Sun Media - Index

Sun Media - diference - Index

Zahir Rana knows exotic cars, since he’s
been driving them for almost 30 years,
and has turned his passion into a thriving
global enterprise.
“I’m finally getting used to the fact that we are
getting known worldwide,” he says.
“People think I live in heaven.”
And Rana agrees, he does.
Five years after starting ZR Auto, a business
that combines his passion for cars with his business
savvy, Rana has hit his stride.
ZR Auto not only sells exotic cars, it’s also wellrespected
for the cars it customizes.
“I take the best cars in the world and with my
exclusive association with Europe’s cutting-edge
after-market developers, I reconsider the world’s
greatest sports cars’ potential,” Rana says.
“Then I rebuild them, the end product being
superior in performance, handling and safety, far
beyond what’s practical for the original manufacturers
to do. We refer to it as ‘Factory to Fantastic.’
“The factories that build these original exotic
cars would love to be able to do what I can do.
“Unfortunately for them, and a blessing for me,
the manufacturers of these beautiful cars are constrained
by policy, tradition, lineage and obligation
to conformity.
“I have none of that to dictate what my imagination
lets me build.”
Rana says each car makeover is “one-of-a-kind.
“You can imagine how my customer feels owning
one of the nicest cars on the planet and knowing
it’s that much better now because we made it
uniquely their own. My customers are genuinely
awed with what we deliver.”
After his clients get an exotic car, they suddenly
feel and behave 20 years younger, he points out.
“These cars give them reason to live longer and
healthier lives,” Rana says. “They start walking
and dressing with more gusto, they’ll start working
out, because when they get out of their Ferrari,
they want to look good because they know
others tend to notice them.
“Right away, my clients are better drivers and
happier as people than they’ve been all their lives.
“I need my clients to enjoy the car as much as I
do, to feel what I feel.”
He proves this by conducting events for his clients
at Race City with professional drivers who
teach them to maximize the potential of their car,
with safety in mind.
He also organizes road trips for his clients, taking
them to luxurious hotels and locations across
North America in their new cars.
Rana not only drives with them, but also has
these trips professionally taped on DVDs his clients
can enjoy when they return home.
ZahirRana
ZR AUTO — FACTORY TO FANTASTIC
33
Incorporating this type of passion into his business
makes the difference, he says.
“Salespeople for many expensive car brands are
business people,” Rana says.
“They’re not the passionate driver that I am. The
owner isn’t as involved and the salespeople rarely
own the model of the car they’re selling, so they
can’t be as passionate — it’s a job.
“Driving an exotic car is not about showing off
as many might imagine. It’s the lifestyle and comradeship
it provides with fellow exotic owners.
“I’ve never been inclined to drive my cars by
myself. It’s always been more enjoyable with a
group of us heading out on the highway.
“You see the other exotics you’re driving with,
you hear them, you see the pure pleasure on the
drivers’ faces. We are all enjoying the same sensations
at that moment and it’s wonderful.
“Everyone is always at the top of their game,
smiling, enjoying life to the fullest on these outings.”
Rana says the trips are not just guys and their
cars; it’s almost always couples.
“That’s what it’s all about, the common ground
of best friends sharing great pleasure.”
For more information, visit www.zrauto.com