You like supercars? We got supercars. Read on.
These may have been the greatest three months ever for supercars. Why, and what does it mean to you?
Sometime around the middle of February I lost track of this year’s supercars. I was blogging daily about high-end cars and they just wouldn’t stop coming. What was going on?
I’ve mentioned before that you don’t just go out and build a new car. The lead time from idea to dealership might not be the five years it used to be, but even with rapid prototyping and everything else, it’s not quick and it’s not cheap.
Which means that sometime in 2012 or 2013, some people with serious authority looked down the line and said, “I think in a couple of years, there won’t be enough 200 mph, $200,000 cars. We should make some.”
It wasn’t just Lamborghini and Ferrari who thought that. It was also Ford, Honda, Toyota, Chrysler and everyone else. Sensible people who make sensible cars for adults. But something had convinced them that in addition to Flexes, Accords, Avalons and 200s, they should build GTs, NSXs, GS Fs and Hellcats. For you, this means two things.
First, that the present really is rosy. Cars have been canceled before, so for these to be entering production there are some very smart people in very different places who agree that there’s a lot of disposable income floating around.
Second, a whole lot of that technology will be—and is—trickling down, but we’ll talk about that in the Auto issue next month. In the meantime, I just counted 15 new supercars before I ran out of fingers (don’t ask), and here are some standouts among them.
Let us know on our Facebook page or tell me @proscriptus which one you’d take home.
Acura NSX
Bet you a nickel there will be one in the next “Avengers” movie, for no particular reason. The old NSX was an all-time great.
Chevrolet Corvette Z06
When will this madness end? You can now get a Corvette with a 625hp supercharged engine. And by “can,” I mean “should.”
Ford GT and Shelby GT350R
Have I mentioned the Ford GT? I really like the Ford GT, and I’m going to keep mentioning it until Ford sends me one just to shut me up. The 500hp GT350R has Ford’s most powerful naturally aspirated engine ever and unlike the 600hp EcoBoost GT, it has a proper V-8 and won’t cost $300,000 or something. I’d shut up with one of those, too.
Lexus GS F
In one sense, this is just a big, painfully ugly sedan. But Lexus has chosen to imbue it with a 467hp 5.0-liter V-8. The first American car to make over 400hp was the V-10 Dodge Viper.
Aston-Martin Vantage GT3 and Vulcan
The limited-to-100 cars GT3 makes 592 hp and weighs 220 pounds less than a “regular” Vantage. The 800hp racing Vulcan has a name almost as good as Hellcat.
Dodge Challenger Hellcat
707hp. Buy one for your kid’s graduation this spring, why don’t you? I’m changing my name to Hellcat.
Bentley EXP 10 Speed 6 and Continental GT3-R
I like big Bentleys and I cannot lie. I want to go through life feeling like I’m a charismatic gangster in a Guy Ritchie movie. Named Brick. The Speed 6 is a thinly disguised concept car; the GT3-R is real, and it’s magnificent. And tasteful.
Porsche 911 GT3 RS
It’s the fastest production Porsche ever, at least where there are corners, and that’s saying something. It’s “only” 500hp, but it costs $175,000 (“not including a $995 destination charge”), which makes up for it.
Morgan Aero 8
Morgan, the world’s oldest continually operating car company, has a new Aero 8. It looks vaguely like a 60-year-old sports car but goes 170 mph.
Koengisegg Regera
Koengisegg calls the 1,500hp Regera a “luxury megacar.” It’s fancy. Head on down to Friendly Al’s Koengisegg on Shallowford Road for a test drive and get free hot dogs for the whole family.
McLaren 675LT
Now this is just silly. 666hp. Seriously, McLaren? On the other hand, it will get to 125mph in eight seconds, making on-ramps less stressful. Also it costs £500,000, so take advantage of the strong dollar and grab one now when that’s only like $750,000.