If you’ve ever wondered what happens when Dubai, Porsche, and 30,000+ petrolheads collide over a weekend, Icons of Porsche 2025 had your answer: chaos, culture, collectibles, and a thousand exhaust notes echoing through Dubai’s Design District. In addition to being bigger than before, the fifth edition felt like the year Porsche decided to make Dubai its unofficial campus.
Tickets were sold out before the gates even opened — a familiar theme for Icons now. Enthusiasts, collectors, and people who simply enjoy standing dangerously close to very expensive machinery filled the 58,000 sqm festival ground. More than 1,000 Porsches were displayed, creating a rolling museum with everything from air-cooled icons, to the 16 Porsche Carrera GTs, and futuristic EV hyper SUVs.
Communities And A GCC-Wide Porsche Road Trip
The weekend kicked off with an Abu Dhabi to Dubai convoy led by Porsche Centre Abu Dhabi & Al Ain. And because this is the GCC, it wasn’t just a UAE thing. Porsche owners from Saudi Arabia, Oman, Bahrain, Qatar, and Kuwait also turned the highway into a rolling Porsche parade. With more than 50 Porsche clubs and communities flying in, Icons almost felt like a global Porsche migration season.
The Cayenne Electric: Stuttgart’s New Heavyweight Arrives
The biggest headline of Icons 2025 was the public premiere of the all-new Porsche Cayenne Electric, revealed in the metal just hours after its private media preview. Porsche even tested it on the Dubai dunes beforehand, because nothing says “Middle East debut” like sending an EV sideways across sand dunes.
The numbers were the fuel for endless enthusiast debates on-site:
- Up to 1,141hp and 1,500Nm in the Turbo Electric, making it Porsche’s most powerful production car ever.
- 0–100 km/h in 2.4seconds. In a family SUV. Mad.
- Up to 642km WLTP range
- A new digital cockpit with a 14.5-inch Flow Display, 10.9-inch passenger screen, AR HUD, and a redesigned dash
And while the spotlight was on the future, one story reminded everyone why Porsche’s past still hits hard: adventurer Maeto Moussaoui drove his bone-stock first-gen Cayenne a staggering 34,000 km across the Middle East and Europe, taking its total mileage to 310,000 kilometres. He even took it around the Nürburgring on the way back. That’s loyalty. And also proof of the original Cayenne’s reliability.
Racecar Royalty & The Wildest One-Offs
This year’s Raceborn district felt like Stuttgart emptied its secret warehouse. The headliner was the Porsche 963 RSP, a one-off road-going interpretation of the LMDh prototype built originally for Roger Penske’s personal collection. This is a Le Mans weapon, but somehow legal-ish.
In addition, to honour 50 years of Lechner Racing, three monsters joined the display:
- A Porsche 962 C in full retro livery
- A limited 911 GT3 R rennsport (1 of 77)
- And a 911 GT3 Cup celebrating Porsche Carrera Cup Middle East
Sonderwunsch also came in swinging, showcasing bespoke Panameras, recommissioned Cayennes, and more paint-to-sample shades than an art supply store.
Track Weapon Unleashed: The 911 GT3 Manthey Kit
For laptime nerds and those who think the Nurburgring is heaven on earth, the new 911 GT3 Manthey Kit was the real candy. With 540kg of downforce at 285km/h, a wing big enough to shade half of D3, revised aero surfaces, and four-way adjustable coilovers, it’s properly kittted out. Oh, Porsche also clocked a 6:52.981 lap around the Nürburgring. On a damp track!
Manthey even brought the full “influencer spec” options: illuminated sills, aerodiscs, tow straps, and carbon bits. The only thing it doesn’t include is the driving talent. You’ll need to bring that yourself.
RM Sotheby’s Stole Hearts Before Stealing Wallets
Two ultra-rare icons were showcased ahead of RM Sothebys’ December auction:
- A 993 Carrera RS with just 48,229 km
- A 918 Spyder Weissach that looked like it time-travelled from 2035
The “Please Do Not Drool” sign didn’t really work.
Icons 2025 Sets a New Benchmark
With bigger crowds, bigger reveals, wilder builds, more exotic motorsport history showcases, and an EV Cayenne that stole the show, Icons of Porsche 2025 redefined what a car festival in the Middle East can be. And knowing Porsche, Stuttgart is already plotting to outdo it in 2026.
