Luxury Cars – Shaquille O’Neal’s car collection is a slam dunk

Luxury Cars – Shaquille O’Neal’s car collection is a slam dunk

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Former basketball MVP Shaquille O’Neal loves his customised cars. It’s best if they’re big, to fit his 7ft 1in frame. So how does he fit in his Smart car? He’s had the roof sawn off. He even had his Ferrari and Lamborghini extended, though how he works the pedals with size 23 shoes is a mystery.

The baller was born in New Jersey on 6 March 1972 and moved with his army sergeant stepfather to military bases in Germany and Texas as a kid. He played for Louisiana State University before joining the NBA and becoming Rookie Of The Year in 1993. Shaq started out with a humble Ford Bronco II, then progressed to Italian exotics and one-of-a-kind luxury cars. Having played for Orlando Magic, the Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat, Phoenix Suns, Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics, he’ll have done some serious cross-country mileage. He called time on his career in 2011 after 19 seasons and has since turned his attention to some rather unusual three- and four-wheelers.

Today he turns 49 years old and the chances are he’s celebrating the occasion in Tony Montana’s Caddy…

Cadillac Eldorado Convertible (1963)

And not just any 1963 Cadillac Eldorado, the one Tony Montana drives in Scarface. It has tiger fur seats and when Michelle Pfeiffer joined Al Pacino on the ostentatious upholstery her character described the car as “looking like somebody’s nightmare”. Shaq is a huge fan of the 1983 movie and bought the car to cruise around his adopted hometown of Orlando.

Ferrari 355 F1 Spider (1998)

How does one of the NBA’s biggest giants fit inside a mid-engined Ferrari? Firstly, the soft top was thrown away and replaced with a custom tonneau cover to make what Shaq calls a “forever convertible”. The factory fuel tank was replaced with a special front-mounted tank to allow the owner more legroom, setting the seats back nine inches. The two-tone black and grey interior was modified with wider aftermarket seats, which The Big Agave had embroidered with his Shaq-Superman logo. A bespoke Alpine sound system was also fitted, so he could listen to his four self-recorded rap albums. The licence plate “Shaq F1” alludes not to his favourite motorsport, but the 355’s Formula One-inspired paddle-shift transmission.

Customised Chevrolet Express G1500 (2001)

A Chevy Express van wouldn’t normally earn the right to appear on one of our celebrity car lists, but this one does because the quilted leather interior was crafted by Louis Vuitton. It sits on lowered air-ride suspension and 20-inch rims. It’s also got a 100-inch HD film projector and an Xbox. Big Aristotle, as he’s sometimes known, liked to be chauffeured in this for many years. He claims his annual mileage led to an eye-watering £16,500 yearly fuel bill.

Customised Cadillac Escalade (2002)

Another “Superman” car, this logo’d up, burgundy-coloured Escalade has been heavily modified to include 26-inch wheels and elongated scissor-style doors. You’ll hear it coming thanks to the eight Audiobahn 12-inch sub-woofers as well as its 5.3-litre V8. Perfect for the Man Of Steel, he bought it after the LA Lakers’ third consecutive championship victory.

Bentley Azure, Arnage and Continental GT (2003)

Like most US sports stars, The Big Shaqtus has several Bentleys, but he actually bought all three of his at the same time. Shaq told Vanity Fair: “I was playing for the Los Angeles Lakers and there’s a Rolls-Royce dealership in Beverly Hills. I always used to ride by it, but one day I just went in. Mike Tyson was in there buying a couple of Bentleys. I had on some shorts and a tank top and flip-flops and I said to the salesman, ‘Sir, how much does this one cost?’ He said, ‘Can you afford it, sonny boy?’ I was so upset that I bought three Bentleys right there on the spot.” Looking back, he wanders if it was a mistake just to prove a point. “A million dollars gone in ten minutes!”

Customised Mercedes S550 Convertible (2006)

This is a quite extraordinary conversion. Shaq bought a 2006 S-Class Merc in pearl white with tan hide. So far, so ordinary. But then he had Benz-whisperers Lorinser take the top off it to create a very long convertible indeed. Lorinser added a muscular body kit with 22-inch rims and fitted suicide rear doors for extra presence. The “Hobo Master” ordered this during his championship-winning season with Miami Heat and this S550 is white hot indeed.

Lamborghini Gallardo (2007)

Italian supercars are rarely built with 7ft 1in clients in mind so, once again, Shaq sought the expertise of a specialist. A specialist in jets, that is. Gaffoglio Family Metalcrafters normally supply Boeing. They added 12 inches to the Gallardo’s wheelbase and extended the doors, roof and side windows.

Customised Dodge Challenger R/T Convertible (2016)

Known as the “Shaqcat”, this 707bhp Hellcat-engined beast includes red LED headlights and special underglow lighting, as well as a convertible roof. Shaq also applied Hemi decals to the body to make it look like a classic Plymouth Barracuda. This is the ideal car for doing doughnuts, and Shaq loves doughnuts so much he bought a Krispy Kreme franchise in Atlanta.

Polaris Slingshot (2017)

The “Sling-Shaq” is a three-wheel open-air roadster that O’Neal has, like almost everything else in his garage, had heavily customised to include four seats and an 18-speaker sound system. Manufactured in Alabama, there’s no roof and no doors, just a small windshield. It’s powered by a 173bhp 2.4 litre four-cylinder GM Ecotec and weighs less than 800kg, meaning it hits 60mph in under five seconds.

Vanderhall Venice Roadster (2018)

Having caught the bug for no-frills three-wheeled motoring, Shaq bought a Vanderhall Venice. Actors Jeremy Renner and Jamie Foxx are Venice owners, too. Built in Utah, this is, essentially, America’s answer to the Morgan. Once again, the sports star had the chassis extended, but despite the extra kerb weight and sizeable payload, the 1.4-litre turbocharged engine is able to give a spirited ride.

Vaydor (2018)

Another very unusual machine, the Vaydor is a 2003-2007 Infiniti G35 Coupé with an aftermarket shell that makes it unrecognisable. The Carolina Vaydor body kit first appeared in 2013 and a Vaydor featured in the 2016 DC movie Suicide Squad being driven by The Joker. Despite the expensive suit and some weight saving, it’s still powered by the G35’s Nissan-built 3.5-litre V6, so not really supercar performance. Still, it helps The Big Daddy stand out – like he doesn’t already.

Rolls-Royce Cullinan (2020)

Shaq’s latest daily driver is bespoke from birth. This punctiliously crafted £265,000 All-Terrain High-Bodied Car (Rolls doesn’t like to call it an SUV) is exactly what you’d expect a cultural icon worth £290 million to cruise around in. It’s not the b-baller’s first Rolls, he’s owned a four-door Phantom and a Phantom Drophead previously. The V12 4×4 is named after the largest uncut diamond ever discovered, but not everyone thinks it’s sparkling. Top Gear’s Chris Harris savaged the car on the BBC, describing it as “utterly hideous to look at”.

Nikola Badger (2021)

Nicknamed “The Diesel”, among so many other monikers, Shaq is about to go electric. He’s ordered the curiously named Nikola Badger, a hydrogen fuel cell electric hybrid pick-up truck, which will be produced in Arizona from later this year and will do 0-60mph in 2.9 seconds thanks to its jaw-dropping 906bhp output. With 980lb ft of torque, Honey Badger might be a more apt soubriquet. We can’t wait to see how he customises it.

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