Car Town: The Cars of Montreal GP Weekend

2022 FORMULA 1 CANADIAN GRAND PRIX.

PHOTOS: jerry gu (@jgucars) | WRITER: KYLE LITHERLAND (@6IXCARS_)

After two years of missing out, Canada finally got its Formula 1 Grand Prix back. Montreal was back to its fast paced, grand prix party lifestyle as the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve returned to life. But the very best of the automotive world isn’t restricted to just the track in Montreal when F1 is in town.

The world of Formula 1 is a truly unique scene and lifestyle and with that comes a lot of extra high profile sightings. The Grand Prix attracts some major celebrities such as Tom Cruise and Gordon Ramsay but it also attracts some of the greatest cars in the world. Yes, from Friday to Sunday during Grand Prix weekend, downtown Montreal is crawling with some of the most amazing cars you will ever see on public roads.

The only way to cap off a great day at the track is to head back to the city and see even more amazing cars and that’s exactly what the PROJECT1 team did! Every corner you turned, the streets were filled with incredible cars.

Another great thing about Montreal is that they are car crazy. If you ever had trouble wondering where to look for cool cars, all you had to do was look for the biggest crowd of people with their phones and cameras pointed in the same direction. There was usually a supercar hidden in the mob.

Of course being at an F1 weekend you obviously see a lot of team alliances as well. While many people are walking around downtown with their favourite team’s apparel on, the cars are also repping their F1 teams as well! A special 1 of 5 Canada edition McLaren 570S, a fleet of Red Bull Mini Coopers and a Mercedes F1 graffiti wrapped AMG GT Black Series are not out of the ordinary in Montreal on Grand Prix weekend.

Of course there are always a few standouts that really need no introduction either. A car that practically had a rolling paparazzi around it for the entire time it was on the road was this incredible Ferrari LaFerrari Aperta. The only way to make the hypercar that is literally named “THE Ferrari” even more special was to give it a detachable top and limit the production to just 150. A true modern classic that will go down in automotive history as one of the all time greats.

And in addition to finding some big name cars, we were given an extra bit of spice (thanks to @itsnelsonvega’s help) by capturing our good friend Hassan (@vintagemotorsportsca) in his Mercedes 300SL chauffeuring the most successful Formula 1 driver of all time around the bustling city! I mean, how much more fitting can it be?!

If you’d like to venture a little outside of the city centre as well, there are plenty of car events you can find throughout the greater Montreal area during Grand Prix weekend. One of the best car meets during the Canadian Grand Prix weekend is the Cars and Coffee hosted by Lamborghini Montreal, which brings out all sorts of different machinery.

The eclectic mix of cars at the event ranged from the latest Lamborghini and Ferrari supercars, to old school muscle cars like a Pontiac GTO and even some rare odd balls such as a Spyker C8. I suppose it was only fitting to have a dutch car in attendance for a Max Verstappen race win!

An absolutely mint condition first generation Murcielago finished in Verde Hydra with the desirable gated manual gearbox was definitely a major standout from the event though. It’s becoming nearly impossible to find one of these that hasn’t been modified, especially in a rare colour such as this one so this was quite special to see this car in this condition.

Yes, the influence of the Formula 1 travelling circus stretches far beyond the race track at every venue it goes to but Montreal is definitely amongst the best. The car culture was alive and well this year and with the F1 calendar finally being back to normal, we can’t wait to see what cars we find roaming the streets of Montreal during next year’s Grand Prix.