German car makers Audi have released a new teaser video, giving only the slightest of hints in regards to the styling of their latest concept car.
The car is set to be unveiled at the Los Angeles motor show later this month, with many critics suggesting it could well be the forthcoming A9, which will become a sportier, alternative to the German company’s current flagship model, the A8.
Not a lot of the car can be seen in the video, though from what can be seen, it’s clear this car shares same angular headlights and stand out grille that make other cars in the current Audi line up instantly recognisable.
Also featured in the video is new design chief, Marc Lichte, who discusses his inspirations, his ambitions for Audi and what he considers to be the brands past highlights.
As of late, supercar manufacturers have been trying to go that extra mile in order to make their cars and their brand has to offer even more exclusive than what their competitors are offering. Whether it be a limited edition, of a what is already a highly sought after car, or a heritage track day – offering buyers history and insight into the brand they have bought into.
And this exactly the kind of thing McClaren are offering with their McLaren P1 GTR, as the Woking manufacturer reveals details of its customer driver development program.
With the GTR version, McLaren have taken what is already an insanely fast car – the P1, and stripped it of the red tape set out to ensure that a car is road legal. In doing so, McLaren have created what they describe as “the best driver’s car in the world on track”. This drastic weight loss in the GTR has also seen a rise in the previously insane power figure of 903bhp to a heart-stopping 986bhp.
And as a direct result of the new GTR version of the P1, McLaren’ is now offering the 35 customers – all of whom were picked from buyers of the road-going P1 – the chance to join its driver development program. Outlined in the video below, the scheme sees owners treated like F1 stars, receiving exclusive access to the inner workings of the McLaren machine, and getting one-to-one track driving tuition from professional test drivers.
In addition to this, McLaren will even look after owners’ cars by maintaining them and they will even transport them to top-flight circuits across the globe.
The luxury car maker have also unveiled new images of the P1 GTR, including detailed interior shots. Complete with full racing harnesses, and seats inspired by those fitted to touring car racers, the cabin is essentially a stripped back version of that found in the standard P1. The thing that stands out the most however, is the quartic steering wheel, which is based on the one used in Lewis Hamilton’s 2008 F1 Championship winning MP4-23 race car.
Take a look at the latest images of the P1 GTR in the gallery below.
Jaguar is unleashing its fastest and most powerful F-type yet, a limited edition speedster version, known as Project 7.
The name sounds like something top secret that’s being developed by the military, and from this fact alone I can only assume that they mean business.
The car is hand-built from a combination of aluminium and carbon fibre and it’s design and styling have clearly been influenced by Jaguar’s impressive history at Le Mans, having won seven races in the past.
Estimated to cost around £130,000, it will be the first Jaguar from the newly formed Speed Division, at Jaguar Land Rover.
The car is packing an impressive 5.0 Litre Supercharged V8, pushing out 516lb ft of torque and 567bhp. That’s 79bhp more than the F-type V8 S roadster, and despite the fact its top speed remains the same at 186mph, due to the Project 7 being 80kg lighter than its stablemate, it reaches 60mph half-a-second quicker – in an eye watering 3.8sec.
If you didn’t catch it yesterday, Petrolicious have uploaded a new video featuring a very special Porsche 356, owned by enthusiast Jack Griffin. This particular 356 is special for two reasons, first and foremost, the car is a 1955 U.S. spec car and as such was branded as a Continental. Porsche did this for only one year as a marketing ploy, before having to quickly change back to the 356 name, after Ford threatened them with legal action due to the fact they had already used this name in their own line-up. The second thing that makes this car interesting and will make a lot of Porsche purists squirm in their seats, is the fact that Jack has completely modified and modernised this car in terms of its handling and performance.
In place of the original motor, Jack swapped in a 1720 cc engine from a 1965 356 that now produces 115 horsepower. Next came a 1962 gearbox, which provides a smooth robustness not found in the original, Volkswagen-based gearboxes. The car also received disc brakes all around, which resulted in him having to change the wheels and, finally, an upgrade to a 12 volt electrical system.
While these modifications won’t please a lot of purists, it’s important to note that Jack wasn’t doing this simply to follow a trend or to please a particular crowd, he had a vision and then set about building the car he always wanted. He took an iconic classic and brought it into the modern world, with more power and reliability, yet he still managed to retain the cars most striking feature, that classic and iconic 356 look.
The Italian supercar creators have released an official 3D video of the Lamborghini Huracán LP 610-4, showcasing the technology and design behind the latest addition to their line up.
This breakdown of the Huracán’s genetic make-up shows just how special this car really is.
Jaguar’s E-type is to be resurrected in a new and improved light weight form. A special team of craftsmen will hand build only six cars, all of which will be perfect reproductions of the legendary Lightweight E-types from 1963-64. These ultra-exclusive cars are expected to sell for around £1 million each. You might be wondering why Jaguar are only building six of these cars, well in 1963, Jaguar planned to produce 18 racers for competition use, and set aside sufficient chassis numbers with a special ‘S’ prefix. However, only 12 were finished by 1964, so the six remaining authentic chassis numbers will be used to complete the last ever run of the E-type.
The exact specification of the original Lightweight E-Types varies slightly, but each featured aluminium bodywork, an aluminium monocoque, an aluminium engine block and an aluminium hard top.
They were also stripped of interior trim and the exterior chrome work was removed, additionally other weight-saving measures included hand-operated side windows. All of these weight shaving measures meant that around 114kg was removed compared to the standard E-Type roadster.
The new cars specification will be identical to the 1963-64 version, right down to the 3.8-litre straight-six XK engine, which featured a special wide-angle head, dry-sump lubrication and fuel injection.
If you’ve ever wondered what it would be like to rally a Porsche 356 in the snow, then you’ll find this video particularly interesting.
Jeff Zwart, film director and Pikes Peak Hill Climb Champion takes his 1953 Porsche 356 Pre A out for a winter’s drive.
This visually stunning video shows how a rare classic like the 356 isn’t just a museum piece, as Jeff slides it gracefully through the scenic snowy mountains, on its extremely thin studded snow tyres.
If you haven’t seen the latest installment of Jay Leno’s Garage you should definitely check it out.
Jay speaks with Lambo-whisperer Franco Barbuscia and his son Damian, who discuss how they came to acquire the car, its restoration and modifications and then take it for a spin.
In my opinion the Diablo is not only one of the nicest cars ever built by Lamborghini but one most stunning cars ever to be created.
With spectacular good looks and a heart consisting of a 5.7L V12 engine, that sounds simply out of this world, these are the elements that make the Diablo one of the most iconic cars of 20th Century.
To mark the 30-year anniversary of the BMW M5, BMW has come up with an exclusive, special model version of the current, fifth-generation model.
The BMW M5 “30 Jahre M5” (30 years of the M5) will be produced in a limited run of 300 examples vehicles worldwide.
Developing 600 horse power and 516 lb-ft of peak torque the new special model (fuel consumption combined: 9.9 l/100 km [28.5 mpg imp]; CO2 emissions combined: 231 g/km) is not only the most powerful BMW M5 ever to emerge from series production under the auspices of BMW M GmbH, but also the most powerful car in the history of the brand.
BMW say “The ’30 Jahre M5′ sprints from 0-100 km/h (62 mph) in a lightning 3.9 seconds. Its strikingly exclusive, BMW Individual-inspired looks and numerous dynamics and comfort-enhancing equipment details make this special model a highly desirable collector’s item.”
If you are into old cars, barn finds or abandoned junk yards you should definitely check out this video I came across today.
A couple of guys visited an abandoned castle somewhere in Belgium and not only found 6 classic Alfa Romeos stashed away in the basement but also various treasures hiding in a decaying car collection that lay just outside the castle.
Anyway, here’s the video, I’m off to watch one of Sergio Leone’s masterpieces.
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