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Newswheel staff :: 29 April 2008 :: Filed under Cabriolet, Front engine sportscar, BMW, BMW M3
Drop-top versions of BMW’s M cars are traditionally a little off message when it comes to driving dynamics. That’s the price you pay for hacking the roof off, compromising structural integrity and cranking up the kerb weight. But the new M3 Convertible is the first BMW to feature the firm’s new seven-speed M Double Clutch Transmission (M DCT). So, it’s a little more interesting than your average 155mph sun trap…
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Newswheel staff :: 14 April 2008 :: Filed under Front engine sportscar, Caterham, Caterham R500
With the venerable K-Series engine not long for this world, Caterham
has been shifting its entire range over to Ford-based power. One of the
final pieces of the puzzle is the new Superlight R500, replete with a
263bhp development of the 2.0-litre Ford Duratec all-alloy lump. Factor in
the piffling 506kg kerb weight and you have the magical
500bhp-per-tonne power-to-weight ratio that gives its name to the R500.
Oh, and a claimed zero-to-60mph time of 2.88 seconds. Quite nippy, then.
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Newswheel staff :: 09 April 2008 :: Filed under Front engine sportscar, Nissan, Nissan GT-R, Europe & UK
Hardly a startling revelation given the uniformly rave reviews Nissan’s
new road warrior has won. But it seems punters are a plumpin' for the
new GT-R uber coupe in large numbers. No fewer than 700 orders were
placed within 48 hours of the 473bhp brute going on sale in the UK.
With production numbers strictly limited, if you haven’t
placed your order yet, you’ll be in for a long wait. Still, at least it
proves the environmental lobby, $100-a-barrel oil and hysteria in
global financial markets hasn’t done for the high performance,
yet…
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Newswheel staff :: 09 April 2008 :: Filed under Front engine sportscar, Lexus, Lexus GS, Lexus IS, Lexus LF-A, Lexus LS
In the grand old US of A, Toyota’s luxury brand sweeps all asunder. But it hasn’t really hit critical mass in Europe. Odds are it will soon enough if Lexus' aggressive product plans are anything to go by. Following the well received IS-F V8 compact sports saloon, Lexus will also unleash a speedy ‘F’ derivative of the mid-sized GS luxury barge along with a new compact model that slots in below the IS and will take on BMW’s increasingly successful 1 Series. Needless to say, more hybrid Lexi are on the way, too…
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Newswheel staff :: 13 December 2007 :: Filed under Coupe, Front engine sportscar, Aston Martin, Aston Martin V8 Vantage, Europe & UK
Aston’s new Bond-backed, DB9-based
flagship coupe, the DBS, has taken a critical pounding. By the lofty
standards of Aston’s recent produce, at least. Fortunately, the company
has something altogether tastier cooking in the form of this new V12
Vantage RS. With no less than 600 ponies crammed into the Vantage’s
compact and relatively light body, performance should be more than
adequate. For now, it’s only a concept. But heavy hints from Aston
suggest the car will receive a low-volume production run.
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Newswheel staff :: 20 July 2007 :: Filed under Cabriolet, Coupe, Front engine sportscar, Mercedes Benz
Tricky to know for sure what Mercedes' next move in the high-end sports car market will be. What with rumours of a mid-engine supercar resurrected from the failing ambers of the McLaren partnership and more recently reports of a new alloy front-engine coupe, a model that’s expected to share its underpinnings with the next SL…
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Newswheel staff :: 17 July 2007 :: Filed under Coupe, Front engine sportscar, Alfa Romeo, Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione, Europe & UK, US
Yours for a piffling 159,300 Euros: we give you the final Euro list price for the Alfa Romeo 8C uber coupe. That’s a whisker over £100,000 at current exchange rates…
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Newswheel staff :: 11 May 2007 :: Filed under Cabriolet, Front engine sportscar, Mercedes Benz, Mercedes Benz SLR, Europe & UK
Let’s be honest. MB’s SLR supercoupe doesn’t really add up. Perhaps it’s the gloopy, unsubtle ‘90s concept car styling. Or maybe the torque-converter gearbox which belies its supercar pretensions. And what about the hair-trigger brakes? Whatever, the SLR is neither fish nor foul, sportscar nor luxury coupe. But that hasn’t stopped Mercedes from attempting to reignite interest in the long-nosed road missile with this new drop-top revision…
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Neville Contractor :: 12 April 2007 :: Filed under Coupe, Front engine sportscar, Ford, Ford Mustang, Trade shows, US
So, Ford has offloaded Aston Martin to Dave Richards and his band of merry
(and considerably richer than thou) men in return for a modest 500
million sterling sum. But with its losses measured in many billions,
FoMoCo ain’t quite back in the black. Still, that hasn’t prevented the
boys from Ford and Shelby from prepping a mega-powerful limited
production Mustang. Known as the Shelby Cobra GT500KR, it’s claimed to
be quickest production Mustang ever launched …
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Newswheel staff :: 23 February 2007 :: Filed under Coupe, Front engine sportscar, Chevrolet, Chevrolet Corvette, Europe & UK, US
US rag Motor Trend has the scoop on the upcoming C7 Corvette. In an
interview with a senior GM suit Jim Queen, plans for a potty 700bhp
flagship model were mooted and rumours of four-wheel-drive scotched.
Intriguingly, Queen confirmed that the 700-pony output would be
achieved without the aid of forced induction. If our calculations are
correct, that would ensure the new Vette is the most powerful
naturally-aspirated series production car in town…
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Newswheel staff :: 16 February 2007 :: Filed under Coupe, Front engine sportscar, Aston Martin Vanquish, Europe & UK
Worried that Ford might be cutting back on spending at Aston Martin now that its plans to flog the British brand to highest bidder are out in the open? If Aston’s marketing department is anything to go by, the penny pinching has already begun. Because if “Vanquish S Ultimate Edition” is the best it can up with for this latest revision of their flagship model, the staff have surely done a runner. Likewise, the fact that the car appears to be an entirely cosmetic affair hardly reeks of significant investment. However, there is some good news. Aston is now offering the Vanquish with a manual cog-swapper – and its available as an upgrade kit for existing owners. Cue much rejoicing…
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Newswheel staff :: 09 February 2007 :: Filed under Coupe, Front engine sportscar, Aston Martin, Europe & UK, US
Following recent reports and rumours indicating LVHM had snapped up Aston Martin, the French luxury goods outfit has issued a public denial. Best known for hawking pricey nonessential paraphernalia including Louis Vuitton clobber, Moet champers and Tag Hauer watches, LVHM was among 25 companies said to have made enquiries when Ford originally put Aston up for sale. LVHM now claims a formal bid was never made…
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Newswheel staff :: 07 February 2007 :: Filed under Front engine sportscar, TVR, Europe & UK
The finer details of TVR’s recent history are approaching encyclopaedic proportions. However, it appears the Smolenski chapter of the saga may be drawing to a close. The receivers of the production arm of TVR, known as Blackpool Automotive, have revealed that Smolenski and Co. may not have retained the trademark rights to TVR after all, leaving the Russian with little, if any, ownership or involvement with TVR…
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Newswheel staff :: 11 January 2007 :: Filed under Coupe, Front engine sportscar, Lexus, Lexus LF-A, Europe & UK, US
First shown in concept form at the Detroit show two years ago, Lexus’s various development versions of the LF-A V10 supercar have been seen banging in laps at the usual test facilities for around 18 months. Now the Japanese luxury brand has prepped a new concept revision that is said to be extremely close to the final series production variant…
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Newswheel staff :: 18 December 2006 :: Filed under Front engine sportscar, Ferrari, Ferrari 599 GTB, Hamann, Europe & UK, US
If the footballer’s wheels status of most modern Ferraris isn’t quite vulgar enough for you, may we recommend this new Ferrari 599GTB-based creation from tuning outfit Hamann. Needless to say, Hamann has bequeathed the 599 with not only the usual monster split-rim alloys, but also the obligatory splitter, sill and rear wing and diffuser appendages. Mercifully, however, Hamann has likewise seen fit to match the pumped up show with a dash of added go…
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Neville Contractor :: 06 November 2006 :: Filed under Front engine sportscar, Toniq R, Europe & UK
There’s a staggering arsenal of trackday weaponry on the market,
aujourd’hui. And yet, in the no frills, roofless, track-focused sector,
Caterham still operates a quasi monopoly. But what if you don’t fancy
the mesolithic whiff of Lotus Seven that Caterhams excrete and perhaps
find the various low volume alternatives too, er, Radical? Well, allow
us to present the new Toniq-R. A hyper-contemporised, Caterham-stylee
trackday tool seemingly beamed in from another planet but actually
hailing from good old Huddersfield…
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Neville Contractor :: 13 October 2006 :: Filed under Coupe, Front engine sportscar, Aston Martin, Aston Martin V8 Vantage, Europe & UK
In the multi-billion dollar motor industry game of Fordopoly (grab a box set before the Christmas rush…), Aston Martin is little more than a powerless pawn. But that hasn’t prevented the British sports GT specialist from pressing on with a couple of competition-inspired Vantage coupé creations, including a lightweight, road-legal track tool and rally-ready racer…
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Newswheel staff :: 12 October 2006 :: Filed under Coupe, Front engine sportscar, Nissan, Nissan 350Z, Europe & UK
First demoed at the Goodwood Festival of Speed this summer, Nissan’s supercharged 350Z GT-S concept has been given the green light for a limited production run. Just like the standard Z, this 375bhp mean machine is a conspicuous bargain. It’s expected to go on sale for £36,000…
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Newswheel staff :: 11 October 2006 :: Filed under Four wheel drive, Front engine sportscar, Mid / rear engine sportscar, Ferrari, Europe & UK, US
Rumours of all-wheel drive Fezzas have been floated frequently since the early 90s. The latest riff on the 4WD Ferrari involves a new system capable of entirely disengaging drive to the front wheels when required, thereby sidestepping the torque-sapping downside of a conventional arrangement.
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