duPont REGISTRY June 2022

Sport utility vehicles are not a fad. In fact, you know a trend has staying power when the world’s most prestigious brands get involved. In the last five years or so, almost every luxury automotive brand has either debuted an SUV or announced that one is imminent. Credit Porsche for getting the ball rolling with the Cayenne, its luxury high performance SUV that both angered purists on arrival yet supplied the coin to keep the brand’s sports cars afloat.

The same is true of this month’s cover car, the Lotus Eletre, an all-electric SUV with hints of hypercar performance that the Norfolk-based automaker hopes will fund the rest of its lineup in years to come.

The extreme end of the luxury SUV spectrum is occupied by the Rolls-Royce Cullinan, which takes Phantom-level amenities anywhere you want to go. On page 38, we show you what off-roading is like with a Rolls (in a word: nerve-racking). Another new high-end SUV is the DBX by Aston Martin, which recently unveiled a hopped- up version called the DBX707. While it’s true this supercar-on-stilts won’t get you as far into no man’s land as a Jeep, I’ll happily trade the latter’s ability to penetrate uncharted territory for the former’s cachet and crazy performance. Read why on page 21.

There’s also nothing wrong with looking sharp while venturing off the pavement with your SUV, so we’ve assembled a full selection of outdoor adventure watches (page 68). Each is more durable than the average timepiece and comes with more functionality than a gold-plated multi-tool.

If your home’s big enough, you can lose yourself in nature without ever leaving the property. Check out Black Mountain Ranch on page 80, one of the finest properties on the market in California. The $100 million asking price includes 3,600 acres in beautiful
Ojai with 35 miles of private trails, a fishing lake, and a shooting range — plus enough outbuildings to start your own municipality.

And lastly, if being outdoorsy, to you, just means enjoying some fresh air, an afternoon on the golf course is a great way to get some sun. Naturally, I like my clubs to perform as well as my car. If you do, too, you’ll want to scope out the latest generation of 0311s from Arizona-based PXG on page 73.

What these high-performance, luxury, and exotic SUVs have wrought is the ability to meet Mother Nature on your own terms, rather than hers.

So, who’s up for an excursion?