Rent Ferrari 296 GTB 2024 in Dubai

Renting a Ferrari 296 GTB 2024 in Dubai puts you in the car that finally makes a V6 Ferrari feel like the real thing, and we bring it to your door inside one to two hours so the day starts where you are, not at a counter. The 296 is a 3.0-litre V6 plug-in hybrid making 830 hp, and it runs 0 to 100 in 2.9 seconds. That combination is the whole pitch. If you want the sharpest, most modern-feeling Ferrari to drive on a Dubai weekend, this is the one we'd put you in. What follows is an honest read on what it's like to actually live with for a few days here, hybrid quirks and all.

The hybrid is the point, not a footnote

People hear V6 and assume a step down. Drive it and that idea dies fast. The petrol V6 and the electric motor together push 830 hp to the rear wheels, and the response off the line is instant in a way the older twin-turbo V8 cars never quite managed. There's a real electric-only mode too, so you can pull out of a hotel forecourt or crawl through Downtown traffic in near silence before the V6 wakes up. For early starts in a quiet residential area, that matters more than you'd think.

The flip side: it's a plug-in, and the electric range is short. You're not renting this to save fuel, and the battery is there for response and low-speed manners, not economy. Treat the electric mode as a party trick and a courtesy to your neighbours, not a commute strategy.

What it's like on Sheikh Zayed Road

This is where the 296 feels worth every dirham. The power arrives cleanly, the steering is quick, and overtaking on the E11 takes a flex of your right foot and nothing more. Top speed is 330 km/h, which you'll never legally use, but the way it gathers speed from 80 to 120 is the part you actually feel on a Dubai highway. It's stable, it's planted, and it never feels nervous at the limits you can legally explore here.

The catch is the same one every supercar carries in this city: the road surface and the speed cameras. The 296 will tempt you constantly, and Dubai's average-speed enforcement does not care how good your car is. Salik tolls and any RTA fines during your rental are charged to you, so keep that in mind every time the road opens up and the gantry slides by.

Spec at a glance

Luggage, ramps and daily reality

Two seats, a tiny front compartment, and that's your lot. The 296 holds about 113 litres up front, which means a couple of soft weekend bags and not much else. Pack a holdall, not a suitcase. If you're heading to DXB to collect anyone with luggage, this is not the car for the airport run, and we'd tell you so before you booked it.

Ground clearance is the other thing to plan around. Like every car of this shape, the nose is low, and Dubai's steeper mall ramps and the dips into some Marina basements will have you crawling in at an angle. It's manageable once you learn where the lips are, but you'll be paying attention. Speed bumps in the older communities deserve real respect.

Staying cool when it's 45 outside

A small, low cabin in a black car parked in July sun gets genuinely hot, and the 296's climate system has a real job on its hands. The good news is the cabin volume is tiny, so once the AC is running it pulls the temperature down quickly and the vents hit hard. Give it a couple of minutes with the doors shut before you set off and it's comfortable. Just don't expect the parked-in-the-sun first thirty seconds to be pleasant, because no two-seater with this much glass and this little cabin ever is.

Who should rent it

Rent the 296 GTB if you want the most modern, most alert Ferrari to drive for a Dubai weekend, you're going two-up with light bags, and the hybrid V6's instant response appeals more than old-school V8 theatre. It's the car we'd pick for a driver who actually wants to drive, not just be seen.

Look elsewhere if you need a back seat, real luggage room, or a softer ride for long motorway stints with passengers. And if the V6 badge genuinely bothers you and you want the bigger-engine occasion over outright sharpness, a V8 or V12 Ferrari is the call. For pure pace and precision on Dubai's roads, though, the 296 is hard to beat.