If Money Was No Object: The Ultimate Dream Garage

Three spaces. Three cars. And absolutely no need to think about fuel bills, insurance, servicing costs or whether any of it makes financial sense. We challenged five Copart teammates to build their ultimate three-car garage, choosing one sensible daily, one car purely for fun and one completely ridiculous pick. The results range from Japanese performance cars and V12 Ferraris to American muscle, a luxury motorhome and even a flying car.

The rules were simple. Each person had to choose something they would happily drive every day, a car purely for weekend enjoyment and one final choice where no sensible justification was required.

Fuel costs, insurance, maintenance and all the other realities of ownership could be forgotten. For this challenge, money really was no object.

So, what made it into the garages?

Scott - Newbury General Manager

Scott currently drives a MINI Cooper S, but his three dream choices take things in very different directions - luxury, lightweight driving fun and, finally, something that can leave the road altogether.

Daily: Rolls-Royce Cullinan Black Badge

Scott freely admits to having expensive taste, so his everyday choice is a Rolls-Royce Cullinan Black Badge.

There’s room for the children and dogs, while the smooth ride should make UK potholes considerably easier to forget.

But one feature seems particularly important: the fluffy carpets in the back.

Flashy? Certainly. But as Scott says, sometimes you need to treat yourself.

Bit Of Fun: 2001 Lotus Exige S1

Scott’s weekend car takes almost the opposite approach to the Cullinan.

The 2001 Lotus Exige S1 is light, low and focused on the person behind the wheel. There’s barely any room for anyone else, which Scott sees as another advantage - less space means less need for small talk.

Most importantly, it’s the sort of driver’s car he’d want for road trips through Wales.

Ridiculous: AeroMobil 4.0

For his final choice, Scott decided that keeping all three vehicles on the ground was unnecessarily restrictive.

His pick is the AeroMobil 4.0 flying-car concept.

Has it been made? Would it be safe? Would he need a pilot’s licence? Scott admits he doesn’t know the answers to any of those questions.

What he does know is that being able to take off and fly over M25 rush-hour traffic sounds extremely appealing.

John - Copart Direct Manager

John’s current car already sounds like something from a dream garage. His Nissan GT-R R35 is used for summer track days and European touring before going into hibernation for winter.

Daily: Subaru Impreza STI CS400

For everyday use, John would choose a Subaru Impreza STI CS400.

His reasoning is simple - it’s a great winter car and loves the snow. It also suggests that John’s definition of a sensible daily is slightly different from most people’s.

Bit Of Fun: Toyota Land Cruiser

John’s weekend choice swaps outright performance for getting off the beaten track.

He’d take the Toyota Land Cruiser, giving him seven seats, room for the dog and the ability to head off-grid in search of remote beaches.

There’s another practical consideration too - wheels big enough to hopefully survive his partner’s encounters with kerbs.

Ridiculous: Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye

The final space goes to a Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye.

Massive, noisy and completely unapologetic American muscle, it’s exactly the sort of car the ridiculous category was created for.

There is one potential drawback. John reckons his dream garage would need its own fuel station to keep it supplied.

Simon - Marketing Director

Living in the countryside has influenced Simon’s daily choice, but any attempt at sensible decision-making appears to end there. His garage also includes a naturally aspirated Ferrari V12 and one of cinema’s most recognisable Mustangs.

Daily: Land Rover Defender OCTA, Mercedes-AMG G63 Or Aston Martin DBX707

Simon couldn’t quite narrow his daily down to a single car.

Instead, he’d choose between a Land Rover Defender OCTA, Mercedes-AMG G63 and Aston Martin DBX707.

Living in the countryside gives him a perfectly reasonable excuse for wanting something with more ground clearance and all-weather ability. Choosing from three of the most serious performance SUVs around is perhaps slightly harder to justify.

Then again, that’s rather the point of the challenge.

Bit Of Fun: Ferrari F12berlinetta

For the weekend, Simon would leave the performance SUV behind and take a Ferrari F12berlinetta.

A front-engined Ferrari with a naturally aspirated V12 is exactly the sort of car this challenge was made for - something chosen because you want to drive it, rather than because it fulfils any practical requirement.

Ridiculous: Eleanor From Gone In 60 Seconds

Simon’s final choice comes straight from the big screen: Eleanor from Gone in 60 Seconds, the famous customised 1967 Ford Mustang.

The film connection, unmistakable looks and sheer presence are enough to earn it the final space in his garage.

Simon has also deliberately forgotten about fuel consumption when making his choices. Like John, he thinks owning a petrol station might be the only realistic solution.

Perhaps the Copart dream garage needs a communal one.

Joe - Marketing Executive

Joe currently drives a Volvo V40 Cross Country T3, but his dream garage combines a practical performance car, a Porsche for sunny weekends and one of the most famous Aston Martins ever put on screen.

Daily: Honda Civic Type R (FL5)

For everyday driving, Joe would choose the Honda Civic Type R FL5.

It has enough space to work with family life, but still offers the performance and character to make even the most ordinary journey entertaining. It might be the sensible choice in this garage, but sensible is certainly relative.

Bit Of Fun: Porsche 911 Cabriolet (997.2)

For the weekend, Joe would choose a Porsche 911 Cabriolet from the 997.2 generation.

It’s a car he sees himself enjoying for years to come - classy, understated and just as suited to a relaxed drive as something more spirited. In particular, he can picture himself driving one along the south coast with the roof down in 20 years’ time.

Ridiculous: James Bond’s Aston Martin DB5

For the ridiculous choice, it couldn’t just be any Aston Martin DB5. Joe wants James Bond’s DB5, complete with the gadgets.

The champagne glasses are a must. As for the missiles in the front, Joe had middle-lane hoggers in mind - although those will, of course, have to remain firmly in Bond’s fictional world.

Tanya - Senior Marketing Executive

Tanya’s garage starts with something that isn’t officially sold in the UK, moves firmly into JDM project-car territory and finishes with something that stretches the definition of a car altogether.

Daily: Nissan Patrol NISMO - Or Toyota GR Yaris

Tanya’s first choice would be a Nissan Patrol NISMO - if it were sold in the UK.

Of course, this is a money-no-object garage, so importing one doesn’t seem entirely unreasonable. If the rules insist on something available closer to home, she’d happily switch to a Toyota GR Yaris instead.

It’s considerably smaller than the Patrol, but certainly not the boring alternative.

Bit Of Fun: Toyota Supra Mk4

For the weekend, Tanya would choose a Mk4 Toyota Supra.

The appeal isn’t simply owning one. She’d turn it into a weekend project car, modifying it over time before taking it to track days and JDM shows.

For Tanya, building the car would be just as much a part of the experience as driving it.

Ridiculous: Marchi Mobile eleMMent Palazzo Superior

Tanya’s final choice stretches the rules of our three-car garage slightly.

The Marchi Mobile eleMMent Palazzo Superior is an extravagant luxury motorhome that looks unlike almost anything else you’d expect to encounter on the road.

It’s enormous, unusual and essentially a luxury home on wheels. Whether it would actually fit inside the garage is another question, but when money is no object, extending the building shouldn’t be too difficult.

What Would Make It Into Your Dream Garage?

Five teammates and five very different dream garages later, we’ve ended up with everything from Japanese performance cars and lightweight British sports cars to luxury SUVs, American muscle, a motorhome and something designed to leave the road altogether.

Perhaps the most interesting part is how differently everyone interpreted the three categories.

A sensible daily could mean a family-friendly hot hatch, a winter-ready Subaru, a Rolls-Royce or one of several very fast performance SUVs. Weekend fun could mean modifying a Supra, exploring remote beaches in a Land Cruiser, taking a Lotus through Wales, enjoying a Ferrari V12 or picturing a future drive along the coast in a 911.

And once we reached the ridiculous choices, any remaining restraint disappeared completely.

So, if purchase price, fuel, insurance and running costs genuinely didn’t matter, which three cars would make it into your garage?

You might not find a flying car or James Bond’s gadget-equipped DB5, but you never know what could turn up in an auction. Visit Copart UK’s Vehicle Finder to explore what’s currently available and start putting together your own dream garage.