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Skip the rental car counter: This clever app will put you behind the wheel of a classic ride on your next vacation. 

The first and most enduring impression while getting close to the Bronco is one of rugged utility. The doors open and latch with a serious mechanical clunk, the kind that requires a level of force indifferent to mechanical sympathy. 

That eagerly anticipated road trip is approaching. The playlist is made, the accommodation is booked and you’re ready to hit the open road. But why take your own familiar car when you can easily rent a stunning, vintage collectible with the touch of a button? 

Feel like snagging a mint 1971 Ferrari Daytona Spider for the day? How about a spotless 1969 Chevrolet Camaro SS?

DriveShare by Hagerty is a fairly new way of experiencing the joys of a classic car. Perhaps the easiest way to describe it without banging on and on and on, is if you just imagine a sort of Airbnb for classic cars. 

DriveShare by Hagerty appears on Michigan's local Fox 2 News Detroit.

DriveShare by Hagerty offered opportunities for enthusiasts to get behind the wheel of four choice classic cars: a 1968 Ford Mustang California Special, ‘66 Mustang convertible, a sporty five-speed manual ‘76 Fiat Spider Pininfarina, and a slick silver ‘70 Mercedes-Benz 280SL convertible. After a cruise around the convention center, the participant’s faces beamed with delight, and those who never owned a classic left with a  budding addiction.

I drove this Alfa Montreal using HAGERTY's DriveShare service and so can you!

This 1974 Alfa Romeo Montreal is an immaculately restored, example with low miles and a beautiful finish inside and out. The Montreal was produced from 1970-1977, designed by Marcello Gandini for Studio Bertone. Gandini had previously designed the Lamborghini Miura, and some crossover styling details are apparent both from outside, and especially under the drivers seat. Under the clamshell hood is a fuel-injected, four-cam 2.6L V8 making a supposed 200 horsepower, but we suspect actually it produces quite a bit more, along with one of the most fantastic engine notes we've ever heard and a stratospheric-for-the-time 7,000 RPM redline. 

I rented the car via Hagerty DriveShare in Scottsdale, Arizona, where I was greeted by Riley, the owner. He’s a young, spritely looking guy, someone you wouldn’t peg as a driver of an aging British luxury sedan. “Oh, I’ve had about five of these things,” he says nonchalantly. We walk over to the car, parked amidst hordes of late-model used vehicles at the dealership where he works, and I immediately understand. Good lord, this thing oozes cool.

DriveShare’s goal is simple: connect owners of the world’s most sought-after cars with prospective non-owners who would very much like to drive said cars. For most owners, their exotic cars are likely to sit idle far more than they’re actually driven. Add to that the fact there are far more car enthusiasts who’d love to drive an exotic car than the number of drivers who actually own one.

These days, it seems like there’s always some new “Uber but for [blank]” or “AirBnB but for [blank]” service popping up. Most of them sound pretty dumb and useless. But Hagerty’s new car rental service actually sounds pretty cool. Yes, it’s pretty much Turo for classic cars, but at least in the Los Angeles area, Turo doesn’t list any classics. And if we’re going to rent someone’s privately owned car for a few days, we’d much rather take a spin in a BMW 2002 than in a 2002 BMW.

Collectible vehicle insurer Hagerty has acquired the Classics&Exotics peer-to-peer online vehicle sharing service, more or less an Airbnb for classic and exotic cars, and is relaunching it as DriveShare by Hagerty.

If it’s a struggle to decide which exotic vehicle from your extensive collection to drive each day, then Hagerty's new DriveShare service may be of little interest. For the automotive-minded masses without a garage full of cars, however, it’s a sure bet to be bookmarked. Sort of like Airbnb for cars (or, more precisely, a luxe version of Turo), the service pairs qualified drivers (30 years of age or older) with coveted cars while providing the owner of each dream machine with another income stream.

Want to drive a 1937 Packard this weekend? A 1973 VW van? A 1931 Model A? DriveShare has your car. The new company, modeling itself as the "Airbnb of vintage cars,” is now offering a peer-to-peer rental service.

Using a database of more than 1 million vehicles insured by parent company Hagerty, the country’s leader in vintage vehicle insurance, the just-launched DriveShare already has a menu of 300 tasty offerings.

The current world of peer-to-peer apps allowing us to send money and snippets of our lives to each other with a few strokes of the thumb is the same technological surge that brought us the convenience of things like AirBnB and Turo, the car-sharing service that allows individuals to rent their rides to each other while the company skims a bit of the price to provide the parties with insurance.

Hagerty, the world's largest network for people who love cars and collectible vehicles, today announced it has acquired Classics&Exotics, the nation's only peer-to-peer online marketplace for classic cars, and relaunched it as DriveShare by Hagerty.

"DriveShare gives people an easy way to get behind the wheel of cars they've always wanted to drive," said McKeel Hagerty, CEO of Hagerty. "Our goal is to provide a common platform that connects enthusiasts and owners to expand the community of people who love cars."

For a car collector, a barn find is basically like hitting the automotive jackpot. (A barn find is a term for a car that’s been sitting idle and unloved until it is rediscovered.) But even collector cars that are well tended to don’t often get driven enough. To keep an old car sharp, it needs to be taken out of the garage and put on the road. For collectors that can’t find the time, there’s a new solution.

Hagerty, a Michigan-based insurer that specializes in classic cars, is going to jump start its entry through its purchase of Classics&Exotics, which it is renaming DriveShare. Several hundred cars ranging from Ford Model A to a new Lamborghini Aventador are going to be available in dozens of U.S

Classic-car ownership is one of those things that sounds awesome in principle, but the reality of it is more complicated. Classics require much more upkeep, maintenance costs can be high, and you need a garage to keep it in and work on it — something that's a rarity out where I live in Los Angeles.

But now, for those who want the classic-car driving experience without the pitfalls of ownership, there's a new option. Hagerty is better known as a magazine and insurer of classic cars and other vehicles, but it is now moving into the peer-to-peer car-rental space with their acquisition of Classics&Exotics, which they are renaming DriveShare.

Spending time driving the car of your dreams is easier said than done. Hertz doesn’t rent a 1970 Ford Mustang, and odds are your dream car isn’t a beige Chrysler 200 that smells like the coffee the last renter spilled in the center console. Insurance provider Hagerty has launched a peer-to-peer platform named DriveShare to let enthusiasts rent a classic or exotic car for special events, or just to cruise around in.

Hagerty, the world's largest network for people who love cars and collectible vehicles, today announced it has acquired Classics&Exotics, the nation's only peer-to-peer online marketplace for classic cars, and relaunched it as DriveShare by Hagerty.

Say you have a ’57 Chevy. Sky blue and white. It’s a beauty. But it sits in your garage most of the year. That’s where DriveShare comes in. Backed by Hagerty, the collectible car insurance company, this peer-to-peer rental service lets owners rent their classic and exotic rides.

Autumn is upon us, and with it, some of the best weather for driving and enjoying classic cars. The scorching days of summer, along with the attendant dangers of overheated engines and sunburns, are behind us. Frozen winter days, when road salt would do little to enhance a classic car's value, are, hopefully, still a distant headache.

From homes, to boats, to garage spaces, the “sharing economy” is opening opportunities for renters and rentees in a variety of markets. Add classic and exotic cars to the list, as Classics&Exotics Inc., based on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, aims to pair car owners with pre-qualified drivers, potentially netting additional income for the former while broadening access to the old car hobby.

It's happened to all of us. Maybe it was at a car show or while walking somewhere on a beautiful day. An exotic or classic car catches your eye. Suddenly, you imagine yourself behind the wheel, reveling in the moment. Then, reality intrudes. You have kids, a mortgage, credit card debt and college bills. You have too many responsibilities and not enough dough.

This is car sharing with a twist: instead of scrolling for someone's Toyota Camry or Volkswagen Jetta, you will be deciding between vintage offerings ranging from a 1971 Mini Cooper S to a 1984 Ferrari 308. Described as the first peer-to-peer enthusiast vehicle rental platform (say that 10 times fast), Classics&Exotics connects car owners with drivers. The database already has more than 100 cars and 1000 renters, mostly clustered in the Northeast, but they're expanding nationwide this spring. Each rental includes insurance protection and full-service roadside assistance designed specifically for classic and exotic cars.

So you’re going to be sightseeing in the nation’s capital and you want to be seen as well as see the sights. As of this month, you can rent a 1973 Steyre Puch Pinzgauer 712M to carry you and as many as 13 friends and relatives on your tour.

Don’t need a retired Swiss military troop transport? Well, there are 100 other collector vehicles — and the list is growing weekly — available across the country from Classics&Exotics, a sort of Airbnb created to help classic car owners benefit by renting out their vehicles while also getting potential newcomers to the hobby behind the wheel.

Do you ever catch a glimpse of a ’64 Ford Thunderbird going by – or a ’79 Chevy Camaro, or a ’59 Cadillac – and just drool with envy? How would you like to be the one driving that sweet ride? Classic cars are a pleasure to own and a thrill to drive, and getting behind the wheel of one of them is easier than you might think.

Owners of classic cars are taking their vehicles in a new direction, by renting them out to pleasure-seekers, vacationers, businesspeople, wedding planners, movie companies and the like, and it’s becoming a lucrative business for both the car owners and the specialty classic car rental companies they go through.

Peter Zawadzki, CEO and Co-Founder of Classics & Exotics Inc., in Sandwich, has been in the classic car industry nearly his entire life. It started as his passion and has now become his business, and he couldn’t be happier. His classic car rental company launches this fall. 

This fall the entrepreneurs behind the Cape Cod-based Classics&Exotics will launch their marketplace for classic car owners and renters, becoming the first to market, they claim, with what amounts to an Airbnb for car rentals.

Co-founder Peter Zawadzki says it’s a natural progression from the rental property listings of Airbnb and the rental network of Boatbound.

“I was a Boatbound customer, renting my boat very successfully,” he says. “I thought, why not rent my classic cars?” Now his small team is set to debut in Detroit and Arizona, with a New England rollout due in spring. They’re signing up car collectors who are willing to rent their vehicles to “prescreened, highly qualified” renters.

New age sports cars are flashy and sleek but there is something so romantic, vintage and rustic about classic and exotic cars. These old age heroes have style, debonair and all the good looks. Honestly, I would surely fall head over heels for the guy who picked me up on our first date in a classic 1967 Chevy Impala or a Ford Mustang than a super stretched out limousine.

That’s the idea behind Classics&Exotics Inc., an online platform that connects passionate owners of expensive vintage and high-end cars with people who would love the chance to drive them.Peter Zawadzki and Michael Sakkas, both Sandwich residents, founded the company just last year.

But their concept was so impressive that, in March, they were one of 10 companies selected from around the world for the inaugural class of Techstars Mobility, driven by Detroit, an investment and mentoring program focused on supporting emerging businesses that will transform the transportation industry.

Imagine having to pitch your dream business to an investor. You come up with your plan, work on your speech, check the numbers, try to anticipate every question. Then, imagine having to do it 10 times. Every day. For the majority of a whole summer, hundreds of miles away from your family. 

That's what Peter Zawadzki and Michael Sakkas, founders of Classics&Exotics Inc., did this summer as part of an investment and mentoring program — Techstars — focused on supporting emerging businesses that will transform the transportation industry.

Ford-backed Techstars Mobility, driven by Detroit, today announces 10 startup companies it will support through September with funding and business development training as they bring to life future mobility and transportation solutions.

“Techstars Mobility pays forward the startup legacy of Ford Motor Company by supporting these smart and ambitious inventors, developers and thinkers who are creating innovative solutions to a wide range of future mobility challenges,” said Bill Ford, executive chairman, Ford Motor Company.

Today, I’m excited to announce the first class of Techstars Mobility, driven by Detroit. These 10 companies are excellent representatives of the future of mobility. They each demonstrate technologies addressing the movement of people, goods, and services.To help us create a world-class mobility program, we’ve partnered with six global corporations with deep mobility expertise. These partners include Ford Motor Company, Magna International, Verizon Telematics, Dana Holding Corporation, Honda R&D Americas, and McDonald’s. Additionally, we have over 150 expert mentors and investors helping our first class of 10 startups.