They were all there: Countach, Miura, Dino and Daytona. Add to those the likes of Huayra, Veyron, Enzo and Carrera. Some of the greatest supercar and sports-car models ever built were on display at the sixth running of the Miami Design District Concours held the weekend before last. This three-day celebration of style, elegance and big horsepower saw pristine examples lining the red-carpeted streets of Miami’s fashion-focused Design District. Here are our top 10 picks for the most significant cars of the competition.
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1959 Ferrari 250 GT LWB California Spider
Image Credit: Jorge A. Guasso / @jgpv.speed It’s hard to argue with the judges’ decision to award this sensational black-on-black 1959 Ferrari 250 GT LWB California Spider with the coveted Best in Show accolade. Oozing Hollywood style, this oh-so-elegant 250 GT LWB (Long Wheelbase) California Spider is one of only 50 examples built and features that air-gulping hood intake, classic Borrani wire wheels, and those twin driving lights in the grille.
The car’s considerable appeal is naturally reflected in its collectability and astronomical value; a similar one sold at auction in 2021 for an eye-watering $17.99 million. Just don’t mention the 250 California that starred in the film “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” though, as that car was a replica.
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1972 Lamborghini Miura SV
Image Credit: Jorge A. Guasso / @jgpv.speed Arguably the most famous Lamborghini Miura ever was the one that slammed into a bulldozer in the opening sequence of the film “The Italian Job”. Turning heads at the concours, this 1972 Miura SV was, like the ill-fated movie car, painted in that magical shade of orange that Lamborghini calls Arancio.
Just one of seven Arancio Miuras built in 1972, this car is reckoned to be one of the very best unrestored examples in the world. Powered by a 4.0-liter V-12 packing 385 hp, this classic Raging Bull is part of the Curated collection in Miami.
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1973 Porsche 911 2.7 RS Lightweight
Image Credit: Jorge A. Guasso / @jgpv.speed Winner of the 2023 Miami Design District Concours’ Best in Show award for Sports GTs, this stunning, mellow-yellow 1973 911 2.7 RS Lightweight was one of just 200 built that year, and the first 911 to feature both the Carrera and RS designations.
It was also the first 911 to feature a factory spoiler mounted to its tail. Despite its sporting credentials, that 2.7-liter flat-six in back cranks out just 210 hp and 188 ft lbs of torque, though the car shaved weight with its thinner-steel body, slimmer glass, and lighter bumpers. So focused was Porsche on weight reduction with the RS that the factory even created a lighter crest emblem for the hood.
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1986 Mercedes-Benz 300E 6.0 AMG Hammer
Image Credit: Jorge A. Guasso / @jgpv.speed To those in the know, it was simply “The Hammer”. Here was a bread-and-butter Merc 300E sedan with a fire-breathing 6.0-liter V-8 shoehorned under the hood. The result was a model that delivered astonishing performance for the time. Flat out, this 355 hp rocket ship became the first AMG to break the 300 kph (188 mph) barrier, and could eat supercars for breakfast.
The silver example that starred on the concours’ red carpet, was the very car that legendary Formula 1 champion Phil Hill tested for Road & Track magazine for its 1987 “World’s Fastest Cars” feature. It was also the car that Hans-Werner Aufrecht (he is the “A” in AMG) used in much of the development of the Hammer.
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1991 Jaguar XJR-15
Image Credit: Jorge A. Guasso / @jgpv.speed Back in August, this low-slung, Le Mans–blue Jaguar XJR-15 sold for $1.38 million at auction. That big number could have been owed to the fact that the car had never been raced, and had a mere 700 miles on the odometer. Plus, it came with a stack of maintenance bills totaling over $21,000 since July of 2021.
As you might expect, this rarest of rare Jaguars was a favorite with the concours crowd, especially when its 6.0-liter mid-mounted V-12 fired up. Only 50 examples of the XJR-15 were built between 1990 and 1992, with this one having chassis No. 005.
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1993 Bugatti EB110 SS Prototype
Image Credit: Jorge A. Guasso / @jgpv.speed Before there was the Veyron and Chiron, the Bugatti supercar of choice was the thundering EB110. Powered by a 3.5-liter quad-turbo V-12 with 603 hp, it could hit a top speed of 220 mph. This made it the fastest production car in the world when introduced.
Presented in a Grigio Chiaro color scheme, the example showcased in the Miami Design District is a little extra special. One of just five prototype EB110s built for development of the SuperSport, it comes with the specific V-12 mill used to make that 220 mph record-setting speed run in 1992. Not that it has seen much use since; the car’s odometer reads just 2,113 miles.
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1997 Lamborghini Diablo GT2
Image Credit: Jorge A. Guasso / @jgpv.speed In 1997, Lamborghini came up with a plan to go racing with its flagship Diablo in order to create some extra buzz for a possible “evo” model. The orange car here was the first prototype which made an appearance at the Bologna Motor Show in Italy the following year. It features a modified 640 hp, 6.0-liter V-12 paired with a five-speed stick.
Body changes for the car included a huge carbon-fiber wing, a modified bumper, plexiglass windows, a single racing seat and a pair of wild, roof-mounted air intakes. In 1998, the vehicle competed in three races before being put on display at the Lamborghini museum in Sant’Agata Bolognese. And that is where it stayed until acquired by a private collector in 2015.
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2006 Lamborghini Gallardo Concepts S
Image Credit: Jorge A. Guasso / @jgpv.speed With the Miami Design District Concours celebrating 60 years of Lamborghini, it was only fitting that one of the rarest Lambos on the planet should grace the red carpet. The open two-seat Lamborghini Concept S started life as a non-running design study to grab headlines at the 2005 Geneva International Motor Show in Switzerland. So enthusiastic was the reaction that Lamborghini created a fully functioning version the following year. This is that car.
Based on a Gallardo chassis with a 520 hp V-10 engine mounted in the middle, it features a center “spine” to separate the driver and passenger, along with twin, low-cut aero windshields. The plan was to produce 100 of them, but it never got the green light. This is the only running example.
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2008 Koenigsegg CCX
Image Credit: Jorge A. Guasso / @jgpv.speed This black beauty was the last Koenigsegg you could get with a true six-speed stick shift. It’s one of 30 manufactured, and one of just 13 imported to the US. It was also the first Koenigsegg to be offered with an engine designed in-house rather than fit with a Ford motor.
Making an impressive 806 hp, the twin-supercharged 4.7-liter V-8 catapults this 2008 CCX from standstill to 60 mph in just 3.2 seconds and enables the car to hit an electronically limited top speed of 245 mph. This CCX also features a carbon-fiber body and super-rare carbon-fiber wheels. The latter save 6.6 pounds over the standard alloy versions. Interested? It’s currently for sale through Curated, the Miami-based vintage supercar specialist.
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2017 RUF CTR
Image Credit: Jorge A. Guasso / @jgpv.speed There have always been yellow Porsche 911s. But Porsche fans will instantly recognize the most iconic yellow 911 of all, the famed Yellowbird from German tuner RUF Automobiles. The original appeared on the scene back in 1987, based on the 463 hp 911 Carrera 3.2 with twin turbochargers and twin intercoolers.
Fast forward three decades to 2017 and RUF unleashed a brand-new Yellowbird CTR, this time with 700 hp. It was only available with a six-speed manual transmission and rear-wheel drive. The car on the Miami red carpet was a coveted 2017 Yellowbird, and easy to locate due to the hordes of people around it, all eager to take a closer look.
