![Tokyo 2009: Lexus reveals $375,000 LFA supercar...finally [w/VIDEO]](http://www.niot.net/blog-images/lexus-lfa-tokyo-2009.jpg)
It seems like the Lexus LFA has been around forever. In reality, the first concept version was unveiled at the Detroit Auto Show in 2005, but that's a long time in the automotive world. Additional concepts followed in 2007 and 2008, and the on-off rumors of a production version haven't help. Nevertheless, the production version of the LFA is finally here at the Tokyo Motor Show, and it is glorious. All of which makes it harder to stomach that the car shown here isn't expected to reach customer garages until early 2011.
The specifications of the new rear-drive Lexus supercar are impressive enough: a 4.8-liter V10 with 560 ps (552 bhp), 354 lb-ft torque, a zingy 9,000 rpm redline, six-speed sequential gearbox, 0-62 mph in 3.7 seconds, and a top speed of 202 mph. It looks amazing too, both in pictures and in person.
Of course, we can't help but make comparisons to the current reigning Japanese supercar, the Nissan GT-R. At just 3,263 pounds, the LFA easily has a better power-to-weight ratio, but that hasn't seemed to stop the all-wheel drive juggernaut before. Then there is the small matter of cost to consider. Unlike the GT-R, which is considered a performance bargain, the LFA will be exclusive – and costly. Only 500 units will be produced at a cost of...drum roll please....$375,000. Despite the colossal price tag, we hear that Lexus expects to take a loss on each one.
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After an eight-year buildup, the Veritas RS III has finally slithered into series production in Grafschaft-Gelsdorf, Germany. Just like the Dutch firm Spyker, Vermot AG has resurrected the post-war German racing marque that sold a few road-going versions of their racers to a handful of lucky enthusiasts. Now, the new company is doing less racing and more street scorching, and the RS III is its first foray into the world of production cars.
In Monterey this past August, we caught our first glimpse of the finally-ready-for-production Veritas RS III. With its newly revised front end (now with 50 percent more serpent!) it looks even more like a BMW Z8 on acid. Which is totally appropriate, because this retro rocketsled is powered by the same 5.0-liter V10 engine found in the M5 supersedan. With 500 hp propelling a scant 2,400 pounds, the 30 insane lucky folks who plunk down a million bucks for one of these can look forward to a 0-100kmh dash of just 3.2 seconds and a top speed of more than 215 MPH.
That's Enzo-like performance for an Enzo-like price, but it offers ten times the exclusivity -- not to mention Veritas started operating the same year as Enzo Ferrari in 1947. The difference is that this serpent lay dormant for almost 50 years, getting ready to strike. Vermot has released a slew of new photos and additional details about the car.
With the 911 looking largely the same for the past 46 years, the Cayenne looking the way that it does, and the new Panamera greeted with mixed reviews (at best), it should come as no surprise that there are others interested in taking a crack at designing the next Porsche. Especially since the next one down the wind tunnel could very well be a roadgoing supercar based on the RS Spyder prototype racer to succeed the Carrera GT... one of the best Porsche design in decades.
What you see here is the vision of Iranian designer Emil Baddal, who appears to have blended some unmistakable Zuffenhausen DNA with a sort of Veyron-esque profile. Which isn't so far fetched when you consider that Porsche and Bugatti now fall under the same umbrella. Baddal hasn't issued any theoretical powertrain specifications to go with his design, so we'll just have to imagine them on our own.
You know what's not aces? When you're just trying to drink a little amber fluid and watch the Bathurst 1000 and the man treats you like a total bogan. What business is it of his how many coldies you drink when it's time to hit the turps? This makes us so mad we could eat a trough lolly! No doubt a pommy bastard thunk this 'un up...
And that marks the end of our silly attempt to sound Australian. However, it does not end our amusement over the fact that Australian officials have set a 24-beer per day limit on fans attending the Bathurst 1000. As in, you are allowed to drink 24 beers, but not 25. Cause you know, there's a huge difference. Why are they enacting this draconian alcohol policy? To cut down on booze-related crime of course.
If you don't know, the Bathurst 1000 is known in the Land Down Under as "The Great Race." Only V8 Supercars are allowed to compete. These days in Australia V8 Supercars consist of either the Holden Commodore or the Ford Falcon. That's it. Thousands of blokes and sheilas turn up in the town of Bathurst to watch the cars run, and turns out they like drinking.
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For its 27th iteration, Orange County's most prestigious classic car show returned to the St. Regis Monarch Beach Resort in Dana Point, and finally dropped the "Newport Beach" from its name. No longer would it be known as the Newport Beach Concours d'Elegance, instead adopting the Concours d'Elegance at the St. Regis moniker. The title may have changed, but the quality of the entrants hasn't. Still benefiting the Mary & Dick Allen Diabetes Center at Hoag Hospital and the CSP Assessment and Treatment Services Center, the field of classic cars at this concours was once again stunning.
This year's featured marque was Mercedes-Benz, and the automaker was represented by some truly spectacular models, aided in no small part by the show's proximity to the Mercedes Classic Car Center, the factory-backed restoration shop for vintage Mercedes vehicles. Besides the beautiful Benzes, the roughly 3,000 attendees got to see about 300 other classic and exotic vehicles spread out around the St. Regis Monarch Beach Resort and the adjacent Dana Point Sea Terrace Park.
Watch out Tesla – there's another California-based zero-emissions sports car company in the works: Steenstra GCM. Founded by designer and auto industry consultant Cornelis Steenstra, the Styletto isn't just about creating a guilt-free car, but one meant to compete with the Ferraris and Lamborghinis at the top of the heap. And, judging by the images in our gallery below, we're guessing it'll do battle with the Italians with a whole heap of batteries onboard.
Steenstra hasn't released any information on the car yet, but it is being billed as "the first 200-mph-plus super sports car to be built in California." If all goes well and the company can get its financial legs, the Styletto will be formally introduced at the 2010 Pebble Beach Concourse d' Elegance and you'll be able to buy one in 2013.
Mercedes-Benz has unveiled the microsite for the SLS AMG called "From the Ground Up," and it has all the information you need on gullwinged retro rocket from the space from to components to the magnesium backrests in the seats.
At the end of it all, there's a visualizer so you can start building the SLS you would will order when they go on sale in a little over a year, so start saving. We would say that the microsite will has enough info to keep you busy until the car shows up next year, but you won't have to wait that long -- we'll be bringing you even more info from its unveiling next week in Frankfurt. Hat tip to USB!
For many, it may seem hard for an automaker to claim the mantle of "The Ultimate Driving Machine" without a truly exhilarating supercar to act as a halo to define the brand. That could explain why, following previous reports that it had canned any plans for a mid-engine supercar, new reports suggest that BMW is proceeding with development of just such a vehicle.
Tentatively dubbed Z10, the most ultimate of driving machines would, according to the latest churns of the rumormill, take advantage of lightweight materials – including carbon fiber, aluminum and magnesium – to keep weight down, while offering more space inside than a Porsche 911. The jury's still out on what engine would find itself placed in the middle of the taut chassis, with the company's award-winning V10 reportedly axed in favor of a twin-turbo six (in either V or inline configuration) delivering somewhere in the vicinity of 450 horsepower and 350 lb-ft of torque through an eight-speed dual clutch gearbox.
Adaptable aerodynamics, a supplemental hybrid electric motor and thermal-dynamics system are also tipped to be part of the package, and we wouldn't be surprised to see some of the styling elements from the new Vision EfficientDynamics concept make their way into the production vehicle. The supercar is supposedly projected to bow with a $110,000 sticker price about five years from now... that is, if it's actually ever produced at all.
Today's a big day for McLaren. After ambitiously launching its own separate automotive division to follow in the footsteps of arch-rival Ferrari, the British race engineering firm has finally released its long-anticipated new supercar. Called the MP4-12C, it's been developed entirely in-house, and features the latest advances in automotive technology derived from the Formula 1 circuit.
Ooh, where to start? The MP4-12C is built around an extremely light and rigid carbon fiber tub. But rather than the heavier multi-piece tubs used by its competitors and predecessors, the MP4's is made from a single piece, weighing a spritely 176 pounds). The body panels are all carbon fiber and composites, making the new McLaren more expensive to build than its competitors and resulting in an expected £160,000 ($265k) price tag – higher than either the new Ferrari 458 Italia or the Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4, but lighter in weight, too.
Behind the tub sits a twin-turbo 3.8-liter V8 engine producing around 600 horsepower and 433 lb-ft of torque, offering what McLaren claims is the highest horsepower to CO2 ratio of any internal combustion engine on the market – gasoline, diesel or even hybrid. Contrary to earlier speculation that suggested Mercedes could continue furnishing its erstwhile partner with at least the engine blocks while producing its own SLS supercar and furnishing Pagani as well, McLaren says the unit was developed entirely in house. The bespoke mill features a flat-plane crank, dry sump and can rev up to 8,500 rpm, though 80% of the torque is said to be available from as low as 2,000 rpm. That ought to be good for a 0-60 time in the low threes and a 200+ mph top end.
While you might have expected carbon ceramic brakes to keep all that power and speed in check, McLaren says its conventional discs actually weigh less. They're aided by a Brake Steer system that brakes the inside rear wheel to combat understeer. But the real trick system is in the seven-speed dual-clutch transmission, where Pre-Cog lets the driver load up the next gear by half-squeezing the paddle and then engaging with gunshot speed.
With the new MP4-12C, McLaren's betting the economy will bounce back soon. It's planning on building 1000 units in 2011, a quarter of which will go each to the domestic UK market and over here to the United States. The C designation also suggests that they're planning a roadster version to join the coupe.
"There's no point in trying to outdo the F1, they'll never do it. The world has moved on..." That's what legendary designer Gordon Murray told CAR about the future of the supercar. We'd like to disagree, but you can't argue the subject of supercars with the father of the McLaren F1. Fortunately, he's willing to take another crack at it to show us how it's done.
Currently, Murrary is keeping busy revolutionizing the way we build cars with his iStream technology and his soon-to-be-released T25. His next project will be more performance-oriented, but rather than trying to outdo the McLaren F1, he'll be going for a high power-to-weight ratio by decreasing the latter, not increasing the former. The result promises to be "expensive and exclusive", but quite different from the P11 program on which his successors at McLaren are currently working – a program which Murray apparently doesn't give much of a chance. Better show 'em the way, Gordon.
