Until I sat down to parlez-vous with Gerry Khouri, a Bufori car to me was much like any other hand manufactured car. It was beautiful and sleek and its countenance bore a 1930's look. I failed to recognize that beneath this magnificent exterior was masked a legacy and a dream. A potent blend of the adventurous pioneering spirit of the Khouri brothers. The Khouri's and their Bufori are synonymous to the words, adventure, legacy, daring and perfection. Instead of stopping at the domestic dream of building their first car, they dared to be different. It wasn't enough of a challenge for them to remain at being proud of the first car they ever built with their own blood, sweat and tears in 1983. (After all, its not like everytime you want a new car you just go tinker around in your garage and come up with one.) They had to share the perfection of their dream with the world. Anthony, George and Gerry dared to step up and challenge assembly line cars. They went the mile putting their ideas together. Taking the car apart bolt by bolt, putting it together again, taking it apart again. Over and over they went at it till everything in the car bore their very essence of meticulousness and precision. They searched far and wide for the special crew that bore their similar qualities to conceive, design and produce that trademark Bufori legacy quality and style.

It was an up hill climb but they didn't waver or falter when the going got tough. They just got tougher and tougher with every mistake made. They learned not to quit and stuck to their dream of excellence. You can see their remarkable grit and strength with every sleek curve and in every knob of the car. Today, there are approximately 300 of the outstanding Bufori breed worldwide and the Khouri brothers are not about to pull the handbrakes on their dream. The cars are churned out with the very essence of greatness that first came with the pioneering Bufori car. In the name of a game where assembly line cars are produced in such a huge torrent to answer market needs, they make the consumer step back and take time to think that this is really how a car should be built. With delicate and precise hand made accuracy, with the owner having the car cater to his very lifestyle, so that when the car does roll out of the plant the owner can say, "This is truly my car. Built for me and me alone. No one else would fit into it as wonderfully as I do."

 

If you've come this far into the article I know you're challenging me and Bufori to prove how different Bufori cars really are. Admit it, I peaked your curiosity and you're dying to be that one person sitting in a Bufori car and telling the whole world about yourself. Even if it is just for a few seconds of fame. You may be a tad bit apprehensive about it but you still want to know. So let me amaze you as how I was amazed and mesmerized at the manufacturing plant of a Bufori car. Step Uno, remember the Bufori philosophy and know what you're getting yourself into. "Be daring, Be Different , Be Better and Be Seen". You're not about to just be buying yourself a car, you'll be buying yourself an entirely new lifestyle. A lifestyle that will match the great person that you are. Its just like buying a Rolex. You don't buy a Bufori as a car to drive, you buy one to own one! And because it is a "totally custom fit design" the car speaks better about you than any other fashion accessory ever has and ever hopes to. Its functionality is not just as a car, instead it is made to specifically betray a story about the explorer you are and what you're all about!

The very essence of your core being is present at each stage of the 900 pain staking and meticulous hours spent as an effort to produce a car. Numerically, the car is 50% Khouri perfection and the other 50% you. It matches and challenges your personal touch and eccentricity. With a paint pallete as far and wide as your imagination can take you, the look of the car is entirely in your hands. Custom made to fit you, I can imagine the Khouris coming at you with a tape measurement in hand. Up and down, left and right, from side to side your measurements are taken over and over as a guarantee that you fit like a glove in your own Bufori car. What other cars are truly made for you in the real sense of the word. Even spending millions on a Ferrari doesn't guarantee that it is made for you and you alone. You're won't be the only one in town with a red Ferrari no matter how much you wish the colour was yours alone. Think about it! The seat, the headrest and even the gear shift is measured to afford you specific comfort unique to only your body. Every inch of the car, interior and exterior is moulded and remoulded till it absolutely exudes your personality alone.

At this point, I urge you not to assume that such a great task is a small feat to accomplish. Making a car the Khouri way, is a most laborious effort indeed. Especially since the car is 54% Malaysian content. The components used are novel to only Bufori cars and because these products are produced on such a small scale, the Bufori men have the extra effort of producing these components compliments of in-house talents. Which is a good thing really, because that way, the entire car down to its paint finishing can hold true to 101% Bufori perfection. Bufori goes through all this hassle and out comes......Drum roll please....the result is a detailed perfection to match the rest of the car.

It is truly a remarkable picture indeed that I've painted for you. But knowing what it takes to build a Bufori doesn't mean knowing what it is to own one. Gerry insists that driving a Bufori means treasuring its joy and marvelling in the feel of its drive, its look and its very essence. You've got to be as bold as the Khouris and say "Hey everyone! Look at me and turn green with envy. I'm in a Bufori and you're not!" It sums up to instant recognition from the people around you. They recognize you and they recognize the Bufori style. Bufori cars are user friendly and designed to be smart. It is safe and durable. It may not be tuned for high speed racing but it efficiently provides speed for times when you need it most like when you're taking a corner or force when you're climbing a hill. Its strong kevlar/carbon fiber body has a 99% memory so even if you meet with an accident, refining the car to its pristine condition isn't an issue. For those of you who are not familiar with the material kevlar, it is the same material used when making bullet proof vests.

To the Khouri's its not making the money that counts, it's creating a row of brilliant works of craftsmanship. Gerry works within and amongst his technicians and engineers and teaches them from his own personal experiences of designing and manufacturing the first ever Bufori car. I can't write of any other manufacturer being in a plant and actually telling what more showing his personnel how to put the perfect finish on a car or the correct way to stitch on leather. Everytime someone buys a Bufori they buy a part of Gerry who puts himself into the car by refining it as Salvatore Dali would refine his masterpiece. Bufori customers are privileged to have Gerry leave his immaculate Khouri seal of pristine approval as well as meet the production standards of the countries that the car is manufatured for. The final stage that a Bufori car goes through before it is presented to the owner, is an extensive and stringent set of testing suited for the country which the car will be shipped to. No mistakes and no half baked products. Nothing but the absolute best in every aspect of designing a piece of art. I dare say that if you met with an accident or even dented your Bufori in a slight way, Gerry would feel a small stake go through his heart. It has become their burning desire to produce each car as an eternal and evergreen quality.

The Khouris have come a long way from that first car. Gerry Khouri is now the Managing Director for Malaysian operations that include a showroom, sales and distribution arm for the entire world market. In a month 6 cars are manufactured to completion from its wipers right down to its exquisite interior detailing. There are as many as 30 to 40 of the Bufori experience trapesing and traversing Malaysian roads gracing the places it travels. Putting more color and exuberance our dull tarred roads. Departing from the manufacturing plant, I felt that I've taken the voyage and shared the adventure with the Khouri brothers. I know that just from the way he speaks and from the fire in his eyes, there is an assurance of a legacy of passion for his products. Sir Edmund Hillary climbed Mt. Everest and the Khouris built and continue to build cars the way a car is to be built and continue to remain a market in a class of its own. William Blake wrote a poem once. It was entitled the "The Road Not Taken" ........"And I, I took the road less travelled by......and it has made all the difference." I shudder to imagine being cheated out of the Bufori experience if the Khouris didn't dare to become explorers. And I was privileged enough to meet with an actual explorer and this has made all the difference. Thank you Bufori.