New cars are more expensive than ever, with average prices in the US exceeding $50,000 for the first time in September, up 3.6% from 2024, according to auto research company Kelley Blue Book. Luxury cars are pushing that growth, according to KBB. The average price of a vehicle from Porsche AG is $115,407, the highest of any standard-production automaker. A Ferrari, on average, costs four times that amount.

But luxury is slippery to define when you can spend $42,000 on a Mercedes-Benz or $114,000 on a Ford pickup truck. In a world of tailored cashmere socks and gold-plated toothbrushes marketed as luxury experiences, the term has become so ubiquitous, it has almost lost all meaning.

For cars, there’s no correlation between luxury and price; it’s not strictly about sheer horsepower or loads of carbon fiber. So I spoke with executives at brands including Bentley, Bugatti, BMW, Pagani and Rolls-Royce to hear how they define luxury in the modern age.

What became clear is that it encompasses more than former glory, as once-prestigious brands like Maserati descend into poor resale values and Jaguar remains comatose. It’s more than expensive materials, too, since advanced software often confers more status than fancy trim or carpeting. And it’s not necessarily outré design, even if quiet luxury is already a thing of the past. Instead, car manufacturers are working hard to create tight-knit communities among their buyers and collectors, catering to their personal preferences and needs during every interaction and developing increasingly advanced ways to customize vehicles to reflect customers’ exact personal taste.

For many car buyers, luxury is about the one thing you can’t buy: minutes on the clock.

“Luxury is how we deal with your time,” says Adrian van Hooydonk, design director of BMW Group. It’s “the automaker being respectful of people’s time, and we want to make sure that the time spent in our product is rewarding.”

Others say luxury is about providing casual access to company leadership and craftspeople, allowing a familiarity that makes customers feel welcome whenever they’re on-site. “We talk to them all the time,” says Christopher Pagani, head of marketing at Pagani and son of the founder. (It’s admittedly easier for the ultra-high-end automakers to stay in touch with customers. Pagani has made roughly 600 cars since Horacio Pagani opened up shop in 1992.)

The connection extends to potential clients. Ferrari wrote the blueprint on how to generate more admirers than owners, keeping production limited and making existing customers wait years for the privilege of buying a special model. Porsche has reached for that status as well, generating heat around its most anticipated models, which command three times their sticker prices at dealerships in the most aggressive markets.

This aspect of luxury is all about fostering enthusiasm, passion and aspiration, says Frank-Steffen Walliser, chairman and CEO of Bentley Motors. The exclusivity can be enjoyed even from afar, via the pleasure that comes from observing such a prized object or buying adjacent goods like books, watches and clothing. It’s an entire universe that many covet and only a few may enter.

“We need fans,” says Walliser. “It’s true for every brand. [Clients] need to be admired for the choices they’ve made.”

Indeed, leaning into a lineage of celebrated owners, wild adventures and successful feats parlays the allure of a brand. As with France’s oldest luxury houses like Hermès and Goyard, the most prestigious car brands are vibrantly relevant today even as they proudly count many decades of history in their archives, which reinforces their raison d’être and captivates both new audiences and devoted enthusiasts.

“Luxury brands are about storytelling,” says Rawdon Glover, managing director of Jaguar, who is working to revitalize the nearly century-old brand, with new vehicles expected in 2026. “You buy a luxury car because you want it, not because you need it, so we’ve got to create that irrational desire.”

This is where established auto brands dominate start-up electric vehicle companies. Despite the altruistic bent of their marketing and the seemingly frictionless acceleration of their cars, EV upstarts lack the depth of institutional memory. Tesla delivered its first vehicle in 2008; Lucid and Rivian did in 2021. Aston Martin, Bentley, BMW, Bugatti, Mercedes-Benz and Rolls-Royce are each over 100 years old. Ferrari and Porsche are both more than 75 years old.

A rich heritage emphasizes the origin story of a car’s seductive curves or sleek athleticism. It also accentuates the high-quality materials and handmade elements that may dress it in rare woods, supple leathers, shearling floor mats or exquisite carbon fiber. Master craftsmanship achieves the dual aims of lending tactile and visual reassurance that the product is well-made and separates it from others made more cheaply.

Innovation can help a younger brand overcome a lack of lineage. Sweden’s Koenigsegg Automotive is just over 30 years old but curates a rabid fan and ownership base with extreme engineering that propels its million-dollar supercars to record-setting feats. Italy’s Pagani has cultivated collectors obsessed with its pioneering use of active aero flaps and development of novel composite materials like carbon-titanium.

At BMW, innovation is woven into an already well-established narrative that says the owner must feel at home in the car. It’s a delicate balance, says van Hooydonk, so the company offers anyone inside the car the freedom to choose when they want to access technology or not. It hides some speakers, buttons and sensors behind natural materials like wood or fabric, with the tech becoming active only upon user interaction.

“If they’re going to spend this much money on a car, they want it to be at the cutting edge,” he says. “At the same time, they don’t want that technology to be in their face all the time. That’s why we call it shy tech. The technology is there when you need it, but it’s not overpowering.”

For the überwealthy, innovation extends far beyond incorporating artificial intelligence into the car with help from Google. Transformational techniques to make the car feel unique are essential, since authentic luxury reflects the buyer’s deepest sense of identity. The car must feel meaningful on a personal, even private, level.

“The clear trend that we can see is that there’s growing demand for clients to create things which are special and specific to them,” says Chris Brownridge, CEO of Rolls-Royce. “Sometimes it’ll be celebrating a relationship, or a family member or their dog. It could be a public achievement, or something personal, which nobody else knows about.”

All the new Phantoms that Rolls-Royce sells are heavily customized, the company says, which pushes pricing on the company’s flagship sedan well past its roughly $500,000 base price, often doubling or tripling it. Special commissions, like the Phantom Syntopia, created with Dutch fashion designer Iris van Herpen, are worth many times that amount.

The vision for the Syntopia was to emulate the beauty of fluid motion. Artisans created a special one-off liquid iridescent exterior paint and overlaid it with a mirror-like pigment to mimic deep waves. They developed silk-blend textiles that look like the face of water at night and created a ceiling headliner made from a single flawless hide arrayed with nearly 1,000 sparkling fiberoptic lights and 162 petals of glass organza applied by van Herpen’s own couture team.

The project took four years from its start to completion in 2023. After the debut, it disappeared from public view into the private collection of the owner, the embodiment of ultimate luxury in the modern world — understanding why something you own is special, even if no one else can see it.

NEW DELHI: The Civil Aviation Ministry and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) have launched an intensive review and monitoring exercise after IndiGo reported widespread operational disruptions and an unusually high number of flight cancellations across its network since late November 2025.Civil Aviation Minister reviewed the situation with senior MoCA officials and IndiGo’s top management, directing the airline and all relevant aviation bodies to take urgent steps to assist passengers and stabilise operations. The Ministry said it is keeping a “close watch” on the situation, according to DGCA’s statement cited by ANI.“In addition, the Civil Aviation Minister has also held a meeting with senior officers of the Airport Authority of India and instructed AAI to inform all airport directors that they should constantly monitor the situation and provide all support to stranded passengers. He also directed DGCA to closely monitor the airfares during the flight disruptions/cancellations,” according to the released statement.Apart from the ministry, DGCA, in a detailed review meeting chaired by the Director General (Civil Aviation), flagged concerns over IndiGo cancelling 170–200 flights per day, a level significantly higher than normal for the country’s largest airline.IndiGo attributed the disruptions to transitional challenges from the implementation of the revised Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) Civil Aviation Requirements, which came into effect in two phases — 01 July 2025 and 01 November 2025 — following court directions. The airline said the new fatigue-management rules, crew-planning issues, and winter operational constraints have sharply impacted scheduling stability.DGCA has directed IndiGo to normalise operations at the earliest and ensure that the current situation does not lead to fare increases.IndiGo has been instructed to submit:

IndiGo says more cancellation in next few days

As DGCA released its statement assuring firm corrective action and close monitoring, IndiGo, however, informed the regulator that stabilising its network will require a short transition period. The airline told DGCA that additional cancellations will continue over the next two to three days as part of its schedule-reset effort aimed at restoring roster balance and preventing further last-minute disruptions, as reported by PTI.IndiGo has also conveyed that it will proactively scale down flight operations starting December 8 to minimise passenger inconvenience and allow crew-planning teams to rebuild buffers eroded over recent weeks. According to the airline, this controlled reduction in operations is essential to streamline rosters, align crew availability with revised Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) norms and ensure that fatigue-management standards are fully complied with.The carrier has assured DGCA that corrective measures are already underway and that full operational stability will be restored by February 10, 2026. IndiGo said its recovery plan includes accelerated crew recruitment, intensified training cycles and a phased reintroduction of flights once adequate staffing and roster resilience are secured.

The UK and Norway have signed a defence agreement allowing their navies to operate a combined fleet of warships.

In a statement, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) said the “first of its kind” pact is aimed at protecting critical undersea cables, which the UK and NATO believe are under increasing threat from Russian submarines.

The Lunna House agreement – named after the Shetland Isles base used by the Norwegian resistance during the Second World War – was signed by Defence Secretary John Healey and his Norwegian counterpart, Tore Sandvik, in Downing Street on Thursday.

It will see the Royal Navy and Royal Norwegian Navy operate a fleet of British-built Type-26 frigates capable of hunting Russian submarines.

Mr Healey said it marked an “important moment” for two nations “with deep bonds”, adding that a “new era of threat” demands “co-operation” between NATO allies.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer added in a statement announcing the agreement: “At this time of profound global instability, as more Russian ships are being detected in our waters, we must work with international partners to protect our national security.

“This historic agreement with Norway strengthens our ability to protect our borders and the critical infrastructure our nations depend on.

“Through joint navy co-operation in the North Atlantic, we’re boosting security, supporting thousands of UK jobs, and showcasing Britain’s world-class shipbuilding on the global stage.”

Sir Keir, meeting with Norwegian prime minister Jonas Store in Downing Street after the agreement was signed, also said that Norway is an “absolutely vital member of the coalition of the willing”.

MoD: 30% rise in Russian vessels in UK waters

The MoD has reported a 30% rise in Russian vessels sighted in UK waters in the past two years.

The Royal Navy intercepted the warship RFN Stoikiy and tanker Yelnya in November.

That came after Russia accused the British government of “provocative statements” after the defence secretary warned the Yantar was nearing the UK.

Russia’s UK embassy insisted that the Yantar was a research ship in international waters.

A month earlier, HMS Duncan and a helicopter were scrambled to shadow Russian destroyer Vice Admiral Kulakov.

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The new agreement is underpinned by a £10bn UK-Norway warship deal, signed in September, which saw Oslo order five Type-26 frigates. They will be constructed by BAE Systems in Glasgow.

It will allow a fleet of at least 13 anti-submarine ships from the UK and Norway to operate jointly in northern Europe, and monitor Russian naval movements in the waters between Greenland, Iceland and Britain.

A Sovereign Gold Bond (SGB) bought eight years ago has turned a Rs 1 lakh investment into more than Rs 4.4 lakh, after the Reserve Bank of India announced the final redemption price for the 2017-18 Series-X tranche. The RBI said in its statement dated 3 December 2025 that this series will mature on Thursday, marking exactly eight years from its issue date.This particular tranche had remained open for subscription between 27 and 29 November 2017, with settlement taking place on 4 December that year. The central bank reiterated that, under the Government of India’s notification dated 6 October 2017, these bonds are repayable after eight years, making 4 December 2025 the official redemption date.The RBI has fixed the final payout at Rs 12,820 per unit, a figure calculated using the simple average of the closing prices of 999-purity gold for the three business days immediately before redemption. The India Bullion and Jewellers Association (IBJA) recorded gold prices at Rs 12,821 per gram on 1 December, Rs 12,759 on 2 December, and Rs 12,880 on 3 December 2025, producing an average of Rs 12,820.When the bonds were originally issued, the ministry of finance had priced them at Rs 2,961 per gram, with an online discounted rate of Rs 2,911. Based on this, the absolute return—without including interest—comes to Rs 9,909 per unit (Rs 12,820 minus Rs 2,911). In percentage terms, this works out to roughly 340.3%, delivering a substantial gain for long-term investors.Alongside capital appreciation, SGB holders have also earned a 2.5% annual interest, paid by the government. The scheme, managed by the RBI, is designed as a digital or paper-based alternative to holding physical gold, removing concerns around purity and storage while offering the added benefit of interest income. Investors can also redeem their bonds early after five years, but only on interest payment dates. The bonds remain tradable, can be transferred, and may be used as collateral for loans.The RBI has clarified that investors will receive a maturity intimation one month before the payout date. On maturity day, the redemption amount will be credited directly to the bank account registered in the investor’s records. As per ET, anyone who has changed their bank details, email address or other contact information must inform their bank, SHCIL or post office in advance to avoid delays.