What 2021 will bring is anyone’s guess but…
- 5
- Karenable
ICE, Hybrid, EV, Future Bans on Petrol Cars, & the Supercar
Harry Metcalfe recently posted a very interesting video on “Will the 2030 ban & dash to electric cars spell the end for classics in UK?” which prompted quite a bit of discussion around the dinner table a few nights ago. Assuming that the UK’s position on banning the sale of all internal combustion engine (ICE) cars as of 2030 might…
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It Lives – SCG 004S
Back in early March, I posted an update on the Scuderia Cameron Glickenhaus (SCG) 004s’ development (Update on the SCG 004S). At that point in time, SCG had just built the first SCG 004 prototype. It was the competition version of the SCG 004, the SCG 004C, and it had just completed a shakedown test in Northern Italy. Based on…
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