Titanium-skinned Vulcano exotic wheels and wows around Cannes.
The French Riviera is a European coastal resort area with views as breathtaking as the real estate prices. It’s a place full of money, high fashion, and exotic cars. In other words, it’s the perfect place for a car like the Icona Vulcano Titanium. Just take a look at the video above and watch it in action in Cannes.
You might be asking, Why? The Vulcano’s not a Ferrari or a Lamborghini? Exactly! That’s what makes the Vulcano Titanium exotic. It’s unusual. It’s unexpected. Let’s face it – even most car fans haven’t heard of it.
The Vulcano Titanium also looks exotic, even if it does bring other more established exotic cars to mind. For instance, look at its face straight on. The headlights and lower front air intakes are reminiscent of the Lexus LFA. The sculpting of the front fenders and sides seems inspired by the Ferrari F12berlinetta.
The amount of power that erupts from the Vulcano qualifies it to be an exotic, too. According to Icona, its supercharged 6.2-liter V8 (from a decidedly unexotic company: GM) cranks out 680 horsepower and 605 lb-ft of torque. Icona can tune it to produce up to 1,200 horsepower.
Perhaps the most exotic thing about the Vulcano Titanium is what it’s made out of. If you haven’t guessed by now, it’s titanium. The strong, lightweight, but difficult to use metal is blended with carbon fiber. Icona says it takes more than 10,000 hours of work to craft the chassis shell. In fact, it once called the process “unrepeatable.”
A car that can’t be made again? Now that’s exotic.
Derek Shiekhi's father raised him on cars. As a boy, Derek accompanied his dad as he bought classics such as post-WWII GM trucks and early Ford Mustang convertibles.
After loving cars for years and getting a bachelor's degree in Business Management, Derek decided to get an associate degree in journalism. His networking put him in contact with the editor of the Austin-American Statesman newspaper, who hired him to write freelance about automotive culture and events in Austin, Texas in 2013. One particular story led to him getting a certificate for learning the foundations of road racing.
While watching TV with his parents one fateful evening, he saw a commercial that changed his life. In it, Jeep touted the Wrangler as the Texas Auto Writers Association's "SUV of Texas." Derek knew he had to join the organization if he was going to advance as an automotive writer. He joined the Texas Auto Writers Association (TAWA) in 2014 and was fortunate to meet several nice people who connected him to the representatives of several automakers and the people who could give him access to press vehicles (the first one he ever got the keys to was a Lexus LX 570). He's now a regular at TAWA's two main events: the Texas Auto Roundup in the spring and the Texas Truck Rodeo in the fall.
Over the past several years, Derek has learned how to drive off-road in various four-wheel-drive SUVs (he even camped out for two nights in a Land Rover), and driven around various tracks in hot hatches, muscle cars, and exotics. Several of his pieces, including his article about the 2015 Ford F-150 being crowned TAWA's 2014 "Truck of Texas" and his review of the Alfa Romeo 4C Spider, have won awards in TAWA's annual Excellence in Craft Competition. Last year, his JK Forum profile of Wagonmaster, a business that restores Jeep Wagoneers, won prizes in TAWA’s signature writing contest and its pickup- and SUV-focused Texas Truck Invitational.
