Gallery: Dubai’s Caffeine And Machine Demonstrates Both Diversity And Universality

Photography by Robert Lintescu

The turnout of the machine portion of the recent Caffeine and Machine event in Dubai made for a wide array in terms of eras and origins, and it is this diversity that makes such a strong point for the singular and universal attraction that people can feel toward cars. You can seemingly travel to any city in the world and find at least some level of enthusiasm aimed at the automobile. And of course, some places have particularly small or large representation when it comes to this kind of thing.

The stereotypes of the kinds of show vehicles to be found in the Middle East might bring up an image in mind of some bland white sedan going up on two wheels and orbiting around a gold Bugatti or something else expensive and wrapped in a finish that necessitates sunglasses to look at directly. Things like the 6×6 AMG Mercedes are certainly part of what’s to be found at a gathering like this one, though they are just that, a distinct part of the overall showing of cars and trucks. Certainly a Lancia Stratos and mid-century Chevrolet painted bright yellow are proof enough of the breadth of the visible vehicle spectrum.

It’s wild to think of where these different cars started out, where they went, and how that led them to end up in the UAE. How many of these have been here for most of their lives and how many have just arrived? Are there enough Ferrari 250s there for the owners to have their own little niche, or are they forced to share parking areas with heavily chopped-up lowriders in order to find some common ground with other car fans?

Regardless of the similarities and differences between the sizes and styles of the world’s various pockets of notable autos though, they are all worth a look.

A special thank you from Phil McGovern to Dan Price, Frederik Faidhi, Julian Castaldi, and Assyl Yacine and the team at Tomini Classics