After more than 5 years of development, the vehicle first known as P11, has finally hit production.
Following a world debut at Goodwood Festival of Speed and a series of exclusive presentations around the world in 2010, the first McLaren MP4-12C has begun production at the McLaren Technology Centre (MTC) in Woking, England.
Antony Sheriff, McLaren Automotive Managing Director said in a press statement, “In five years, the MP4-12C has evolved from a concept we developed in our own Formula 1 simulator, to a groundbreaking high-performance sports car offering unique technologies and outstanding dynamic performance. It has been an intensive development programme, but now the fun really begins as our future owners look forward to taking delivery of their 12Cs.
The MP4-12C features a twin-turbo 3.8-liter V8 engine with 447 kW (600 bhp / 608 PS) and 599 Nm (442 lb-ft) of torque connected to a seven-speed “Seamless Shift” double-clutch transmission. Acceleration from 0 to 100 km/h is less than 3.8 seconds. Top speed exceeds 300 km/h (186 mph).
The MP4-12C is available through a network of 35 retailer locations in 19 countries at a price of $229,000 in the US and £168,500 (including 20% VAT) in the UK.
Above you can see a a video of the new Audi Quattro cruising on what looks like the Pacific Coast Highway in California (as it was spotted in that area just last week), and meeting up with the classic 1984 Audi Sport Quattro.
At the Paris motor show, two months ago, the Quattro concept was debuted by Audi and features a 2.5-litre five-cylinder TFSI engine with 402 bhp. The Quattro coupe moves from 0-100 km/h in an easy 3.9 seconds.
The Audi Quattro will likely make it to production by 2012 or so, but limited to a small number of units per year.
Here’s a video of Ferrari President Luca di Montezemolo test driving the upcoming Lancia Stratos revival which features a Ferrari-sourced 4.3 liter V8 under the rear bonnet.
We await final details on the model but it is expected to be a top performing supercar with a power-to-weight ratio of 2.25 kg/hp or 364 hp per tonne and a dead-even weight distribution of 50:50.
The Stratos will be highly limited series with only around 25 units to be built.
Škoda UK has released a new TV commercial for the Fabia vRS.
The new advert carrying the “Made of Meaner Stuff” slogan presents a team of production line workers building the “meaner” Fabia vRS. As the commercial unfolds various “mean” events unfold showing the Fabia’s chassis made of bone, a snake-powered engine and unorthodox finishing techniques.
Billed as the fastest production Fabia ever built, the Fabia vRS features a 1.4 litre TSI turbo and supercharged engine producing 180 bhp. The Fabia vRS accelerates from 0-62 mph in 7.3 seconds via a seven speed DSG transmission while returning a combined fuel economy of 45.6 mpg (6.2l/100km).
New York Times reports the GM brand that invented the muscle car is now officially gone as the automaker’s agreement with Pontiac dealers came to an end on October 31st.
But the end of Pontiac already began last year when GM decided it would end production on all its models. Over the last decade the production models were not considered desirable cars by consumers.
Nevertheless, that was not always the case. Back in the 1960s, in its heyday, Pontiac was the number three brand in the United States, behind fellow GM brand Chevy and Ford vehicles. Frederick Perrine, a dealer in Cranbury, N.J., whose family sold Pontiacs since the brand’s founding, said: “When the muscle-car era was in its heyday, Pontiac was king.”
Pontiac took its name from the town in Michigan where it started and was a brand GM created back in 1926. Sales peaked in 1973 at 920,000 units. And now after 84 years and some 40 million in sales, the brand is dead.
Ford has announced there will be nine Mustangs at SEMA.
The Ford Vehicle Personalization Mustang has exclusive Sherwin-Williams paint, side scoops, a billet grille and 18-inch wheels. Inside, there’s two-tone upholstery, faux carbon fiber trim, and unique accent lighting.
MRT’s Mustang has an aggressive front bumper, a sport suspension, Baer brakes, and a stainless steel exhaust system.
The Mustang by Team Baurtwell and Funkmaster Flex has a 3dCarbon body kit, a sport suspension, smoked taillights, and NC Forged three-piece billet wheels. It was made for Snoop Dogg.
Muscle Mustangs and Fast Fords will show off a car that features a Roush front fascia, a Cervini hood, a Ford Racing supercharger, and a sport exhaust system.
Creations n’ Chrome has teamed up with the American Cancer Society to raise awareness for breast cancer with a pink Mustang convertible. It boasts a Vortech supercharger, a 3dCarbon body kit, HRE wheels and Wilwood brakes.
The Mobsteel Mustang features an STS turbocharger, an Air Runner suspension, and a Magnaflow cat-back exhaust. Other goodies include Baer brakes, Savini wheels and Pirelli tires.
Raceskinz’s car has a ProCharger supercharger, a Magnaflow cat-back exhaust and Baer brakes. The interior boasts sports seats and carbon fiber trim.
Street Scene Equipment has built a Mustang convertible that “combines style, performance and luxury all in one package.” It has a front lip spoiler, a revised grille, a rear wing, and 20-inch MINT wheels with Yokohama tires.
Lastly, the Tjin Edition Mustang features a custom DuPont paint job, a Webasto sunroof, a Unique Fabrication rear wing, and LED headlights.
–> Please find the Press Release after the break, for more info..
The 1964 Aston Martin DB5 that Sean Connery drove in Goldfinger and Thunderball has sold for €3,328,000 / $4,608,500 USD at a London auction.
Bought by American Harry Yeaggy, the iconic movie car is original condition and features all of the gadgets used in the Bond movies. 007’s DB5 has a rear bulletproof shield, hidden Browning machine guns, a passenger ejector seat, a nail / calthrop spreader, an oil slick sprayer, and front and rear rams. In addition, there’s futuristic goodies (for 1964, that is) such as a mobile phone and a radar receiver.
According to Yeaggy, “This is a car that I’ve always wanted, after all it is the most famous car in the world.”
German tuner Geiger Cars has created its own compressor-edition of the 2011 Ford Mustang.
The twin-screw supercharger together with the standard 5.0 liter V8, Geiger Cars dials the Mustang’s power output up to 497 PS and 634 Nm from the series 412 PS and 529 Nm of torque.
In addition, the tuner also has removes the electronic speed limiter and lets the Mustang rage to a maximum speed of 274 km/h (170 mph)!!
Before any work is done, base price for the 2011 Mustang is €42,900. The performance tuning will cost €12,990 on top of that.
No, this is not a joke. Porsche has announced on its Twitter page (http://twitter.com/Porsche) that the 911 GT2 RS is sold out - less than two months after the model was introduced at the Moscow Auto Salon on August 25.
The Porsche 911 GT2 RS is a special edition supercar that comes with a twin-turbocharged 3.6 liter six-cylinder boxer engine producing a total of 620 PS - 0 to 100 km/h is achieved in 3.5 seconds.
The GT2 RS was limited to a series of just 500 units but with a rather big price tag of €237,578 in Germany and $245,000 (€193,000) in the U.S. market, it still sold out quite quickly.
7000HP+ from the Baddest Mustangs on the Street with the Video to Prove It
5.0 Magazine and AmericanMuscle.com’s King of the Street 2010
MALVERN, PA, FRIDAY, 10/08/2010: Every year the fastest and meanest street-able Mustangs in the country head to Bowling Green, KY for the King of the Street competition. 8-Second Mustang’s and 7000 horsepower, how could we miss that? AmericanMuscle joined 5.0 Mustang editors Steve Turner, Mike Johnson, and KJ Jones to determine who really is the King of the Street. The competition consists of 6 judged categories:
Ride & Drive
Horsepower
Fit & Finish
Engineering
Drag Race
Popular Vote
The Dyno Competition - 10/1/2010
All 9 contestants would face-off in a dyno competition to see who has the biggest horsepower output. While this is only one category of many, the horsepower competition also serves as bragging rights for a whole year! These cars put down some serious horsepower. Results from this competition were as high as 1139 Horsepower! Check out the video to see what happened!
The Rest of the Events 9/30/2010 (Track was 10/1/2010)
The judging would commence just outside Beech Bend Raceway, where Mike Johnson and Steve Turner (of 5.0 Mustangs and Super Fords) would go over each car with a fine-tooth comb. Once each car was judged and photographed, it was on to the Ride and Drive test.
Ride & Drive
Mike Johnson and the vehicles owner would take a cruise through the streets of Bowling Green, KY in the vehicle to see just how street-able each vehicle was. If your car had 1000 horsepower with air condition, power steering and smooth-shifting transmission then points were awarded.
