Specialty

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The tilt-winged Zenvo TSR-S now has carbon fiber wheels

Danish auto manufacturer Zenvo only produces five hand-built cars each year, so it’s a fairly big deal every single time one is completed. Not only is each car unique per customer requests, they’re also unique due to newly in-house-developed technologies, options, and techniques. In the case of its most recent build of the TSR-S supercar, it has previously unavailable features such as carbon fiber wheels and a new “hybrid” transmission.

The TSR-S is mostly known for its insane actively tilting rear wing (see the video below), but this most recent iteration should be known for its beautiful carbon fiber work. In addition to the numerous interior and exterior panels and parts made from traditional carbon fiber weave, the hood features a beautiful blue-tinted geometrically designed weave. On the side of the car, ZENVO is seen in a lower stripe with a hand-laid opposing weave pattern. Zenvo calls this feature a “bespoke watermark carbon fiber graphic.” Customers have the options to color-tint anything that shows exposed carbon fiber, and numerous sections can be designed with special weaves and graphics.

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Yet, the standout carbon fiber feature on this car is not a weave at all. Zenvo used what it calls fragmented carbon fiber, also known as forged composites as seen on Lamborghinis. Essentially, it’s crushed or flaked carbon fibers shaped and molded within resins, which provide a distinct artistically chaotic look. Zenvo used the fragmented carbon fiber on the engine and for the wheels.

The wheels are created with hand-cut pieces that are then hand-placed, and each one takes two technicians about one week to complete. Using carbon fiber wheels reduces weight by about 133 pounds, as each wheel is roughly 33 pounds lighter than an equal aluminum wheel.

This TSR-S also has an altered powertrain. The 1,177-horsepower twin-supercharged 5.8-liter flat-plane crank V8 remains, but the transmission is new. Zenvo’s seven-speed sequential gearbox with helical-cut dog gears is joined by a “hybrid module which yields a power boost, further traction control, and even the addition of an eighth forward gear with the electric motor providing reverse drive.” No further details were provided.

This level of exclusivity and customization is easily a seven-figure endeavor. The TSR-S starts at $1,619,000.

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March 12, 2020 / Comments Off

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The Mansory Cabrera is a Lamborghini Aventador SVJ with a bullish mug

Mansory does not care if a car is rare or special or unique. If it’s not a Mansory, it’s probably not good enough. But it might qualify to become a Mansory. The aftermarket tuning and design company has captured the limited Aventador SVJ and transformed it into a new vehicle called the Cabrera, which sports new looks and has more power.

Lamborghini will only produce 900 Aventador SVJs, and of those 900, three will go under the knife at a Mansory workshop. Mansory quotes a motto, “one car per decade,” and says the Cabrera “marks the start of several special editions on the occasion of Mansory’s 30th anniversary in 2020.” The name Cabrera is a breeding line of the Spanish fighting bull, similar to the names Miura and Gallardo.

The Cabrera has an entirely distinct face thanks to a new set of LED headlights. Rather than the chunky stock units that point toward the rear of the car, the new four-unit headlights are slim and horizontal. With the adjustments to the headlights came tweaks to the hood and front fascia. New air inlets on the front apron improve radiator air flow and help improve downforce. The carbon fiber widebody kit, which adds 1.6 inches in width, continues with bulbous wheel arches, aerodynamic side skirts, and a rear “double diffuser.” Extra downforce comes courtesy of a massive angular rear wing, and aggressively designed forged lightweight wheels (9×20 and 13×21) are wrapped in Pirelli P Zero tires.

The body kit is also designed to help cool the upgraded 6.5-liter V12 engine. While the “normal” SVJ makes 759 horsepower and 531 lb-ft of torque, the Cabrera makes 810 hp and 575 lb-ft. Mansory claims zero-to-62 mph in 2.6 seconds and a top speed of 221 mph.

Inside, Mansory takes the Aventador’s fighter-jet inspiration literally. The forged carbon fiber has “arrow-shaped decorative seams,” that look awfully similar to stealth bombers. That’s also mimicked with imprints in the seats. Every part of the interior has been redone and refitted with upgraded materials, including the ceiling, which has a colorful accent spine.

The Cabrera is only one of many vehicles that were launched surrounding the canceled Geneva Motor Show. Other new custom creations include the Lamborghini Urus Venatus and the Bentley Continental GT V8 Convertible.

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March 12, 2020 / Comments Off

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Cadillac Blackwing gets ticket to Italy, to go to work in a supercar

Some necessary cost-cutting at Cadillac led to switching the new CT4, CT5, and Escalade to older platforms. The revised architecture plan meant Cadillac’s newest top-tier products couldn’t fit Cadillac’s newest top-tier engine, the 4.2-liter twin-turbo DOHC V8 known as Blackwing. That engine would serve limited duty at full power in the now-dead CT6-V, and at reduced output in the CT6 Platinum V8 trim before ending its bright, brief domestic life. But the story isn’t over, the rebirth of Blackwing coming from a most surprising locale: Turin, Italy.

Before the canceled Geneva Motor Show, Hagerty spoke to Paolo Garella, CEO of Manifattura Automobili Torino; that’s the company better known as MAT, makers of the New Stratos and contract engineering house for boutique screamers like the Aspark Owl electric hypercar, Apollo Intensa Emozione, and SCG003C. Garella told the outlet, “We have an agreement with General Motors” for a supply of Blackwings, which would be developed and built at the General Motors Propulsion Engineering Center (PEC) in Turin. Since 2005, the PEC has been used to develop GM’s global diesel engines and electronics. MAT’s plan is to put the V8 into a new limited-run car MAT is creating from its own design.

Then another surprising turn: Belgium-based global auto supplier Punch Group bought the PEC, with plans to work with GM on projects in progress until at least the end of 2021. Nothing changes as far as MAT is concerned, except perhaps a chance for an even closer collaboration with Punch Turin.

The V8 once hand-built at the Performance Engine Center in Bowling Green, Kentucky, made 550 horsepower and 627 pound-feet of torque in its most powerful form. Of course we’re looking forward to the Blackwing-powered vehicle MAT comes up with; the prospect of a V8-powered supercar with a modern mill is the best kind of news. Just as much, though, we’re looking forward to what’s possible with the Blackwing in a high-performance application freed of OEM constraints. The 4.2-liter LTA Blackwing shares its architecture with the 5.5-liter LT7 V8 in the Chevrolet Corvette C8.R racer and headed for the Corvette Z06, the big differences being turbos mounted between the cylinder banks on the Blackwing, whereas the boosters hang outside the banks on the LT7, and the Chevy engine uses a flat-plane crank.

It’s a moonshot, but if the Blackwing proves its might and popularity over time, and sees continuous development, perhaps the engine could one day be recalled to service with a different car at its original brand home.

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March 9, 2020 / Comments Off

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Lamborghini Huracán Super Trofeo Omologato preparing for debut

Lamborghini’s Squadra Corse motorsports division will soon be showing two takes on two of Lamborghini’s marquee products. At the deep end, we have the Aventador-based, 830-horsepower track car recently flogged on a dyno. At the other deep end we have this, which Motor1 caught wind of: Instagram user “allanlambo” uploaded pics of a camouflaged Huracán said to be called the Huracán STO, for Super Trofeo Omologato. If you’ve seen the automaker’s one-make and customer race car, the Huracán Super Trofeo Evo, the camouflaged coupe should look real familiar. From what we can tell, everything from the B-pillar back could have come straight from the competition car — the roof scoop, shark fin, bodacious wing, deep-dish spoiler, and center-lock wheels are all looking for the checkered flag. The rear even copies the overall design and negative spaces from the race car, as well as the diffuser, the only major change being the rear lights from the road car. The STO, according to Internet rumor and forum postings, will be a limited-edition road-going version of the race car.

Automobile mentioned this very creature late last year but only in passing, as a side dish to the possibility of a production Sterrato off-road sports car. According to a PistonHeads forum, word is the Huracán STO is about making the most of the Huracán Evo’s already potent package, so the naturally-aspirated 5.2-liter V10 with 632 horsepower and 442 pound-feet of torque goes unchanged. The engine will have less weight to shift, thanks to a diet expected to shed around 330 pounds. All power will go to the rear wheels, and as a Squadra Corse production, the Lamborghini Talk forum claims that the coupe won’t get the ALA system that improves handling. Backroom chatter has it that the STO was designed for superior hotshoes who carry their personal ALA systems somewhere between their solar plexii and their gall bladders, not for the merely average hotshoes who praise technology for keeping them out of gravel traps. Other add-ons like a racing clutch, a mechanical differential, and bigger brakes have been mentioned as potential upgrades.

Both forums peg a debut during Monterey Car Week in August, before the car goes on sale late this year as a 2021 model. The automaker supposedly intended the STO to be a small-batch special for dealer-backed race teams and Squadra Corse clients, akin to the Ferrari 488 Pista Piloti, but has opened sales to a wider audience. That doesn’t mean the opening is large, however; Lamborghini’s apparently spiffed up a customer grading system, so dealers can submit willing buyers and the factory will choose which applicants win. Owners have heard build numbers of between 400 and 700 units, dealers said to be lobbying for that lower number or even fewer. Applicants who lose out shouldn’t despair, there’s rumor of a Huracán Superleggera arriving before the model gives way to the next generation sometime around 2023.

March 7, 2020 / Comments Off

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Pikes Peak Hill Climb Record | Behind the Wheel S02 // E09

“Behind the Wheel” is a video series that shows you a bit of what it’s like to work at Autoblog. The editors and video producers will show you the cars we have in our fleet, and you’ll get a behind-the-scenes look at some of the personalities who help make the site run.

In this episode, Senior Producer Christopher McGraw packed up his bags, got in the car and moved out to the fantastic state of Colorado. After getting settled in the mountains, his first assignment was to cover VW’s attempt at setting the course record for the Pikes Peak Hill Climb. What followed was one of his favorite days on the job.

Where are you traveling to in 2020? We’d love to hear from you, so please comment below!

Gear used to make this:

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March 5, 2020 / Comments Off

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2019 Hennessey Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk HPE1000 First Drive | Sounds like war, goes like hell

LOS ANGELES — To get our hands on Hennessey’s 1,000-horsepower Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk HPE1000, we agree to meet Vinny Russo in an alley across the street from the practice facility of the Los Angeles Clippers. Noon sharp.

We hear the Hellcat-powered SUV before we see it, its raspy idle reverberating off the concrete buildings and expanse of fence. It rounds the corner and comes into view, its thunder growing as it slowly approaches over the dirty broken asphalt. It sounds like my big-block ’69 Camaro: thump, thump, thump.

Russo climbs out. “Sorry I’m late,” he says before reaching back in and shutting down the Jeep’s blown Hemi. The silence seems to hang in the air along with the Grand Cherokee’s spent hydrocarbons. It smells like an old-school big block, too.

“This is John’s personal truck,” he says handing me the SUV’s red key. “It’s the one on the internet going 181 mph with a Christmas tree on top and all that other cool stuff. It’s got 20,000 miles on it of …”

He pauses for a second. I’m sure he wants to say abuse. That the Jeep has seen 20,000 miles of abuse. But he’s a good PR man so he stopped himself. I can see him searching for another word. Any other word. He clears his throat.

“It’s got 20,000 miles on it of R&D,” he says. “Just make sure you have it pointing straight and have a good grip on the wheel the first time you go to full throttle. It’ll shock you.”

John, of course, is John Hennessey, and his company Hennessey Performance down in Houston offers up an extensive range of 1,000-hp machines, from McLarens to supercharged Camaros, Corvettes and Hellcats. It’s a good place to drain your 401(k).

After modifying his personal Mitsubishi 3000GT VR4 and driving it to a class record at Bonneville in 1991, he built his first Dodge Viper in 1992, the Venom 500, opened Hennessey Performance and paid the bills cranking out disgustingly powerful Vipers for the next decade and half. Then he built his own supercar about 10 years ago, the Venom GT. Steven Tyler famously bought one.

At some point he began turning up the wick on pickups and SUVs. Today Hennessey says it has built more than 10,000 specialty vehicles, and last year trucks and SUVs made up about 50 percent of its business. There’s the usual fare on the menu, including 600-hp Navigators, 650-hp Escalades and 800-hp Tahoes, but the company’s products can get pretty wild. Its V8-swapped Ford Raptors are popular. Or how about a Chevy Silverado with two rear axles? Not into a 6×6? Maybe I can interest you in a $225,000 1,000-hp Hellcat-powered Jeep Gladiator called the Maximus?

Last year we drove its least powerful and least expensive model, the 360-hp VelociRaptor Ranger. So this time we asked for something more extreme. Hennessey offers three versions of the Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk, the HPE850, HPE1000 and the HPE1200, which the company says makes 1,200 hp and 1,000 lb-ft of torque at the crank on 109-octane fuel. We settled for the one with only 1,000 ponies.

Hennessey says the modifications it makes to the Jeep’s supercharged 6.2-liter Hemi V8 increases its output from 707 hp at 6,000 rpm and 645 lb-ft of torque at 4,800 rpm to 1,012 hp at 6,500 rpm and 969 lb-ft torque at 4,200 rpm. And trust me when I tell you, meeting a guy at a gas station with a new ZR1 Corvette and telling him your SUV has 245 horses more than his supercar is a hoot. You should have seen his face.

With the Trackhawk’s all-wheel drive, 20-inch Pirelli Scorpion All-Season Run Flats and launch control putting the power down, the guy’s Corvette didn’t stand a chance and he knew it. Hennessey says the Jeep hits 60 mph in 2.6 seconds and blows through the quarter mile in 10.2 seconds at 133 mph — and it really does feel that quick. According to Jeep, a stocker hits 60 mph in 3.5 and runs the quarter in 11.6 seconds.

So how do you make a Grand Cherokee that weighs 5,363 pounds accelerate like a Lamborghini Huracán Evo? Hennessey basically adds boost and fuel. The size of the factory-installed IHI root-type supercharger is increased from 2.38 liters to 2.65 liters. It also spins faster than before thanks to a smaller pulley, up from 14,600 rpm, and generates a maximum of 18 psi of boost, up from 11.6 psi.

A Kenne Bell Boost-A-Pump is installed to increase fuel pressure and volume to the Fuel Injector Clinic 1,000cc injectors, which supply fuel at a rate of 110 lbs/hr. Hennessey also adds tubular headers, an open element air filter and reflashes the ECU, raising the engine’s rev limiter from 6,200 rpm to 6,500 rpm in the process.

That’s all there is to it. The SUV even looks pretty much stock under the hood, and Hennessey doesn’t touch its suspension, brakes, all-wheel drive system or its ZF-supplied 8HP90 eight-speed automatic. And it can all be yours for $34,950, not counting the cost of the Jeep, of course.

Hennessey backs the package with a one-year / 12,000-mile warranty. Unfortunately it does void the Grand Cherokee’s factory warranty, and Hennessey doesn’t guarantee any of its kits are CARB legal. So California residents may have a problem at the smog check. “The rest of the states haven’t been an issue,” Russo told us.

Around town you can’t help but feel like you’re the king of the hill in this thing. How can you not? You’re driving one of the quickest SUVs on earth. A mommymobile that runs with hypercars. And it’s a serious sleeper. Hennessey removes the Trackhawk badge from the tailgate and the Supercharged lettering from Jeep’s doors. Unlike Saleens and Roushes, which are covered in branding, he adds a single and subtle Hennessey script to the left side of the SUV’s rump. Either you know, or you think it’s a V6 with a (very loud) exhaust leak.

After driving it for a couple of days, you start getting cocky. I remember passing a guy in an SRT Grand Cherokee and thinking, “Man, what a loser. He only has 475 hp to play with. Must be frustrating.”

Quarter throttle at any speed leaves traffic in the dust. Half throttle and you’re at 100 mph before you know it. Full throttle is simply violent. Use the launch control, which unleashes the SUV at 2,800 rpm, and the thrust is so brutal it ripped my kid’s sunglasses from the top of her head, sending them from backseat into the cargo area and up against the tailgate.

And the entire time the Hemi spits a cacophonous mix of exhaust thunder and high-pitched supercharger whine. It isn’t just supercar fast, it’s supercar loud. At wide-open throttle, it sounds like the Tasmanian Devil, its eight-speed grabbing gears at 6,000 rpm, still 500 rpm below the engine’s power peak. At red lights, people in Teslas and Priuses roll up their windows in a feeble effort to escape its ruckus, sealing in their smug. One man’s noise is another man’s music, and the Jeep is playing Extreme Metal.

Unfortunately there’s a metallic resonance between 1,500 and 2,000 rpm, which is a problem when you’re putting around town. “It sounds broken,” my wife said. But above 2,000 the tone levels out and the engine is pretty quiet on the highway. At 80, the Jeep cruises like a stocker, but the big blown Hemi’s presence is always felt. Even at a steady 2,200 rpm, it sends a slight thump through the Grand Cherokee’s chassis like an elevated heartbeat.

In perfect comfort, with the family and dog onboard, we cruised this 1,000-hp beast a few hours to grandma’s, averaging 13.6 mpg on the highway and just over 12 mpg in about 400 miles of mixed driving. Honestly, we were expecting worse.

Maybe Hennessey should consider a 6×6 version.

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February 28, 2020 / Comments Off

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Czinger releases full specs on 21C hybrid hypercar

A week ago, LA-based Czinger teased its 21C hypercar with a video and a promise of “dominating performance.” Now that all the specs are out before the coupe’s reveal at the Geneva Motor Show, on paper at least, it appears “dominating” was the correct choice of words. We’ll start with the performance: Zero to 62 miles per hour in 1.9 seconds — making 0-60 perhaps faster; the quarter-mile in 8.1 seconds at 170 mph; zero to 186 mph and back to zero in 15 seconds; zero to 248 mph and back to zero in 29 seconds, which would eclipse the Koenigsegg Regera’s record of 31.49 seconds set last September.

Assuming the 21C can bring those numbers to life, how does the coupe do it? There’s a 2.88-liter twin-turbo V8 with a flat-plane crank stowed amidships driving the rear wheels, good for 950 horsepower. (To get a sense of the march of progress, the 2.855-liter twin-turbo V8 in the 1984 Ferrari 288 GTO produced 350 hp.) Each front wheel gets a high-powered electric motor, serving up all-wheel drive and a combined output of 1,232 horsepower and 600 lb-ft of torque at 10,500 rpm, 500 rpm short of redline. The 21C in standard road guise without the big rear wing has a curb weight of 1,250 kilograms (2,756 pounds), and with a metric horsepower rating of 1,250 hp, we’re talking about a 1:1 power-to-weight ratio. The 21C Lightweight track-focused car with the big rear wing weighs just 1,218 kg (2,685 pounds). Shifting through a seven-speed automated manual transmission, the road car maxes out at 268 mph, the track car produces more than three times the road car’s downforce so its top speed comes in at 236 mph.

The e-motors get juice from a lithium-titanate battery, the same pack composition used by the Mitsubishi i-Miev and Honda Fit EV, an integrated starter-generator helping to deliver power where needed. Czinger says the entire powertrain was designed and is built in-house, and it’s flex-fuel — owners can fill up with Vulcanol, described as “a renewable methanol made from captured carbon dioxide,” assuming they can find it.

Czinger is only making 80 examples of the 21C, using its proprietary “vertical assembly,” 3D-printed build processes that combine carbon fiber, high-performance alloys, and other materials, topped off with book-matched carbon fiber bodywork. Road & Track has a good writeup on the production system. Company founder Kevin Czinger explained that the 3D-printed parts are expected to last the lifetime of the car, but if any need to be replaced, they can be dissolved into their original powder and reconstituted to serve a different purpose.

Each 21C comes with a reported price of $1.7 million before the obligatory options and fripperies. We look forward to checking this one out in Geneva, and we’ll take the one with the wing, please.

February 21, 2020 / Comments Off

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Glickenhaus SCG 004C gets its first track shakedown in Italy

It can be hard to keep track of the various Scuderia Cameron Glickenhaus vehicles on the way because we read about them for years before seeing them. No matter, when they do show, they are welcome sights. The SCG 004C, hardcore racer that’s successor to the Nürburgring pole-sitting 003C, is the next to make the transition from text coverage to track footage. Developed to ultimately serve as a platform for GTE, GTLM, GT3, and GT4 categories as well as Germany’s NLS series, SCG put the first example to test on Italy’s Cremona Circuit. Years ago, SCG’s plan was to have Nissan’s 3.8-liter twin turbo VR38DETT V6 from GT-R placed amidships. That plan morphed into using a 6.2-liter naturally-aspirated pushrod V8 based on GM’s LT4 block, developed by Autotechnica Motori.

Fellow Italian company Podium Advanced Technologies is helping with overall vehicle engineering, SCG saying the 004 chassis — which will get an 004S road version, 004CS road/track version, and the 004C track-specific car — has already been through 35,000 hours of development work. As to the engine, James Glickenhaus told Sportscar365, “It can’t rev very high, but GT3 engines can’t rev very high anyway with the restrictors. You get a very low center of gravity and it’s a very compact engine, so there’s a tremendous amount of space around it to blow air around and keep it cool.” The 003C used a 3.5-liter, twin-turbocharged Honda HR35TT V6 built for IMSA’s Daytona Prototype category. Glickenhaus said the change in philosophy with the 004C meant that “with the low-end torque, we’re going to be able to be faster coming out of the turns than we were with the 003C.”

On the first shakedown and improvements compared to the 003C, the owner explained that two more inches of suspension travel in the 004C would translate into softer landings on the high-flying Nordschleife, and the new nose results in improved downforce and better aero balance. The 004C is also about 220 pounds lighter than its 2,976-pound forebear.

The 004C will of course be restricted to series power limits. Since the road-going cars won’t be limited, customers will get about 680 hp out of the V8 in the 004S, and around 850 hp out of the 004CS with the help of a supercharger bolted to that V8. Estimated price for the hand-built, carbon-fiber bodied 004S is $485,000, the 004CS will start around $650,000. As with the racer, all versions will employ a three-seater cockpit with a central driver’s seat, the choice of a six-speed manual or seven-speed dual-clutch transmission; the race car fits an Xtrac sequential transmission.

After its first test at Cremona, the 004C heads to Aragon, Spain, for a 30-hour endurance test. Its first race comes next month in the Experimental Class in the NLS series, before racing again in April, and a tilt at the Nürburgring 24 in May. Check out the sound from the outside in the clip above, and the on-board views below.

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February 21, 2020 / Comments Off

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Czinger preparing 21C hybrid hypercar for Geneva debut

Kevin Czinger — with a silent C — has spent the past 11 years that we know of trying out various automotive concepts in Southern California. The Yale Law School graduate who built hot rods as a youth in Cleveland co-founded Coda Automotive in 2009, which tried to get off the ground with a re-engineered Chinese sedan converted to an all-electric powertrain. Coda went under in 2013. In 2014. The next year, Czinger started Divergent 3d, which revealed the Blade supercar in 2015. Czinger’s point with the Blade was to convert automakers to novel production techniques, the Blade’s chassis and body created with 3D-printed aluminum alloy. In 2019, Czinger formed an eponymous company taking the Blade as the inspiration for the Czinger 21C hybrid hypercar. In a previous interview with Road and Track, which deserves a read, Czinger said, “We’re looking to combine computing power, science, and additive manufacturing into one system.”

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The 21C could be that blend, having clearly come a long way from the Blade. We don’t know much about the coupe, Czinger preferring to wait for details until its debut at the Geneva Motor Show next month. The moody reveal video shows off the suite of hypercar cues like diminutive overhangs, the fulsome fenders, angry LED headlights, plenty of vents, center-lock wheels twirling around giant carbon ceramic rotors and beefy calipers, a serious wing hanging off the back, and what looks like a top-mount dual exhaust. Tandem seating — passenger behind driver — carries over from the Blade, and the copious exposed carbon fiber bodywork hides plenty of 3D-printed components. The brace connecting the carbon fiber steering column housing to the instrument panel, for instance, looks a prime culprit for additive manufacturing. The full-width roller coaster brake light ensures everyone behind the 21C will remember what they’ve just seen.

The powertrain is an unknown beyond the descriptive that it’s a “strong hybrid” developed in-house to deliver “dominating performance.” Strong would be the correct word if the video can be trusted; at the 0:28 mark, the digital rev counter shows a redline beyond 10,000 rpm. We’ll know more come Geneva.

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February 14, 2020 / Comments Off

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Lister Storm II hypercar teased, with a switch from V12 to electric

Two years ago, the revamped Lister Motor Company dished out sketches for a Storm II hypercar. The name was a nod to the 1993 Le Mans race car and road derivative created by another incarnation of Lister in 1993, which housed a Jaguar XJR-9-derived 7.0-liter V12 amidships producing 546 horsepower. The tentative plan in 2018 was for the Storm II to get a Jaguar-derived 7.8-liter V12 spooling up something like 1,000 horsepower and pointing its snout at the likes of McLaren, Pagani, and Koenigsegg. That was all so two years ago, though. Lister CEO Lawrence Whittaker recently tweeted another image of the Storm II, this time a profile drawing, with the captions, “A glimpse into the future of Lister … the Storm II,” and, “Lister EV super car research.” The EV part is what matters here, Whittaker apparently changing tack on the powertrain and the competitive set.

The side shot offers a look at the vanishing point rear end, a look calling to mind either a truncated McLaren Speedtail, or Speed Racer’s Mach 5 with the fender fins combined into a single shark fin down the centerline. Our best attempts to enhance and enlarge make it seem there’s a deployable spoiler behind the shark fin. The backside’s other big prominent feature is a deep diffuser. In the photo, the carbon fiber floor extends beyond the trailing edge of the bodywork, almost never seen on a car outside of a race track, and even then that car is most likely on a trailer. That makes symmetry, the carbon fiber front splitter jutting beyond the yellow-rimmed intake at the other end.

Original specs were for the V12-powered Storm II to hit 60 miles per hour in under 3 seconds, on its way to a top speed beyond 250 miles per hour, all for a price starting at £2 million ($2.6M U.S.). Lister’s hometown competition, the Lotus Evija, has restrained its top speed references to something “beyond 200 mph,” and the just-announced Apex “hyper-EV” runs out at 174 mph. The Rimac C-Two and Pininfarina Battista, though, have proved Lister’s trio of targets achievable with far less aggressive looks. We won’t be surprised if Lister has a terminal velocity in mind well beyond the Rimac’s 258 mph.

We hope Lister can show us something more than another rendering come 2022. For now, the company seems busy building the F-Type-based LFT and F-Pace-based LCP, various versions of the continuation Lister Knobbly race cars, and selling classic and performance cars out of its new dealership in Blackburn, England.

February 14, 2020 / Comments Off

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Koenigsegg reportedly bringing ‘Mission 500’ concept to Geneva

Koenigsegg has a thing for the Geneva Motor Show, introducing its first customer car there, the CC82, in 2002. Since then, the Swedish carmaker has trucked wares like the CCX and CCXR, Agera, Regera, and Jesko from Angelholm to greet the world in the Romandy region of Switzerland. According to a report in The Supercar Blog, the ritual takes place again this year, with Koenigsegg supposedly debuting a concept called Mission 500. The concept, so the story goes, will preview the vehicle the hypercar maker plans to use to crack the 300-mile-per-hour barrier. The “500” in the name refers to 500 kilometers per hour, which equates to 310.6 miles per hour. There are rumors of two more cars on display, but the Mission 500 concept is the centerpiece.

Getting any production car to reach 300 miles per hour is a stellar feat, one accomplished last September by the Bugatti Chiron Super Sport 300+. The task is so difficult that every extra mile per hour beyond 300 could be considered its own Herculean conquest of several categories of physics. The Molsheim coupe ran 304.77 mph (490.48 kilometers per hour) at Volkswagen’s Ehra-Lessien track. If Koenigsegg can hit the magic 500, that additional 6 mph represents a gargantuan achievement.

It’s not clear if the Mission 500 concept is a new vehicle or based on the Jesko. Company boss Christian von Koenigsegg has said he has a 300-mph variant of the Jesko in mind that only needs some extreme aero to manage the task. The CEO has practical math to work with for his claim, his company having got the Agera RS up to 277.87 mph in 2017 — that speed averaged after runs in both directions, unlike the Chiron Super Sport run that was timed in one direction only. If the Mission 500 is Jesko-based, we’d expect to see the 5.0-liter V8 amidships that makes 1,577 horsepower and 1,106 pound-feet of torque on E85, or “just” 1,262 hp and 941 kW on 95-octane pump gas.

Top Fuel NHRA racer Brittany Force set a national record last year at 338.17 mph through the speed trap, using a 500-cubic inch (8.19-liter) supercharged V8 with 10,000 horsepower to do it. The idea that we could see a passenger car with navigation and two cupholders get within 30 mph of that speed is outstanding. Even better is the idea that, assuming the Swedes pull it off, Hennessey or SSC might attempt to beat it. Come on, Geneva.

January 15, 2020 / Comments Off

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Ferrari Roma platform to underpin Purosangue SUV, as product roadmap takes shape

To create the Roma, Ferrari started with the platform used for the Portofino convertible. Engineers strengthened and lightened the architecture and made it modular, so that it will support the company’s range of front-engined vehicles included in CEO Louis Camilleri’s near-term product roadmap of 15 new vehicles over the next three years. Auto Express reports one of those products will be the Purosangue SUV – or FUV, Ferrari Utility Vehicle if you heed the carmaker’s marketers – expected to debut in 2021 before going on sale in 2022 or 2023. The breadth of possibility built into the platform means it can swallow Ferrari’s range of V8 and V12 engines, as well as the coming V6, plus plug-in hybrid equipment and all-wheel drive mechanicals.

Although observers figure a V12 Purosangue will grace the lineup eventually, models with smaller engines braced with hybrid assistance are expected first. The V12, in fact, is unlikely to get a hybrid form if Ferrari can help it, the brand’s marketing manager saying, “To be honest, electrifying a V12 means creating, very probably, a heavy and big car. So electrification ideally should be coupled with smaller engines.” Absent Ferrari’s righteous 6.5-liter V12, Ferrari’s head of technology says there will be other ways the vehicle codenamed “175” distinguishes itself from V8-powered super-SUV competition, but wouldn’t clarify what those ways are.

We’ll guess the people-hauler slots into the company’s GT vehicle classification alongside the GTC4Lusso, Portofino, and Roma. In the next decade, the GT category grows with a new supercar that marks “the return of an elegant model” cued off classic, mid-20th-century Ferrari Gran Turismos, as well as a battery-electric car after 2025. The Sport Range includes the 812Superfast and 812 GTS, 488 and 488 Pista, and SF90 Stradale. The Icona line kicked off with the Monza SP1 and SP2, and will expand with “timeless design[s] of iconic Ferraris reinterpreted with innovative materials and state of the art technologies.” One-offs like the F12 TRS, SP12 EC and SP38 form the Special Series. The carmaker’s entire range will be split across two modular platforms, one for front-engined placement, one mid-engined.

At the pointy end of the product roadmap, it’s thought Ferrari’s already begun development of its LaFerrari successor. Said to use a naturally-aspirated V12 without electric help, it will produce less output than found in the 986-horsepower, hybrid-V8-powered SF90, while at the same time Ferrari says the new model will be faster than the hybrid-V12-powered LaFerrari. Due sometime after 2022, the new small-run screamer will focus on lightness, controllability and aerodynamics.

December 26, 2019 / Comments Off

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Top Gear magazine climbs all over the McLaren Elva

Top Gear deputy editor Jack Rix took a camera crew to McLaren’s Technology Center for a closer look at the Elva roadster. Not only did Rix provide his usual, thorough once-over and explanation of design features, but thanks to the magic of moving pictures, we get graphic demonstrations of how the Elva’s most interesting feature works. McLaren engineers needed to figure out a way to protect helmetless occupants from getting their faces painted with bugs and detritus at speed. Their solution is the Active Air Management System (AAMS), composed of a deflector and a network of vents that create a “bubble of calm” around the passenger cell. Unlike the rest of the Elva, the AAMS ain’t pretty, but beauty always loses tie-breakers to effectiveness in Woking.

For a vehicle with so little to it, including the number of body panels, there’s a ton going on all around the open-top. The rear mesh is 3D-printed titanium. Short seat squabs combined with a moving steering wheel and gauge cluster improve ingress and egress. Four high-flow exhaust pipes are placed in two locations and pointed two directions in order to separate tones as if the exhaust were an audio system – because, in truth, it is. And there’s more, but we’ll let Rix explain.

As an aside, for all the Elva does have, we think it’s a shame the roadster doesn’t have a roofed version. Digital artist Nikita Aksyonov drew up an Elva Coupe, and we’re fans. Better looks than the McLaren GT, in a package that appears more compact than the 720S, with a more powerful engine than the Senna? Yes. All day yes.

But we digress, so check out Rix’s take in the video.

December 23, 2019 / Comments Off

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JRM GT23 a limited-edition, road-legal Nissan GT-R GT3 racer

Nissan has worked with England’s JR Motorsports (JRM) for a decade on race versions of the GT-R Nismo. JRM won the GT1 World Driver’s championship in 2011 with the GT-R Nismo GT1, and in 2012 developed the GT-R Nismo GT3 that it still engineers and sells for certain international markets. To celebrate a decade of expertise and success with the Japanese super-coupe, the engineering firm has created a road-legal version of the GT3 called the GT23, because just 23 units will be built. That means getting the 3.8-liter twin-turbo V6 in the GT3 car instead of the 5.6-liter V8 in the GT1 racer, but without FIA series restrictions, GT23 specs surpass both the competition cars. It starts with a tune to 650-horsepower, 50 hp more than the GT3 car, and a likely 510 pound-feet of torque in a package that weighs 2,811 pounds. The scale figure is about 55 pounds less than the actual GT3 racer, and a gargantuan 1,054 pounds less than a stock, 600-hp GT-R Nismo.

Nothing’s been untouched.The aggro aero starts up front with a mesh grille replacing the solid bumper, above a huge splitter. What’s left of the hood really only provides attachment points for an enormous duct below the cowl. The track’s been widened by 3.5 inches in front and 3.9 inches in back, covered with wider, vented fenders and underlined with extended, vented side sills. The high rear wing lords over a mostly unchanged rear end fitted with a deep diffuser and center-exit exhaust. Even with all that, the GT23 is a whole foot shorter than a stock GT-R. JRM says that with 325-width race slicks on the 18-inch wheels all around, the GT23 can max out at 2G in corners. An optional Extreme Pack ups output to 760 hp, bolts on a larger front splitter, turning vanes, and a bigger rear wing, fits an FIA roll cage, fire extinguisher, stiffer suspension and anti-roll bars, center-lock wheels, and air jacks.

Engineers swapped the GT-R’s all-wheel drive for rear-wheel drive, and moved the engine back to improve balance. The seven-speed automatic is gone, a six-speed sequential gearbox with a four-plate clutch in its place. The suspension is height-adjustable, the brakes vented all around, with six-piston calipers in front, four-piston units in back.

The interior’s been stripped to near racing standard, the gauge cluster thrown out for a compact, full-color digital display. A steering wheel with a bunch of buttons matches the new center console that’s been pared back to a push-button control center on the tunnel. And get a load of that all-encompassing race seat.

JRM will construct each GT23 at its headquarters in Daventry, England. Price starts at £380,000 British pounds ($498,383 U.S.) before options like the £59,995 Extreme Pack ($78,680 U.S.). JRM says clients can work with the design team to customize their cars as desired, deliveries will begin in Spring 2020.

December 19, 2019 / Comments Off

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McLaren Senna Can-Am and XP special editions honor two racing icons

McLaren produced 500 examples of the Senna road car, and the entire run sold out immediately. This year it added the more powerful, track-only Senna GTR, selling out of all 75 units instantly. That’s not the end of the Senna line, however, with 26 more units divvied up between three special editions. The most numerous is the Senna LM, a street-legal version of the GTR supposedly put together by McLaren Special Operations. The bodywork’s been toned down a touch by dropping the aero flics on the front bumper and the GTR’s extended rear wing, and the LM fits a less aggressive rear diffuser. Interestingly, a spy shot shows the Senna LM also going without the windows in the lower portions of the doors. There’s no reliable intel on the engine yet, but it’s hoped that the LM fits the same 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 as the GTR, producing 814 horsepower and 590 pound-feet of torque. The LM is reputed to cost £1.3 million ($1.7 million U.S.)

CarBuzz reports that another special edition will be based on the Senna LM, having received an anonymous tip from a reader with one of the cars on order. Called the Senna Can-Am, McLaren would only say that this model was commissioned by a dealer. As the name implies, the coupe celebrates the legendary Can-Am cars that terrorized the series in the late 1960s and 1970s, and that are responsible for giving us the trademark orange hue McLaren remains known for. The Senna Can-Am is a specific homage to the M8B, called “the perfect race car,” that started on pole and won all 11 races during the 1967 season with Bruce McLaren and Denny Hulme driving.

In CarBuzz‘s rendering, the Can-Am is done up in McLaren orange with Canadian flags on the front fenders, and number roundels on the rear fenders along with the signatures of McLaren and Hulme. Instead of the “LM” logos on the wing endplates and embroidered into the headrests, “Can-Am” appears instead, the M8B’s race record appears on the door sills, and a black anodized throttle pedal gets the Can-Am logo. CarBuzz‘s source said the Senna Can-Am is “due to be delivered in two to four weeks,” and cost $1.5 million.

The final three special-edition examples (pictured) come from early in the life of the Senna. Beverly Hills managed to acquire three of the experimental prototypes that McLaren used to develop the Senna, and commissioned three builds now known as the Senna XP. Each car gets a name and celebrates a Formula One race track where Ayrton Senna scored an especially outstanding victory. All three are dressed in gloss black carbon fiber, accented with the colors of the F1 circuit’s country, and adorned with Ayrton’s car number on the wing endplates. The “Master of Monaco” lauds Senna’s six victories in the principality; “Lap of the Gods” hails Senna’s opening lap in the wet at Donnington in 1993 when he drove from fifth place to first in less than a lap; “Home Victory” relishes Senna’s 1991 win in Brazil.

The Senna XP uses the standard Senna’s 3.9-liter V8 with 789 hp and 590 lb-ft, costs $1,435,328, and naturally, is sold out.

December 13, 2019 / Comments Off

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Bugatti Chiron Noire only slightly less exclusive than ‘La Voiture Noire’

Bugatti has only constructed one La Voiture Noire, the homage to the Jean Bugatti’s now-lost 57 SC Atlantic, and as far as we know, Bugatti will only build one. The Molsheim manfuacturer has come up with a way to spread the sheen of The Black Car to a few more Bugatti owners with two versions of a single special edition. The Chiron Noire Elegance and Chiron Noire Sportive are two ways to dress the hypercar up in black, the difference being that one presents a gleaming black objet to admire, the other opens two doors to a singularity and perhaps a portal to the Planet of the Apes.

The Elegance is the showy black one, all of its bodywork done in exposed carbon fiber. Two new mesh designs cover the front radiator grilles, highlighted by a Bugatti badge worked up in solid silver and black enamel. Matte polished aluminum caps the C-line swooping around the doors, tying in with the polished aluminum on the side mirrors and engine cover. Lower down, the word “Noire” on the rear fenders, scripted in black, of course, gives away the coupe’s exclusive identity, as do the black brake calipers. Inside the black leather interior, silk-matte aluminum highlights the C-line between the seats, and Noire badging decorates the center console, armrest, and door sills.

The Chiron Noire Sportive is the shadowy black one, all of its bodywork and normally metallic jewelry slathered in matte black, including the C-line and tailpipes. Bugatti appears to have dipped the interior in a tub of black, so not only is the leather the color of night, so too are all the usually aluminum parts; the C-line, the steering wheel, the center console, switchgear, buttons and knobs on the dashboard and the door handles, all of them want to swallow all the light.

Bugatti will sell only 20 of this Chrion Noire special edition, builds to begin in the second quarter of next year. Either package can be ordered for the base Chrion for three million euros ($3.3M U.S.), or added to the more expensive Chiron Sport for an additional 100,000 euros ($110,865 U.S.).

December 3, 2019 / Comments Off

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Soundcheck: Aston Martin Valkyrie begins to scream

In July, Aston Martin published the first video of the Valkyrie on track at Britain’s Silverstone Circuit during the Formula One Grand Prix weekend there. Test driver Chris Goodwin didn’t push the 1,160-horsepower coupe to its limits, merely massaging the throttle for the camera a few times. The English carmaker headed back to Silverstone this month with a group of guests in tow, and this time the test driver put a little more muscle into the fly-bys. Since the track was wet, the soundtrack still can’t be considered the ultimate experience, but even so, the 6.5-liter Cosworth V12 sounds exceptionally good.

This new video injects a high-pitched wail that was missing in July, the kind of wicked, soaring keen that jellies one’s organs and notifies the mind of blinding terrors on approach. In fact, the Valkyrie now makes all the noises Formula 1 fans wished the F1 race cars could make. That’s no hyperbole, either. Compare the modern Cosworth to the 3.5-liter Honda V12 in the 1991 McLaren MP4/6, the resemblance is clear. Remove the street-legal equipment on the Aston Martin and let Goodwin uncork it, as we expect to happen in next year’s World Endurance Championship, and it’s clear the WEC might have the best sounding racers in all of motorsport.

Deliveries are scheduled to begin before the end of the year, so Aston Martin should be wrapping up its validation testing on Verification Prototype 1 if it hasn’t already. After that come competition entries into the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC). And after that, someone will need to convince at least one owner to drive the Valkyrie on the street so that we can all enjoy the noise.

November 30, 2019 / Comments Off

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New C8 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 engine rumor posits 900 horsepower

Let’s just go ahead and plan to feast on C8 Chevrolet Corvette rumors for the next few years. Two new reports have come out that drop new info on the ZR1 and gobs of details about what could turn into multiple hybrid Corvette models. Starting with Motor Trend, the magazine cites “a senior official at GM” for confirmation that the coming ZR1 will produce “an even 900 hp” from a performance-oriented hybrid powertrain. Displacement of the gasoline engine component remains a mystery. MT writes that the “ZR1 will build on the Z06’s all-new engine” with a block anywhere from 4.2 to 5.5 liters of displacement, but the potential vibration issues make the larger end of that range unlikely if the rumored flat-plane crank is involved.

Motor Trend sticks by sister publication Automobile‘s story that the Z06 will use an 800-hp twin-turbo engine based on the naturally aspirated 5.5-liter V8 in the C8.R. Countering that, Muscle Cars & Trucks believes the Z06 will go down to around 600 hp and use a naturally aspirated V8, with only the ZR1 getting the two turbos.

MT didn’t get any specs on the ZR1’s hybrid component, but Bozi Tatarevic happened upon internal GM documents that potentially fill in a swath of the picture. In a lengthy report for Jalopnik, Tatarevic suspects there could be “both a hybrid ZR1 and a hybrid base model Corvette.” The documents, along with cutaway models of the mid-engine sports car, show how the front area could house a single electric motor driven by a 1.94-kWh battery pack and power electronics packaged in the center tunnel. The e-motor, which is listed as running through an open differential, would produce about 114 peak horsepower and more than 880 lb-ft of torque after an 8:1 reduction gear. Being oriented toward performance, a pawl clutch would disconnect the motor and gear reduction from the front axle for better fuel economy. Said to be offered in coupe and convertible forms, the base Stingray with the LT2 V8 and hybrid system would throw something in the “mid-to-high 500 HP range if not more.”

Paperwork appears to show the motor would be mounted low enough in front for the Corvette to retain its frunk. In order to fit the shaft through the space currently occupied by the front dampers, the hybrid system will require split yoke dampers akin to those used on AWD versions of the Tesla Model 3. It’s possible magnetic dampers will be standard fit, as well as an electronic limited-slip differential running through a 3.797 final drive. Wheel sizes for what we’ll figure is the ZR1 would increase an inch front and back to 20 and 21 inches, respectively, with respective tire sizes of 275/30 and 345/25. According to codes in the document, carbon-ceramic brakes would be standard.

We only have a few more years to figure out where all these pieces go, so while you wait, check out Tatarevic’s in-depth report for cutaway images and loads more details on issues like weight balance and benchmarking against the Acura NSX.

November 27, 2019 / Comments Off

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Aston Martin DBS Superleggera Concorde Edition celebrates airspeed

This year is the 100th birthday of British Airways, as well as the 50th anniversary of the first flight for the Aérospatiale/BAC Concorde supersonic passenger jet. Today marks the 16th anniversary of the Concorde’s final hop, when Concorde 216 registered as G-BOAF flew from Heathrow to Bristol, England, with 100 BA employees on board, to roll into a display space at the Aerospace Bristol museum. That same plane was the last Concorde built, coming off the line in 1978 at BAC Filton Bristol. To celebrate the plane and BA and its aerospace neighbor, Aston Martin Bristol commissioned 10 special editions called the DBS Superleggera Concorde. Pieced together with the expertise of Q by Aston Martin, the coupe is the latest in Aston Martin’s aviation-inspired Wings Series specials, following the Vanquish S Red Arrows Edition, Vantage Blades Edition, and V12 Vantage S Spitfire 80.

Dressed in white, the coupe gets ornament in British Airways livery colors on the front splitter, roof strake, rear spoiler, rear diffuser, and inside the Aston Martin wings badge. A Concorde graphic decorates the black, carbon fiber roof, and a Concorde-shaped chunk of solid aluminum streaks through the side strakes. The British Airways “Speedmarque” logo is on the front fender above the black enamel Q by Aston Martin badge, the rear fenders wearing registration G-BOAF.

Printed Alcantara on the Superleggera’s cockpit headliner displays a sonic boom graphic, the front visors get mach meter graphics, the front seats show off Concorde and Speedmarque logos. Pieces of titanium compressor blades from the supersonic bird have been turned into paddle shifters, and embossed solid aluminum seatbelt buckles shine the Concorde again. The floor mats adopt a design by Sir Terence Conran, he being one of three designers commissioned to upgrade the Concorde’s interior not long before the jet went out of service.

The 5.2-liter V12 engine holds steady at 710 horsepower and 664 pound-feet of torque, plenty of thrust for booming travel on the ground. Aston Martin Bristol says it will donate part of the proceeds from each sale to the Air League Trust, a nonprofit that teaches underprivileged children how to fly and helps open doors for them into engineering professions.

November 26, 2019 / Comments Off

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New Porsche hypercar could use F1-spec hybrid powertrain

Not long after the Porsche 918 Spyder went out of production in 2015, the automaker began internal debate about what kind of powertrain it would use in the follow-up. Four years later, the debate is ongoing. In 2017, Porsche voiced its desire to move its hypercar game on with a battery-electric powertrain, beyond the hybrid 918. The problem — echoed by McLaren — was that battery technology wouldn’t make such a BEV possible until at least the middle of the 2020s. In 2019, the same issues remain, with solid-state battery tech not progressing as quickly as hoped. Autocar reports that Porsche could switch to Plan B in the meantime, that being an as-yet-unused 1.6-liter V6 hybrid engine Porsche Motorsport developed in order to return to Formula One as an engine supplier.

Porsche has been mentioned as a potential new F1 entrant for years, but uncertainty at the Volkswagen Group and in the F1 rulebook compelled the German sports car maker to walk away from the opportunity, opting for Formula E instead. However, after leaving LMP1, 40 Porsche engineers from the Le Mans effort began working on a six-cylinder version of the 2.0-liter four-cylinder hybrid from the 919 Hybrid. That work turned into the creation of a 1.6-liter V6 hybrid along the lines of an F1 engine but without “the complex and expensive” MGU-H unit that converts exhaust heat into electrical energy. Motorsport chief Fritz Enzinger says that engine is still in development, having got as far as running on a test bench for “analysis with regard to series production relevance.”

There’s no info on the hybrid component yet, but Stefan Weckbach, who oversees Porsche’s EV projects, said the company could turn to its partnership with Rimac for that aspect.

Even though Porsche has a motor ready, the board hasn’t decided on whether to go electric or hybrid, and sports car boss Frank-Steffen Walliser says he doesn’t care what kind of powertrain goes into the car as long as it can tick off a 6:30 lap time at the Nürburgring. So according to Autocar, what kind of bodywork might surround this powertain “remains at conceptual stage, with an introduction unlikely before 2023 at the earliest.” We don’t think the 917 Concept from 2014 would be a bad place to start. If Porsche goes with the 1.6-liter hybrid, though, the market would get a clearer competitor to the Mercedes-AMG One, and the platform could provide entries to the ACO’s new so-called Hypercar class in the World Endurance Championship and to IMSA’s Daytona Prototype class.

November 26, 2019 / Comments Off

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