Rolls-Royce Abu Dhabi commissions a special “Inspired by Earth” Wraith, depicting the Middle East as seen from space.

The new Rolls-Royce Wraith “Inspired By Earth” proves once again that inspiration can come from anywhere and by anywhere, including a unique viewpoint from out of this world.

No stranger to bespoke commission requests by clients, Rolls-Royce is often tasked with creating designs that take inspiration from a favorite hobby or perhaps the desire to incorporate a unique family crest, but more often than not, the inspirations are closely related to the things we see every day so to speak.

In the latest bespoke commission, however, the design team was tasked with taking a much bigger view, that of our own planet, as seen from space.

“We’re used to clients bringing us grand visions for their Bespoke Commissions, but this provided a new perspective altogether”says Michael Bryden, Lead Bespoke Designer, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars .

“In our response to the brief, we’ve worked at both the ‘macro’ level, referencing the Sun and planets of the whole Solar System, and the much more personal ‘micro’ level, centering our view of the world on the place the customer calls home.”

Commissioned by Rolls-Royce Abu Dhabi, the Wraith “Inspired by Earth” edition takes design cues from the entire Solar System and features air-brushed artwork on the bonnet, of the Middle East region as it would be seen by an astronaut passing on overhead.

Focusing on the United Arab Emirates, the panorama extends across the Red Sea, the Arabian Sea, and the Gulf of Oman, all precisely air-brushed by hand in a process that took over 100 hours to complete.

Finished in Royal Blue, the Wraith’s exterior color is also representative of the Earth’s surface covered in 75% water and is includes a delicate hand-painted coachline in Emerald Green that incorporates the Sun and the eight planets of the Solar System – Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.

The Earth theme continues on through to the interior, with the waterfall embroidery between the rear seats appearing as atmospheric clouds. Meanwhile, the seats made from Moccasin leather reflect the Emirate’s deserts while the Cobalt Blue, Navy, and Emerald Green accents symbolize the rivers, lakes, and nature in all forms.

Throughout the remainder of the interior, the Solar System is also found, including the treadplates and the clock with inlays of the planets in silver and Earth highlighted in gold.

Last but not least is the Wraith’s iconic Starlight Headliner, with the “Inspired By Earth” edition including an embroidered Solar System found hidden amongst the twinkling lights, capping off a truly interstellar design.

Bugatti has revealed their most extreme hypercar concept to date – the Bugatti Bolide, boasting a weight-to-power ratio of 0.67 kg per PS and a top speed in excess of 310 mph.

A week ago, Bugatti started teasing an incoming new reveal, which we now know to be the extreme lightweight Bugatti Bolide.

Throwing around the question, “What if we developed an extreme, track-focused only hyper sports car?” Bugatti’s design team fast set about answering their own question in the form of an experimental study.

“We are perpetually aiming for new and exciting goals, and the question that we always keep in mind is: what if?” shared Stephan Winkelmann, President of Bugatti. “We asked ourselves how we could realise the mighty W16 engine as a technical symbol of the brand in its purest form – with solely four wheels, engine, gearbox, steering wheel and, as the only luxury, two seats. Important aspects of our considerations were fine-tuning our iconic powertrain without any limitations as regards the weight-to-power ratio. These considerations resulted in the Bugatti Bolide. An uncompromising experiment, a thoroughbred, a Pur Sang that, in its brute exclusivity, impresses above all with high performance, low weight, and a driving experience in a whole new dimension. Driving the Bolide is like riding on a cannonball.”

Taking inspiration from historic X-Planes like the Bell X-1 jet flown by Captain Charles “Chuck” Yeager in 1974 (the first person to break the sound barrier at Mach 1.06), the Bugatti Bolide is an ultra-sporty vehicle with distinct “X” references throughout the design.

Like previous Bugatti models, the design team have once again applied its iconic color split to the Bolide with the lower half in exposed carbon (increased to 60% of the vehicle) and the remaining 40% painted in historic French Racing blue.

Featuring a modified version of Bugatti’s iconic 8.0-liter W16 engine, the Bolide is a track-focused hyper sports car with a stripped-down body for maximum downforce and an optimized gearbox for higher engine speeds.

Considered Bugatti’s most extreme, fasted, and lightest vehicle concept to date, the Bugatti Bolide boasts a weight-to-power ratio of 0.67kg per PS, made possible by the combination of the W16 engine with 1,850 PS and Bolide’s vehicle weight of 1,240 kilograms (as a comparison Koenigsegg’s One:1 power-to-weight ratio is 1,360 PS to 1360 kg for a 1:1 ratio).

“In my 16 years at Bugatti, I have never worked on a more extreme concept,” says Achim Anscheidt, Director of Design at Bugatti. “The design of the Bolide is radically tailored to the idea of lightweight construction, and the design principle therefore follows on from the overriding goal of achieving a fascinating weight-to-power ratio of 0.67 kilograms per PS.

“It is the very first time that my team had the freedom of creating an absolutely minimalistic design around the W16 engine. The result is the most provocative proportion of a modern Bugatti ever and the distilled quintessence of our Bugatti design ethos that form follows performance,”

To achieve a lighter bodyweight for the Bolide, Bugatti has completely overhauled the materials and production processes used, beginning with the screws and fastening elements made entirely out of titanium and 3D printed aerospace titanium alloy components.

“The Bolide is the ultimate answer to the question of what if Bugatti built a track-focused hyper sports car that met the FIA’s safety requirements,” explained Stefan Ellrott, member of the Board of Management of Bugatti and Head of Technical Development. “Designed around the W16 powertrain with the minimum body structure and unbelievable performance data. The result: the smallest possible shell for a breathtaking performance vehicle that allows the W16 to truly come into its own.”

Currently revealed as a vehicle concept, no price has been announced yet, and it remains to be seen whether the Bugatti Bolide with go into series production in the future.

Over 240 cars from the single-owner Elkhart Collection will be auctioned this weekend almost entirely without reserve by RM Sotheby’s.

There’s not a whole lot of car collections that break the 200 count and even less that come up for auction, so you can imagine the Elkhart Collection will pique the interest of avid car collectors and enthusiasts in general.

Named “The Elkhart Collection” by RM Sotheby’s who are the auction house behind the sale, the event was originally announced in January 2020 and scheduled to take place 1-2 May in Elkhart, Indiana. In light of global events, it was postponed amid the COVID-19 pandemic and rescheduled to 23-24 October 2020.

Offered almost entirely without reserve, the single-owner collection of over 240 vehicles is the result of decades of careful collecting and showcases a tremendous range of marques, led in by Jaguar, Lotus, Mercedes-Benz, Fiat, Ford, Ferrari, and more.

Top-value highlights include an exceptionally rare, Jet Age designed 1953 Fiat 8V Supersonic by Ghia, delivered initially to famed General Motors designer Henry S. Lauve; a striking 1969 Lamborghini Miura upgraded to SV specification; a beautifully restored 1964 Aston Martin DB5 upgraded to Vantage specification; and a 1963 Jaguar E-Type Lightweight Continuation, “car zero” built to 1963 specification for 2016 after which six more were constructed by Jaguar Classic, this one being the global press car prior to delivery.

A restored 1968 Iso Grifo GL Series I is yet another highlight, tastefully upgraded to the ultimate ‘7-Litri’ specification, alongside a 1953 Mercedes-Benz 300 S Roadster.

“The quality of the cars and the way that the Elkhart Collection has been maintained and looked after is incredible,” says Gord Duff, Global Head of Auctions, RM Sotheby’s. “The building that they’ve been housed in is much more than a storage facility and has been designed specifically for the care of collector cars. More than ever, it’s true to say that there is quite literally something for anyone in the collector car hobby within this group of cars, from microcars, to classics, 50s and 60s sports cars, the modern era, and beyond. If there’s something you like, you’ll likely find it in the Elkhart Collection. These cars are all great examples of their kind, meticulously chosen for the collection, and we’re excited to bring them to market almost entirely without reserve for an auction the entire hobby can enjoy.”

Cars in the collection range in value from $10,000 through to the multi-million-dollar mark and represent nearly every category within the collector car market. Additional cars on offer range from a London-to-Brighton veteran and still-eligible 1903 Clement 12/16 HP Rear-Entrance Tonneau, to the Classic Era beauty of a genuine factory-supercharged 1937 Cord 812 Supercharged ‘Sportsman’ Cabriolet, and the unmistakable tailfins of a Hampton Green 1959 Cadillac Eldorado Biarritz. The spirited microcar era is led by a rare 1960 FMR Tg 500 ‘Tiger’ and modern supercars are represented by a low-mileage 1993 Jaguar XJ220 and a 2006 Ford GT Heritage Edition owned from new by hockey legend Wayne Gretzky.

Aside from the four-wheeled vehicles, the collection includes more than 30 motorcycles, a wooden triple-cockpit boat, an assortment of trucks, trailers, and equipment, alongside memorabilia such as children’s pedal cars, neon signs, and a variety of collectibles appealing to automotive collectors.

The auction follows in the footsteps of nearly 40 successful single owner private collection sales held by RM Sotheby’s over the years (an industry record), including the offering of The Guyton Collection, The Sáragga Collection, and The Taj Ma Garaj Collection in 2019 alone.

While live attendance to the 23 – 24 October auction has now been sold out, remote bidding is still available for those looking to add something new to their garage.