Club Autopia

New club launched offering a fleet of exotica for your use

By PH Staff / Monday, 14 March 2005 / Loading comments

A new motoring club - Club Autopia - was launched today. The club operates provides access to a range of sports and supercars for a fixed annual fee. The idea is to provide the fun without the running costs or ownership hassles of depreciation, storage and maintenance.

Club Autopia have set out to provide a unique and contemporary fleet of cars. Once subscription has been approved, members will be able to choose from an impressive inventory, including a Bentley Continental GT, Ferrari 360 Spider, Maserati Spyder, Aston Martin DB9, Noble M400 and Porsche 911 GT3, to name but a few. Typically, depending on the vehicles’ availability, members would be able to enjoy two or three days in a Porsche 911 or Maserati Spyder each month.

Club Autopia is also planning a series of track days, enabling members to drive a selection of the club’s cars on track. The club is also developing a tour concept, where members swap cars and experiences en route to and from iconic events, such as the Le Mans 24 Hours, the Goodwood Festival of Speed and the Monaco Grand Prix.

The annual membership fee is roughly the same as the lease hire charge on an average company car. Club Autopia reckon small and medium size companies could take out a subscription for directors to use as the basis for networking, as an incentive to staff or simply to act as a virtual garage for visiting VIPs requiring something out of the ordinary.

“We see this as a unique opportunity in the marketplace”, said Club Autopia Director, Colin Taylor. “No-one is currently offering a service like this to individuals and corporate clients at what we feel is a reasonable cost. For roughly the same cost as a leased Volvo estate, our members will be able to access some of the very best cars in the motoring world.”

Once members of the club, drivers can use an online calendar to search for the availability of the vehicle they want, for example a two-seater convertible for the first week in August.

All the club’s vehicles will be maintained by a franchised dealer from the respective manufacturer’s network in order to ensure the cars are always presented in the best condition. Prospective members (minimum age of 30), will also be offered high performance driver tuition as part of the club’s service.

Membership of Club Autopia costs £5000 per annum with a one-off joining fee of £1000.

Link: www.clubautopia.co.uk