Story By: Reynald Fries
Photography By: Andrew Link
When a custom-car shop isn’t limited to one specialty, the staff needs to have a solid understanding of what a vehicle should look like to meet the standards appropriate for its culture. The off-road truck and SUV community knows there’s more to it than just jacking up a truck on 40-inch mud tires. Similarly, a custom streetcar is more than just wheels and a paint job. Each genre has artistic standards. There’s an artistry in seeing what differentiates a classy custom car from a distasteful attempt at being one. It takes a skillful mind to recognize proper stance, fitment and overall look of a car. Even more rare, though, is an individual who can understand and appreciate all genres of modified cars. This cross-cultural love of cars is the core of Exclusive Motoring’s work ethic.
David Montoto, general manager at Exclusive, laughed at the question of what they specialize in and responded, “Everything under the sun.” And he wasn’t kidding. The Miami shop is ready to do everything from auto-body collision repair to body kits and luxury interiors. But what’s most intriguing is their ability to understand what’s cool and classy through the offroad lens, as well as the luxury sedan lens, the exotic supercar lens and, amazingly, just about every other car culture there is (including motorcyles and three-wheelers). David and the shop owner, Roly Ramirez, have been customizing cars for decades, so although the shop itself is only 10 years old, the crew has had an established clientele since the beginning. And that clientele is a direct reflection of their genuine understanding of different cars.
It’s not unusual to walk into Exclusive and see a supercharged, lifted Ford truck getting upgraded to tackle all-terrain—alongside a Gallardo on aftermarket wheels getting a custom suspension installed, a Lexus getting suicide doors and a ruby-metallic paint job, and a limo conversion all at once. The reason the customers are so diverse is because the Exclusive crew has a very unique skill set: seeing the bigger picture and never zooming into one custom-car genre on a micro level. This ability to recognize artistry above a single niche earned them respect as one of the most reputable shops in the Miami area.
“Everybody comes in with these eccentric ideas, and we try to put it down on paper for them. We try to make everything happen,” David explains. By seriously respecting each individual’s opinions on how they want their ride to look and perform, Roly’s staff has developed a reputation so well respected that they’ve earned loyal customers like Lil Wayne, Flo Rida and Timbaland as well as professional athletes like Chris Johnson, Chris Andersen and Udonis Haslem.
Exclusive Motoring employees are a rare breed, capable of speaking multiple languages in the custom-car world. This gives them a grander landscape of opportunities in a world with so many opposing car cultures, as they are the common denominator in the bigger picture. They’ve realized that it’s disadvantageous for anyone to hate on a different car culture. So by accommodating the needs of the slammed-coupe lover with equal seriousness and respect as the offroad-pickup driver, Exclusive has earned universal respect that everyone can learn a lesson from.
