Probably the only thing worse than a 423 hp Hummer H3 is a 725 hp Porsche Cayenne. Tuner 9ff is making its reputation for getting some of the highest horsepower out of Porsche products, but that has usually been car based on the 911. Now its turned its attention more to the soccer mom crowd with the 9ff Vantage GTR.
Aside from the upgrade to 725 hp in a 5000 lbs car, the rest of the package is pretty attractive. The kit includes a revised front-end with headlights borrowed from the 911 series, a new hood and a new front bumper. Also a new fenders, side sills, roof spoiler and rear bumper are included in the package.
Rolls-Royce is about making exclusive cars, so its no surprise when it comes out with a special edition from its Bespoke Collection. For those that missed out on the Roller’s Phantom Pearl, Phantom Silver, and Phantom Tungsten editions, now comes the Rolls-Royce Phantom Sapphire.
The Phantom Sapphire takes its name from the bodywork’s unique shade of Milori Sapphire which is a unique shade of navy blue. The interior comes in a choice of two color combinations either navy blue with seashell highlights or seashell with navy blue highlights.
There is no great scientific reason to try a back flip in a truck, but it is pretty damn cool. We can proclaim that was the best jump of last year (it was done on New Year’s Eve, still in 2008,) definitely beating out even the Dukesfest General Lee jump.
BMW has taken on an interesting task. It’s making a performance version of its two-ton SUV, the X5. To prove this can be done, BMW release this official performance video.
Looks like Innotech wants to turn your C6 Corvette into a Ferrari 599. The Czech tuner now offers a kit that will upgrade the LS2 and LS3 V8 engines (400 to 436 hp range) to between 500 hp and 560 hp depending on model. Innotech also offers a supercharging kit that can increase the power to 600 - 1000 hp.
So why call a car that has the ability to make Veyron-like horsepower a Ferrari 599? Well that’s where the body kit comes in. The three-piece lower grille, rounded rear and detached C-pillars, are more than a slight tribute to Ferrari’s GT.
Why in the world would we announce the pricing for a car like the Hyundai Elantra Touring? Because it’s Hyundai’s reward.
Hyundai has been making some steady improvements in its cars, and the Elantra Touring is where this all comes together. This is not an Elantra wagon as the styling may suggest, but a whole new car. It’s called the i30 in Europe, and it also shares many of its components with its corporate sibling, the Kia C’eed. The C’eed is a certified hit in Europe for being a car that competes on more than just price point, so by default, we’re going to give the Elantra Touring a chance. Pricing starts at $18,495 for the 2.0-liter (only one offered) 138 hp hatchback/wagon.
It must hurt Bugatti Veyron owners to be passed by an old Trans Am. What they probably don’t know is that there’s 1407 hp 8.9-liter V8 behind the screaming chicken. Polly Motorsport of Norway took a 1987 Pontiac Trans Am and turned into a supercar. It recorded an official 252 mph top speed at the Papenburg test track in Germany, and now Polly is looking to take the car to the U.S. next to challenge the current top speed record holder, the SSC Ultimate Aero.
There are plenty of KITT and and Knight Rider jokes to be made (they start in the next paragraph,) but this is a big deal. If the 228 mph BMW M5 was an accomplishment, this is a miracle. There is obvious a lot of replacement of stock parts to keep a 20+ year-old American car from falling apart or taking flight at 252 mph.
It looks like England is the destination for track schools. Last week Lotus opened its new driving academy in Hethel, and now Porsche has opened its new Driving Experience Center at the Silverstone raceway in Northamptonshire. Watch and dream as the could be you on your next trip to England.
P.S. If you can’t make it across the pond, there’s also a Porsche Driving School at Barber Motorsport Park near Birmingham, Alabama…but that track isn’t as famous as Silverstone .
So General Motors might be a little low on cash these days, but some of the best things in life are free. Take for example some engineers (or possibly marketing people) having some fun playing out in the snow while testing the upcoming 2010 Cadillac SRX.
We’ve seen plenty of preview material on this car, but we’ll be able to reveal the production specs when the official debut is made at January’s North American International Auto Show in Detroit.
Back in August rumors started swirling around that Lexus was hopping on the eco bandwagon and developing their own stand-alone hybrid. Back then we even suspected it would show up at the Detroit Auto Show in January. Turns out we were dead on with this one.
Toyota confirmed that there will be a new model called HS 250h will be shown in Detroit. It will be no suprise if this hybrid is Prius sized, which would make it smaller than a Toyota Camry, larger than a Corolla, and about the size of a Lexus IS. In fact while bodystyle may be a little different, don’t be surprised if the spec sheet on the next Prius and the HS 250h will pretty much be interchangeable.
