Bufori is a brand of hand-built automobiles inspired by American 1930s

coupes A coupe or coupé (, ) is a passenger car with a sloping or truncated rear roofline and two doors. The term ''coupé'' was first applied to horse-drawn carriages for two passengers without rear-facing seats. It comes from the French past parti ...

. The company is owned by three Australian Lebanese brothers Anthony, George and Gerry Khouri. In 1986, Gerry Khouri began to build three special sports cars in his garage, one each for the three brothers, which led to the formation of the company. The name ''Bufori'' is an

acronym An acronym is a word or name formed from the initial components of a longer name or phrase. Acronyms are usually formed from the initial letters of words, as in ''NATO'' (''North Atlantic Treaty Organization''), but sometimes use syllables, as ...

that stands for B – Beautiful, U – Unique, F – Funtastic, O – Original, R – Romantic, I – Irresistible. The Bufori Motor Car Company Pty. Ltd. is a proprietary company limited by shares and registered in Australia, as is the Bufori Motor Car Company (M) Sdn. Bhd. in

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

. Originally, all of the manufacturing and sales operations were conducted in Australia, but in 1998 full production moved to new facilities in

Kepong Kepong is a town in northern Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The name is a Malay word meaning "Enclose" or "Surround", as the town is surrounded by a mountain range. Places of interest * FRIM Kepong (Forest Research Institute Malaysia) * Temasek Pew ...

, a suburb of

Kuala Lumpur , anthem = ''Maju dan Sejahtera'' , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , sub ...

, in Malaysia. The production facility in Kuala Lumpur has an installed capacity of 300 vehicles per year, and the company employs 108

craftsmen Craftsman may refer to: A profession *Artisan, a skilled manual worker who makes items that may be functional or strictly decorative * Master craftsman, an artisan who has achieved such a standard that he may establish his own workshop and take ...

. Each unit is built by hand using traditional techniques in a 25-step production process. The body of a Bufori is made out of

carbon fibre Carbon fiber-reinforced polymers (American English), carbon-fibre-reinforced polymers (Commonwealth English), carbon-fiber-reinforced plastics, carbon-fiber reinforced-thermoplastic (CFRP, CRP, CFRTP), also known as carbon fiber, carbon compo ...

and

Kevlar Kevlar (para-aramid) is a strong, heat-resistant synthetic fiber, related to other aramids such as Nomex and Technora. Developed by Stephanie Kwolek at DuPont in 1965, the high-strength material was first used commercially in the early 1970s a ...

composite material, which is light and ultra-strong. Every Bufori is

made to order Build to Order (BTO: sometimes referred to as Make to Order or Made to Order (MTO)) is a production approach where products are not built until a confirmed order for products is received. Thus, the end consumer determines the time and number of ...

and can be customised according to the owner's wishes. The Bufori MKI, MKII and MKIII La Joya are displayed at the Malaysian National Automotive Museum based at the

Sepang International Circuit The Sepang International Circuit ( ms, Litar Antarabangsa Sepang) is a motorsport race track in Sepang, Selangor, Malaysia. It is located approximately south of Kuala Lumpur, and close to Kuala Lumpur International Airport. It hosted the Fo ...

since 2003.

Current models

Bufori Geneva (2010 – present)

A four-door car defined as a "Luxury Saloon", which was introduced at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show (hence its name). It features a 6.1L Chrysler

V8 engine A V8 engine is an eight-cylinder piston engine in which two banks of four cylinders share a common crankshaft and are arranged in a V configuration. The first V8 engine was produced by the French Antoinette company in 1904, developed and u ...

producing 430 hp. The

powertrain A drivetrain (also frequently spelled as drive train or sometimes drive-train) is the group of components that deliver mechanical power from the prime mover to the driven components. In automotive engineering, the drivetrain is the components o ...

was later on updated to a 6.4L V8 producing 470 hp. The interior of the car is highly customisable. The rear centre console can accommodate an automatic

coffee machine A coffeemaker, coffee maker or coffee machine is a cooking appliance used to brew coffee. While there are many different types of coffeemakers the two most common brewing principles use gravity or pressure to move hot water through coffee gr ...

, a Chinese

tea set Pink Floyd are an English rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experimentation, philosophical lyrics and ...

with instant boiling water, a fridge, a cigar

humidor A humidor is a humidity-controlled box or room used primarily for storing cigars, cigarettes, cannabis, or pipe tobacco. Either too much or too little humidity can be harmful to tobacco products; a humidor's primary function is to maintain a ste ...

or a

mini-bar A minibar is a small refrigerator, typically an absorption refrigerator, in a hotel room or cruise ship stateroom. The hotel staff fill it with drinks and snacks for the guest to purchase during their stay. It is stocked with a precise invento ...

. The rear lounge seats are electrically adjustable and feature heating & cooling as well as a pneumatic massage device. The seatback trays are electrically actuated. The rear doors are rear-hinged (so-called " coach doors") and can be closed electrically by the press of a button. The car is also equipped with a thermal night-vision camera and an adjustable

air suspension Air suspension is a type of vehicle suspension powered by an electric or engine-driven air pump or compressor. This compressor pumps the air into a flexible bellows, usually made from textile-reinforced rubber. Unlike hydropneumatic suspension, ...

Bufori BMS R1 (2009 – present)

The Bufori BMS R1 is the race derivative of the Bufori CS road car that is still to be launched. The car is a joint effort between Bufori Motor Sports (BMS) and Axle Motorsports. The BMS R1 made its global racing debut at the 2009

Macau Grand Prix The Macau Grand Prix ( pt, Grande Prémio de Macau; ) is a motorsport road race for automobiles and motorcycles held annually in Macau. It is the only street circuit racing event in which both cars and motorcycles participate, and one of onl ...

with Alex Yoong as its driver.

Bufori La Joya (2004 – present)

Two-seat coupe; 2.7L, V6, EFI, quad cam,

water-cooled Cooling tower and water discharge of a nuclear power plant Water cooling is a method of heat removal from components and industrial equipment. Evaporative cooling using water is often more efficient than air cooling. Water is inexpensive and no ...

, mid-mounted engine;

rear wheel drive Rear-wheel drive (RWD) is a form of engine and transmission layout used in motor vehicles, in which the engine drives the rear wheels only. Until the late 20th century, rear-wheel drive was the most common configuration for cars. Most rear-wheel ...

; tiptronic transmission, 4-wheel independent suspension,

Carbon Fibre Carbon fiber-reinforced polymers (American English), carbon-fibre-reinforced polymers (Commonwealth English), carbon-fiber-reinforced plastics, carbon-fiber reinforced-thermoplastic (CFRP, CRP, CFRTP), also known as carbon fiber, carbon compo ...

and

composite body,

spaceframe In architecture and structural engineering, a space frame or space structure ( 3D truss) is a rigid, lightweight, truss-like structure constructed from interlocking struts in a geometric pattern. Space frames can be used to span large areas with ...

chassis, ABS, EBD,

traction control A traction control system (TCS), also known as ASR (from german: Antriebsschlupfregelung, lit=drive slippage regulation), is typically (but not necessarily) a secondary function of the electronic stability control (ESC) on production motor vehicle ...

cruise control Cruise control (also known as speed control, cruise command, autocruise, or tempomat) is a system that automatically controls the speed of a motor vehicle. The system is a servomechanism that takes over the throttle of the car to maintain a s ...

Bluetooth Bluetooth is a short-range wireless technology standard that is used for exchanging data between fixed and mobile devices over short distances and building personal area networks (PANs). In the most widely used mode, transmission power is limi ...

set,

tyre pressure monitoring system A tire-pressure monitoring system (TPMS) monitors the air pressure inside the pneumatic tires on vehicles. A TPMS reports real-time tire-pressure information to the driver, using either a gauge, a pictogram display, or a simple low-pressure wa ...

Former models

Bufori MK II – Series 1 and Series 2 (1992–2003)

Two- and 2+2-seat

convertible A convertible or cabriolet () is a passenger car that can be driven with or without a roof in place. The methods of retracting and storing the roof vary among eras and manufacturers. A convertible car's design allows an open-air driving expe ...

with soft top or removable hard top; 1.8 – 2.2L, 4

cylinder A cylinder (from ) has traditionally been a three-dimensional solid, one of the most basic of curvilinear geometric shapes. In elementary geometry, it is considered a prism with a circle as its base. A cylinder may also be defined as an infin ...

DOHC An overhead camshaft (OHC) engine is a piston engine where the camshaft is located in the cylinder head above the combustion chamber. This contrasts with earlier overhead valve engines (OHV), where the camshaft is located below the combustion cha ...

, EFI,

, rear-mounted Subaru

boxer engine A flat engine is a piston engine where the cylinders are located on either side of a central crankshaft. Flat engines are also known as horizontally opposed engines, however this is distinct from the less common opposed-piston engine design, wh ...

;

; automatic or

manual transmission A manual transmission (MT), also known as manual gearbox, standard transmission (in Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States), or stick shift (in the United States), is a multi-speed motor vehicle transmission system, where gear change ...

; 4-wheel independent suspension.

Bufori V6i (1992–1994)

2+2-seat

with retractable soft top; 3.8L,

Buick V6 The Buick V6, popularly referred to as the 3800 in its later incarnations, originally and initially marketed as ''Fireball'' at its introduction in 1962, was a large V6 engine used by General Motors. The block is made of cast iron and all use tw ...

, EFI,

, front-mounted engine;

; 4-wheel independent suspension.

Bufori MK I (1988–1992)

Two-seat

with soft top; 1.6 – 2.1L, 4

, rear-mounted, twin carb,

air-cooled Air-cooled engines rely on the circulation of air directly over heat dissipation fins or hot areas of the engine to cool them in order to keep the engine within operating temperatures. In all combustion engines, a great percentage of the heat ge ...

, rear-mounted boxer engine;

rear-wheel drive Rear-wheel drive (RWD) is a form of engine and transmission layout used in motor vehicles, in which the engine drives the rear wheels only. Until the late 20th century, rear-wheel drive was the most common configuration for cars. Most rear-wheel ...

, automatic or

; 4-wheel independent suspension.

Bufori Madison (1986–1988)

Two-seat

with soft top; 1.6L, 4

, rear-mounted,

;

; 4-wheel independent suspension.

Current models

Bufori Geneva (2010 – present)

Bufori BMS R1 (2009 – present)

Bufori La Joya (2004 – present)

Former models

Bufori MK II – Series 1 and Series 2 (1992–2003)

Bufori V6i (1992–1994)

Bufori MK I (1988–1992)

Bufori Madison (1986–1988)

References

See also