Monterey Car Week 2024: The Hypercars, Restomods And EVs That Stole The Show

It's been a long, loud, and incredible weekend at the annual Monterey Car Week events in and around Pebble Beach, California. For one week each August, the wealthy peninsula plays host to everyone from start-up automakers looking for investment and buzz, to well-established modern-day manufacturers who come to pitch their latest wares and concept cars to the most financially well-endowed consumers in the world.

During the week, the area also hosts record-breaking automotive auctions, historic races, and the annual Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance, a world-renowned car show for car collectors who spend untold fortunes restoring vehicles that frequently date back to the days of horseless carriages and experimental steam-powered vehicles. It's a raucous, frequently loud, and exciting annual event that captivates everyone from the automotive media to celebrities and Silicon Valley elites.

While we're still reeling from the multi-million dollar cars rollicking around the lovely beach towns of the Monterey Peninsula, it's time for a quick roundup of the most interesting vehicles I came across during a sleep-deprived Car Week.

Everatti is best classified as an EV restomod company based in the UK. They take old Land Rovers, like the Land Rover IIA I got to drive around the Pebble Beach area on Saturday afternoon, restore them, and electrify them. Buyers have to bring their own donor bodies, and Everatti customizes them the way that people want. The company doesn't get rid of the internal combustion parts, but rather stores them for owners in case they ever want to convert them back. 

They keep all the same ride and drive characteristics, too, even though the vehicles are powered by a variety of sizes of battery packs (depending on the space and the ICE-range of the original vehicle). They've done a stellar Porsche 964 for the owners of Dirt Fish, as well as a beautiful 1960s era Mercedes Benz 280 SL (known as a Pagoda). Prices start around $225,000.

It's tiny, and it has a very weird name, but this electric fan vehicle, known as the McMurtry Spéirling, is a 1000 horsepower British race car that's powered by a 60 kWh battery pack and does zero to 60 mph in an eye-popping 1.55 seconds. It showed up at the annual bash, Motorlux, which is hosted by classic car insurance company Hagerty and kicks off Car Week with a bang. 

Over 4000 people attended the event at the Monterey Jet Center on Wednesday night, and the tiny (but mighty) Spéirling almost eluded me at the event. What makes this car super unique, besides the fact that it holds the record up the Corkscrew section at the WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, is that it generates 4,400 pounds of downforce with fans.

Automotive enthusiasts can rejoice! BMW is finally bringing a longroof version of the hot M5 to the U.S., and it's poised to go head-to-head with the likes of the highly coveted Audi RS6 Avant, Mercedes Benz E450 All-Terrain Wagon, and the Porsche Taycan Cross Turismo. 

While the Porsche is all-electric, the BMW wagon gets a plug-in hybrid powertrain (for the first time) and puts down 717 horsepower and 737 lb.ft. of torque. Whether the lead-footed BMW drivers will in fact plug the vehicle in, though, is a whole other story.

Blending old and new as a restomod is always a bit of a gamble. Purists complain about matching numbers, while enthusiasts love modern technology and amenities. Eccentrica, a San Marino-based company has reimagined a Lamborghini Diablo and outfitted it with a 5.7-liter V12 engine that makes 550 horsepower and 600 Nm of torque. Eccentrica has put in a new six-speed transmission, active dampers, a new power steering system, new camshafts and throttle bodies, and modern interior updates, including a digital infotainment system and rear cameras. 

Abigail Bassett/SlashGear

Its more than just a few upgrades, too–especially because Mauricio Reggiani the former CTO and Vice President of Motorsport at Lamborghini, is an advisor to the company and he will "will provide strategic and technical guidance, foster innovation, and offer expert insights," during production. Don't get your hopes up too high for a modern and comfortable Diablo though–there will only be 12 of these made.

If you're a fan of old Broncos but have no chance of getting yours road-legal, Kindred Motorworks has an off-roader for you. This year at Motorlux, the California-based company unveiled a restomod 1960s-era EV Bronco with an 80 kWh battery pack and dual motors that put out a combined 402 horses, is compatible with up to Level 3 DC fast chargers, and gets an estimated 185 miles of range. Plus, it gets modern suspension and tech additions (Bluetooth and air conditioning!) and a warranty. Prices start at $225,000.

Yes, it's a concept vehicle, and we all know concept vehicles rarely see the light of day or land in the hands of consumers—especially from American automakers. But the Cadillac Opulent Velocity concept that debuted at The Quail, A Motorsports Gathering, on Friday represents an electrified future for enthusiasts' favorite: the V-series. Think: Blackwing edition-level vehicles with electric powertrains and luxurious interiors. 

The huge butterfly-style doors are highly unlikely to see production thanks to crash regulations, as is the concept's Level Four autonomy, at least given the current regulations and technology limitations. Still, Cadillac's vision of luxurious performance gives fans something to look forward to.

This MG-looking shooting brake is from the UK-based EV company, RBW and while it looks like an old car, it's in fact, all new. RBW has the rights to stamping for the bodies, which are new, and updates all the interior features with modern amenities like air conditioning, Bluetooth, and a suite of safety features that your typical restomod would never get. 

Underpinning the vehicle is a 22 kWh battery pack that–though small by modern EV standards–gives owners of these tiny, bespoke vehicles around 150 miles of range. Prices start at $151,000 for the GT, while the company has a more "affordable" roadster priced at $139,000.

While the team here at SlashGear got to drive the Nevera Time Attack Edition last year, this year's iteration from the Croatian hypercar company–unveiled at The Quail, A Motorsports Gathering–packs even more punch and solves for some of the more niggling issues from the Nevera. It has (of course) got more horsepower (a total of 2017 hp) and the company says it does 0 to 60 in just 1.7 seconds. 

Only 40 specimens of this will be made, each carrying a whopping price tag of $2.5 million.

Rivian had the buzz-worthy R3 on display this week at events around Car Week, and crowds flocked to get up close with the upcoming, smaller, fully-electric EV that made its debut this spring. While it may be surprising to include the R3 on a roundup like this, the vehicle has been generating considerable attention for the Caliifornia-based company, and getting it in front of crowds at one of the most prestigious and expensive events in the automotive world is a big deal. 

Rivian says it won't start delivering R3 until 2026 (at least in theory), but its safe to assume this adorable EV-ute will be priced under $40,000. The automaker is taking orders as we speak.

Yes, I know a boat is not a car, but the crowds at Pebble Beach were drawn to this Brabus boat on display near the Lodge at Pebble Beach. Brabus takes high-end vehicles by Porsche, Mercedes-Benz, Rolls-Royce, and other companies and customizes them for top speed and more aggressive styling, and the Shadow 500 Cabin Black Ops Boat is no different even if it's designed for the water. 

This powerboat gets a pair of twin Mercury V8 XS Pro FourStroke Engines and reaches a top speed of 50 knots, which is the equivalent of 92 miles per hour. Prices for this blacked-out monster start at $399,000, and it can, of course, be further customized if it's still not quite excessive enough for you. That is, after all, what Car Week is all about.