Saturday, March 31, 2018

Mercedes-AMG Project One Hypercar

Mercedes Benz’s high performance division, AMG, unveiled the Mercedes-AMG Project ONE at the Frankfurt International Motor Show.
It is powered by the 1.6-litre V6 hybrid engine — the very same unit that powers Mercedes Benz’s Formula 1 cars. 1000 horsepower, a top speed in excess of 217 miles per hour, and a 0-124 miles per hour time of just six seconds says it all. These sorts of numbers are made possible by additional electric motors on top of the central hybrid. In total there are four: one in the turbocharger, a second on the combustion engine with a link to the crankcase, and two more on the front wheels.
Just 275 of the cars will be made, the price $2.7 million.

Friday, March 30, 2018

VW and Audi cars sit in 'desert graveyard'

Volkswagen has taken parking lots to a whole new level in the US. Volkswagen AG has paid more than $7.4 billion to buy back about 350,000 U.S. diesel vehicles, a recent court filing shows. Volkswagen has 37 secure storage facilities around the US housing nearly 300,000 vehicles.
Through mid-February VW has issued 437,273 letters offering nearly $8 billion in compensation and buybacks. The automaker in September 2015 admitted to circumventing the emissions control system in U.S. diesel vehicles for vehicles sold since 2009.

Trifecta of Barn Finds

After sitting in a nondescript industrial building in Long Island for the past 40 years, three iconic machines have been unveiled.
A 1937 Packard bodied by Silver-Knightstown Body Company.

A 1937 Rolls-Royce bodied by Franay.
The third is a Delahaye Cabriolet from 1947. It features a one-off, coachbuilt 135M body by Vesters & Neirinck.

Wednesday, March 28, 2018

1970 Dodge Hemi Challenger R/T Convertible

The 1970 model year heralded Dodge’s new entry into the pony-car market, the Challenger. Created to compete with Cougar and Firebird, the Challenger’s E-body platform could handle any engine in the Dodge passenger car line. The R/T designation would be for performance models, and it was only in 1970 that a convertible Challenger was ever offered. That year, 1,070 people bought new R/T convertibles; only nine of them selected the Hemi engine. Four of those chose the Hemi/automatic combination. This is one of that very exclusive group.
This car showed 1,140 miles since its restoration. There are very few authentic 1970 Hemi Challenger R/T convertibles in existence today, and those that have survived do not come up for sale often.
With a low estimate of $2,000,000, this example changed hands in 2016 at Mecums.

Tuesday, March 27, 2018

1969 Ford Mustang Boss 429

In the late 1960s, Chrysler ruled NASCAR with its 426 Hemi engine. Ford in turn developed a 429-cu. in. version of the Ford 385 V-8 with specially modified oil and water passages, four bolt main bearings, and all forged steel internal components. Ford gave the new engine an insurance-friendly rating of 375 hp, though the actual output in stock form is said to be well over 500 hp. They dubbed it the Boss 429.
Offered in only five colors and fitted with a monstrous and functional air scoop, the Boss 429 was - and still is - one of the most desirable factory Fords ever built. 859 examples were built in 1969. 

This example crosses the block at RM Sotheby's Fort Lauderdale event. Est $240,000 - $280,000

McLaren 650S Spider wrecked - 4 hours after being rented

An inexperienced driver getting behind the wheel of a powerful supercar and driving it like they stole it is a recipe for certain disaster. With a 3.8-liter twin-turbo V8 engine sending 641 horsepower to the rear wheels, the McLaren 650S Spider can be a handful.

This dork from Seattle found out the hard way. According to police, the driver was going so fast that the $265,000 supercar bounced off both sides of the tunnel in the impact before coming to a halt.
Another classic case of a dim-witted driver with far too much horsepower and lacking the skill or experience to control it.

Sunday, March 25, 2018

1967 Lamborghini 400GT 2+2 Coupé

A Lamborghini super-GT that once belonged to Sir Paul McCartney made £122,500.

The 1967 Lamborghini 400GT 2+2 Coupé will appear at the Bonhams auction alongside other high value classic cars previously owned by Sir Rod Stewart and Nick Mason, Pink Floyd drummer. The 400GT was the follow-up to Lamborghini’s first car, the 350GT. 247 examples were built.
Nick Mason’s 1974 Ferrari Dino is expected to raise £420,000 in the Bonhams sale.
Sir Rod Stewart’s Lamborghini Diablo, which he bought himself for Christmas in 1991, is expected to fetch £136,000.

Saturday, March 24, 2018

1966 Lamborghini Miura

The Miura is a sports car produced by Italian automaker Lamborghini between 1966 and 1973. The car pioneered the mid-engined two-seat layout, the standard for supercars since. When released, it was the fastest production road car made. The Miura's rolling chassis was presented at the 1965 Turin auto show, and the prototype P400 debuted at the 1966 Geneva show. It received a stellar reception.
The earliest model of the Miura was known as the P400. It was powered by a 3.9L Lamborghini V12 engine. The engine was mounted transversely and produced 345hp and 262 lb·ft @ 5000. 275 P400 were produced between 1966 and 1969 - a success for Lamborghini despite its then-steep price of US$20,000
The Miura was named after a Spanish ranch whose bulls have an infamous attack instinct.

A mint condition 1968 Miura was sold for $900,000 in 2016.

£200k Ferrari 458 Spider confiscated and crushed

Zahid Khan , 31, saw the supercar confiscated after he was stopped by West Midlands Police without insurance on April 5 last year. Months earlier he had parked the Ferrari 458 Spider on the pavement outside Birmingham Crown Court and posed for pictures. West Midlands Police later stated the Ferrari was crushed because it had no valid insurance and was a Category B vehicle - which are officially classed as unroadworthy.

Thursday, March 22, 2018

1970 Dodge Hemi Challenger R/T

Mecums is featuring a special 1970 Dodge Hemi Challenger R/T. It is the only documented Plum Crazy Hemi 4-speed Challenger R/T with a Shaker hood and Super Track Pack known to have been built. It came with the 426/425 HP Hemi V-8 engine, 4-speed transmission with the Hurst Pistol Grip shifter and a Dana 60 Super Track Pack rear axle.
The Hemi-powered Challenger was only offered for sale for two model years, 1970-71. That rarity, added to this car’s stunning appearance, and higher-than-ever modern demand, makes it a serious collector item. $ 300,000

Tuesday, March 20, 2018

1960 Chrysler 300F Convertible

Mecum is offering the vehicle at it's Houston event in early April. Chrysler produced 1,217 300Fs in 1960 of which 248 were convertibles. This example sports a 413/375 HP CI V-8 engine.

Many consider Chrysler letter cars to be the first true muscle cars. 300F's made 145 miles per hour at Daytona in 1960.
The sixth-generation car benefited from unibody construction and the largest rear fins in the series.
A concours quality 1960 Chrysler 300F Convertible crossed the block at RM Sotheby's for $ 143,000 in 2014.

Equus Automotive 'Throwback' Corvette C7

Behold a 1,000-hp Corvette C7-based coachbuild called the Throwback. Described as the "ultimate American performance car," the Throwback is based on the Corvette C7 and combines a retro-styled bodywork with a custom interior and a souped-up powertrain.
Engine tuning options result in up to 1,000 horsepower and 822 lb-ft of torque, allowing the Throwback to go from 0 to 60 mph (0-96 km/h) in 2.5 seconds and top out at 220 mph (354 km/h).
The company will build 25 units, each priced from $130,000.

Monday, March 19, 2018

Mazda Cosmo 110S

The Mazda Cosmo is a grand touring coupé that was produced by Mazda from 1967 to 1995. Throughout its history, the Cosmo served as a "halo" vehicle for Mazda, with the first Cosmo successfully launching the Mazda Wankel engine. The Series I/L10A Cosmo was powered by a two-rotor engine with 982 cc of displacement and produced about 110 hp. It used a Hitachi four-barrel carburetor and two spark plugs per chamber with dual distributors. A four-speed manual transmission and 14-inch wheels were standard.
Limited production saw 343 examples built from May 1967 to July 1968 at which point the series II model appeared. Total production for series II cars through 1972 was 1,176 examples.
Improvements included a five-speed gearbox. Power was also bumped up to 128, which allowed for a 120+ mph top speed.
The high-revving engine (7000rpm redline) allowed the 940kg Cosmo to hit 100km/h in 8.8 seconds, cover the 0-400m sprint in 16.4, and reach a top speed of 185km/h.

The Mazda Cosmo 110S is one of the rarest and most sought after Japanese cars of the era.

Saturday, March 17, 2018

Range Rover Sport SVR beats supercar record along Tianmen Road

The latest high performance SUV from Jaguar Land Rover wasn't meant to outperform a supercar, but that’s what happened when the new Range Rover Sport SVR took on a fearsome mountain road in China. Land Rover’s performance SUV has smashed the record for negotiating the 99 corners of the famous Tianmen Road with an average speed of almost 70km/h.
The standard production Range Rover Sport SVR set a new, unofficial, record of 9 minutes 51 seconds for the 11.3km ascent, beating the previous best of 10 minutes 31 seconds – set by a Ferrari 458 Italia supercar in 2016.