Monterey Car Week 2026: The Super Bowl For Petrolheads.

Monterey Car week is not just an automotive event, it is the undisputed Super Bowl for car enthusiasts. Every August, petrolheads from all over the world, gather on Monterey County, California, turning the Pacific coast into the absolute epicentre of automotive passion. The energy is unmatched, alongside countless informal Cars & Coffee meets, spontaneous rallies, and scenic Sunday drives among friends, the week builds up to its crown jewels: the Rolex Monterey Motorsport Reunion, The Quail by the Peninsula, and the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance.

The Rolex Monterey Motorsport Reunion, at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, served as a moving museum, where hundreds of authentic historic race cars competed at their absolute limit. The four-days event featured vintage V8s, alongside dedicated tribute classes for Japanese motorsport, IROC, and Formula 1 legends.

The 23rd edition of The Quail by the Peninsula, a Motorsports Gathering, was a highlight, taking place at the usual Quail Lodge & Golf Club in Carmel Valley. During the day a multitude of car launches happened, such as the Lamborghini Revuelto SV, Gordon Murray Automotive S1, Cadillac V-One Concept, Hennessey Blackbird, Spyker C8 Preliator XXV, Koenigsegg CCGT1, and many more. While famous for hypercar debuts, classics cars remain the heart of The Quail by the Peninsula. This year’s featured celebration classes showcased the 100th anniversary of Route 66, the Lamborghini Diablo, the Legacy of Japanese GTs, and the Ferrari F40. The pinnacle of the day came when Bruce Meyer’s spectacular 1957 Ferrari 625/250 Testarossa was crowned Rolex Best of Show.

On the last day of the Monterey Car Week, occurred the 75th edition of the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance, among the homonymous golf course, the best in show was awarded by the jury at the 1935 Duesenberg SSJ Special Speedster in the hands of Harry Yeaggy. This extremely rare American sports car was formerly owned by Clark Gable, a famous American film actor known as the “King of Hollywood”. A special mention needs to be done for the legendary Ferrari’s official factory car hauler from 1957 to 1965, the 1957 Fiat Tipo 642 RN2 Bartoletti Transporter shown by Jon & Kim Shirley. The Tipo 642 won the Chairman’s Trophy while carrying two priceless icons on its ramps. A 1958 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa, chassis 0754 TR, and a 1963 Ferrari 250 GTO, chassis 4757 GT in its historic number #20 livery of the 1963 Le Mans 24H.

What makes Monterey Car Week stands out for the car enthusiast is the quantity of rare historical, super and hypercars, that one would be lucky to see even on social media, let alone being driven.

But in my opinion the real value of the Monterey Car Week is the curated luxury experience, that the automotive brands, create for their clients and partners by renting branded private mansions and bringing their savour-faire to California.

The spotlight of this year brand’s Chateau was the Bugatti House, renting the property formerly used by Aston Martin. The House was branded with Bugatti furniture, art works, food worth of Michelin star was served, and of course, there was the foldable 137” TV Bugatti / N1, produced in collaboration with CSEED and inspired by the Bugatti Tourbillon. Talking about Bugatti Tourbillon, during all week you could see Mate Rimac, the Bugatti Rimac CEO, driving around with the first production prototype of the new Bugatti Tourbillon, a hypercar with an 8.3L N/A V16, producing more than 1.000 HP. Beside that, in the House, you could see a Bugatti Chiron Pur Sport, a Bugatti Veyron presented by the La Maison Pur Sang programme, and there, I say it, a standard Bugatti Chiron. It was also present the beautifully bespoke Frank Heyl’s green Bugatti Veyron, the new personal hypercar of Bugatti and Rimac director of design. Finally, the star of the House, was the all new, one-of-one, Bugatti Destrier, the latest creation of the solitaire program, where Bugatti’s top clients can design a completely tailor-made car only for them. Destrier, for sure, will be considered one of the most stunning cars ever made, due to the mesmerizing proportions and design languages, that gives a unique sense of elegance and flow. The materials used are second to none, whereas the chassis of the car is based on the track-focused Bugatti Bolide with an 8.0L quad-turbo W16, capable of 1.600HP.

An honourable mention is the Aston Martin Villa, a scene that looks like it is taken from a James Bond movie. In the Villa you could find Elemis Spa and Bowers & Wilkins sound experience, Michelin star level buffet, and Q Lounge, the Aston Martin department that offer options that are not in the option list. At the entrance there was an AMR-PRO spec Valhalla and the 25th edition anniversary Vanquish. You could also see plenty more historical and contemporary Aston Martin models. During the week, the guest took part at the presentation of the new Aston Martin Valon, based on the Vanquish and powered by a 5.2L twin-turbo V12, producing over 840HP, with only 150 examples will ever be built. Valon is such a departure from Aston Martin traditional design. We will see how it will age and if this new outrageous hyper GT will become the new 007 car.

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