--- title: "What the Heck Happened to Rezvani?" date: "2025-05-13" modified: "2025-05-13" authors: - name: "Byron Hurd" job_title: "Editor" link: "https://www.thedrive.com/authors/byron-hurd" url: "https://www.thedrive.com/news/what-the-heck-happened-to-rezvani" categories: - "News" tags: - "luxury" - "suv/crossover" --- # What the Heck Happened to Rezvani? ![A Rezvani Beast sports car drives down the road with its top down.]() *\Rezvani\* Turn back the clock with me to a decade ago. It's 2015. Obama is still president, nobody has heard of COVID-19, and [Corvettes still have their engines in the front](). A nobody outfit called Rezvani is about to release the Beast, a custom car itself based on a kit with a Honda engine and a manual transmission. Was anybody asking for such a thing? Nope. But Rezvani managed to get the attention of enough buyers to sink its teeth into the automotive landscape, and it hasn't let go since. The original Beast was little more than a Double-Stuf Ariel Atom with a no-name custom body and an astronomically high price tag. The new, Lamborghini Urus-based Knight is no less ridiculous, but it's built on a far more ambitious platform and with a very, very different mission. What a difference a decade makes, eh? It was remarkable enough at the time for Jay Leno to set aside an example for his personal collection, and even invited Ferris Rezvani to promote it for Jay Leno's Garage, where he talked up the custom carbon fiber exterior and even received kudos from Jay for keeping the price of the Beast in check—a challenge for a "boutique" builder. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=09zIaLOzevc But now, it's 2025, and those early teething years are behind the custom builder. The Beast nominally survives, but it has transformed from a svelte, kit-car-based performance toy to a comparably massive, [Corvette-based symbol of excess]() after [a few years of Lotus-Elise-based shenanigans](). But these days, Rezvani is far better known for its ridiculous trucks and SUVs. Enter the [Knight](). This monstrosity packs 800 horsepower and a zero-to-60 time to rival supercars, and you can ruin augment that with an armored package that includes a bug-out kit complete with a first aid kit, a hypothermia kit, gas masks, and a pepper spray dispenser—for the zombies, of course. ![]() *Rezvani* ![]() ![]() *Rezvani* It's very on-brand for Rezvani in 2025, and far from the company's first apocalypse cruiser; that role has been filled by multiple offerings over the past few years. The company started with the [Tank](), which was Wrangler-based, before unleashing the [Gladiator-derived Hercules 6x6]() with a Dodge Demon's V8. Still, it's a little weird to think that this company came out of nowhere a decade ago with nothing but a kit car and a dream. Who will be the next Rezvani? And maybe more importantly, what will they pitch us first? *Got a tip? Send it in: tips@thedrive.com* ## Author Byron is an editor at The Drive with a keen eye for infrastructure, sales and regulatory stories. He brings a light, punchy style to all of his content, believing that there's plenty out there to be laughed at—himself included. Born and raised in Maryland but now based just a stone's throw from Detroit, Byron is an auto enthusiast and generalist who enjoys building and tinkering with things of all kinds, from cars, computers and digital cityscapes, to the new garage that will soon house his fleet (a CT4-V Blackwing, a JK Wrangler and an NA Miata). Inspired by an early love of rollercoasters, Byron quickly caught the high-performance driving itch. He's been tracking and auto-crossing his cars since 2007. In his downtime, Byron enjoys reading, playing city builders, and studying the history of the Motor City. ### Author social links [Bluesky]() [Instagram]() [LinkedIn]()