Naples Motorsports

After leaving rather disappointed with the first dealership on my "to-do" list, I dragged my dad to Naples Motorsports; I honestly was a bit nervous going in, since outside they didn't have much, and usually, dealerships that have vast inventories inside don't allow pictures. Naples Motorsports erased all doubts immediately.
First, when I went slowly in, I was greeted; they not only acknowledged my existence, but offered me water, which I politely declined. Second, the man who greeted me, Phil Bono, said he was happy to let me walk around and take as many pictures as I felt necessary. Unfortunately, due to it being mid-day, the Florida sun bouncing off shiny cars wasn't very kind to my camera. I still had an amazing time, though. Seeing everything from a Corvette ZR-1 to a row of Murcielagos.. wow.. I honestly had to make sure I was standing in a room full of the finest new-generation exotics that money could buy, and not just simply dreaming.



I saw a rather fine selection of cars; over in one corner sat the two lone American cars,and each wall was lined with Ferraris in excess. I counted the basic evolution of the V8 Ferrari, starting with the 355, and ending with a new 458. Lamborghinis were accounted for as well, but since the inventory consisted of Gallardos and a couple Murcielagos, I took a quick pic of my favorite Lambo there.






One of my favorite modern semi-exotic cars is the BMW Z8; while its design harks back to the original 507, built between 1955 and 1957, the execution is a definite throwback to the cars heyday. Unlike the faux-retro muscle cars that are quick to rise on the scene today, the Z8 was around long before any retro Mustang had been ever thought of, nevermind the 2010 Camaro or Dodge Challenger. While these muscle cars are grossly overstyled, the Z8 simply works. To the average car fan, the Z8 looks thoroughly modern; if you know your BMW history, you will clearly see the heritage behind the skin And at roughly $100k, these things aren't exactly cheap. To be honest, I have seen my fair share of these rare Bimmers, but they never cease to amaze me.




Next up is Ferrari's new 458; I'd seen a couple of these, and since these are relatively new to me, I took a few pictures. I'll be frank; red on a Ferrari is quite lame. I rather like these in a bevy of other colors. While I will not frown on a red Ferrari, Tour de France blue is a more more suited color; deep, rich, and can be luxurious or sporty, depending on how you dress up our Ferrari's interior and exterior trim.


Another one of my favorites, and for no explicable reason-- the Corvette ZR-1. I despise the Corvette for the most part. They're driven by old people, they are often seen in droves in terrible, cliche colors, and almost every single one I see is snail-pacing in traffic. But for some reason, I like the upper-crust versions of America's Sports Car. The ZR-1 fixes everything I loathe about the base car-- horsepower is up to a rather healthy 638, it can do 200+ out of the box, and it has a see through hood. It's got bigger wheels, bigger brakes, a tasteful lip spoiler and fender extensions, and it will keep pace with cars costing three times as much. But it's still a Corvette-- except it's one I actually like.







This was definitely my favorite car at this particular dealer; I've had an automotive hard-on for the special edition 911s as long as I can remember; the added performance sure helps, no doubt, but I am easily attracted to bright (and garish) colors. When Porsche introduced the hardcore GT3RS version of the 997, I instantly fell in love. Even though these have been out since late 2006, I haven't seen many at all. I am head over hells for any of the GT3RS, but I would love to see the green and black one. So far, this silver and orange combo is the hottest modern Porsche 911-based car I have witnessed in person. And that will stand until I see one on 911 Classic wheels or the infamous green and black GT3RS.
I had an amazing time at Naples Motorsports, and the staff was incredibly nice. I say the one dealership alone rested my fears of stepping inside exotic dealers. I had an awesome time here, and would not hesitate to go back again. Great cars, great location, and great staff. If I had the means, I would definitely buy a car from Naples Motorsports.

Aston Martin of Naples

When I first say the inventory online, I was stunned; it appeared that there were oodles and oodles of new Astons to choose from, and that I would never get bored. I had never seen a mass array of DBS, DB9, V8 or V12 Vantages before, and I definitely had never seen a new Aston Martin Virage before. I knew it was going to be one hell of a dealership-- or so I thought.
As our rental beige/silver Nissan Altima pulled into the lot, my dreams were dashed at once; not only was there a rather small selection of cars sitting out front, a majority of what was there to welcome as sucked to be blunt. I understand Rolls Royces are "premier" motorcars, but.. I think they're quite ugly, and are just not my cup of tea. I skipped all the Phantom and all six of the "holy" Ghosts, and tried to move on to the rest of this particular dealer's offerings.


I did see a scant few cars that piqued my interest, and I will start off with the Aston Martins; first thing I saw that I actually liked was the DBS Volante. I'm mixed on convertibles; they often look atrocious with the roof up, but when the sun is shining and the roof is gone, convteribles actually tend to look better than their hardtop offerings. Case in point is Aston's priciest (and best looking) vehicle. Starting off at a rather unmodest $286,460, this Aston isn't quite for the thin-walleted. Then again, no new Aston is. But if you have the money, why not? You get a 510 horse V12, a six-speed manual, and the ability to scream from a dead stop to sixty in 4.7 seconds. I do realize there are other, quicker cars that are substantially cheaper, but that's not the point. You buy an Aston to get noticed. As much as I like the 997, and Ferrari's 430 and 458 cars, and Lamborghini's Gallardo, I like the DBS for its exclusivity. For every DBS Volante I saw, maybe 4 997s passed and two 430 Spiders; Gallardos were so common I ended up getting bored mid-trip.



Next up is Aston's Vantage lineup, in particular the V12 Vantage; I normally don't like this bodystyle, and I am still lukewarm on it; this bodystyle dates back to 2005, and when it came out, the car was quite stunning. As I got older, I began to develop a rather sour taste to this cars; I can't quite put my finger on it, but for some reason they don't quite hold my attention like they used to. But, for something with a V12 in it, looks are definitely not the end all, be all. Aston Martin's oldest basic car is continuously updated to adhere to the needs of fresh buyers; in tradition British fashion, the majority of the body was left alone, but details have changed. Identifying the V12 Vantage are a new, easier-breathing hood, wider rear fenders, obviously, the V12. It can be yours for a more wallet-friendly $180, 535, and like it's bigger brothers, this one, too, is rather exclusive. Pony up the check now if you want one; it's scheduled to be replaced next year.




Moving on from the Astons, I found the Maserati section, or should I say, row. Like the rather minute selection of Astons, the Maserati pickings were quite slim, especially considering that this area is known for its abundance of wealth. Out of all four of the new Gran Turismos, this yellow one was by far my favorite; yes, the GT is rather common even out my way, but I still take notice when I see them. I will stand on my beliefs that the Gran Turismo will go down as a classic Maserati, unlike its rather bland Quattroporte stablemate. But the basic Gran Turismo wasn't the only thing to tickle my fancy from their Maserati selection....



The Gran Turismo is one of those cars I just love; I can't help it. Everytime a new variation comes out, I am immediately drawn to it, and this MC Stradale is no different; I usually frown on red cars, unless red is the only color choice, but man.. this thing is.. I completely stood there in silence, just scoping it out. For me, when a model gets updated, or receives a facelift--even a minor one, it's either a love or hate thing. This Stradale leaves my heart racing with glee. Never did I think that this wonderful car could be improved-- and I have been proved wrong. From the black wheels, to the meaner front fascia and rather sinister looking ass-end, this Maserati definitely has the right amount of look to justify the slightly improved cook. I will never own one (because they're too expensive), but man are they ever nice to stare at. Kudos to a job well done.