We are all familiar with those desirable, seductive supercars and limousines built to blend performance, luxury and status, but even they are relatively ‘off the shelf’. Naturally the colour, interior, tuning and detailing of such a car can be adjusted to suit your preference, but at the end of the day you’re still buying an existing design produced in series. Today, a growing number of top-end buyers want the exclusivity and uniqueness of a limited series or even entirely bespoke car – something not seen in the automotive market for many a decade. It is a process given added impetus by the fact that the products of luxury car manufacturers have become increasingly accessible to the mass market. To own something truly unique has a little more effect these days, and it is this exclusivity that a new generation of buyers is looking for. Fortunately there is a new generation of bespoke carmakers that do just that – create made-to-measure dream cars around their clients’ visions of perfection. “It’s a collaborative, creative process in which the design journey is as much fun as finally receiving your very own production car,” says Dany Bahar, co-founder and CEO of ARES, the Italian coachbuilder that is revolutionising the concept of what a luxury car is all about.

Creating Your Own Car

In other fields of the luxury market, buyers have far greater freedom to give shape to their dreams, be it through the building of a private home, the commissioning of artwork or jewellery, tailored fashion or the construction of your own yacht, but until now it did not extend to cars. In changing this, ARES is challenging the realms of possibilities open to lovers of all things automotive and taking the upper car segment into new levels of exclusivity.

In reality, building cars this way is actually a tradition that goes back to the early days of the automotive industry, when wealthy owners bought the chassis (mechanical platform) of their choice and had renowned coachbuilders such as Vanden Plas, Mulliner, Vignale and Figoni et Falaschi create one-off bodies complete with exquisitely handcrafted interiors. In this way, the vehicles in question ranged from private limousines and hunting cars to outlandish conveyances of the kind crafted by Saoutchik or more recently Zagato – now worth millions at auction.

“To design a car out of series production is to create something unique and special,” says Dany, who with co-founder and Chairman Waleed Al Ghafari has revived the classic coach building tradition in a modern era. Indeed, many of the clients who commission their very own car from this boutique manufacturer are car enthusiasts and collectors. “The quality and uniqueness of the vehicles we make ensure their great investment value, as they range from one-off pieces in the entire world to part of a limited-series collection of 21 or at the most 24 driving works of art.”

How It Works

The production takes place at the state-of-the-art factory in Modena – heart of Italian sports car manufacture – but the private bespoke cars are configured at boutique studios in locations such as Milan, Kitzbühel, St. Moritz, Zürich, Porto Cervo, Miami, Munich, Modena, Dubai and now also Marbella, at the entrance to Puerto Banús. “We are present not in typical car dealership locations but where you will also find other luxurious products, such as jewellery, fashion, art and yachts,” says Dany, whose passion for what ARES call the Co-Create process is clear.

“The process begins by exploring exactly what the client has in mind, their personal vision of automotive perfection. This could be a retro-modern version of their favourite classic car or something completely new, and once we have a clear picture we develop a pre-study that ultimately leads to the selection of the so-called ‘donor car’ – the chassis, technological platform and engine upon which the new car is built – and then proceed with creating a one-off bodywork design that is the embodiment of everything you love about motoring. In other words, your perfect car!” Though hand-built by master craftsmen and fitted with the finest materials of your choice, ARES cars also come with the latest technology, comfort, performance and safety – regardless of whether you order a 1950s-style sports car or an ultramodern one.

You will see the whole process begin to take shape before your eyes, first with advanced graphics and VR technology, and ultimately ‘in the flesh’, when not only the exterior but also the dashboard, materials, tuning and seats literally designed around you become your vision made real. “When the car is almost ready, our clients come to Modena to be ‘fitted,” says Dany. “This relates both to the final tuning touches and control, as to the perfect setting and positioning of the driver’s seat.”

In addition to such unique, one-off pieces, ARES also presents a small collection of limited edition models such as the ARES Land Rover Defender Spec 1.2, the ARES Scrambler for BMW R nine T motorbike and its very own design, the classic ARES S1 Spyder – all present at the showroom in Puerto Banús. For not so much more than a ‘standard’ limousine or super sports car, you can own a bespoke limited series creation or indeed the car you have always dreamed of – your very own creation of motoring perfection!