The last ten years has brought us some amazing developments in automotive technology. Bugatti brought us the Veyron, one of the fastest and most advanced cars of it’s kind. Subaru and Mitsubishi brought cheap speed to the masses. And Tata made the Nano, the most affordable car in the world.
Looking forward to the next decade, we are going to have affordable cars that have standard features like lane-assist, wireless internet and voice recognition. The possibilities are endless, but before we look to the future, lets take a quick look at the past.
Here are the Top 10 Fastest Police Car’s of the decade.
Remember the 9ff GT9? It’s the fastest car ever built by a tuner. Sure… SSC built the Aero, a car that is 1-2 MPH faster, but they built that car from the ground up. 9ff’s are loosely based off the 911 chassis. And while there’ s not much Stuttgart left in their mad creations, at least they had a starting point.
For those of you with fuzzy memories, here’s what all the fuss was about:
4.0 liter twin-turbocharged flat-six engine
973 horsepower, 710 lb-ft of torque
Curb Weight: 3047 pounds
243 HP/liter
3.13 Pounds/Horsepower
0-100 km/h: 3.4 seconds
0-200 km/h: 8.2 seconds
0-300 km/h: 16.4 seconds
Top Speed: 409 km/h, or 254.77 MPH
Cost: €498,000, which is about $730,000
It’s now been over a year since 9ff released the details of the GT9. Upon review of the project, 9ff saw a few things they could improve upon. 1st, they wanted to make it faster. 2nd, they wanted to make it uglier. They have succeeded in both, here are the official details of the 9ff GT9-R.
The Galibier isn’t expected to hit the market until 2013, but with an 8-liter W16 engine and $1.5 million dollar price tag, people are already waiting inline for it. A few new details were released today; the W16 is going to be tuned down to around 800 horsepower and the top speed will be limited to around 220 MPH. Even though this is 30+ MPH less than the Bugatti Veyron, it is still light years ahead of any other 4-door car in the world. There is also speculation that the 16C will share the same platform as the Bentley Mulsanne. Stay tuned, more details as they become available!
They’ve been teasing us for months now; it all started with dark images of the tail lights and other vehicle accents. Then an image was leaked out after a private unveiling of the new 4-door saloon. Now Bugatti has released an official video with narration so good, it rivals the Lord of the Rings…
Here’s what we know so far:
8-liter W-16 engine (same as the Bugatti Veyron)
The engine is now front-mounted and can be run on Ethanol
Insane hood with twin-fin mechanisms to display the engine
Estimated top speed of 217 MPH
Carbon fiber body work that shines blue when under direct light
We’ll keep our ear the ground, check back later for more details!
Hot on the release of the 2010 Porsche 911 is the GT3 RS. This super-tuned version of the GT3 gets the same upgraded 3.8-liter flat-six engine that the 911 inherited from the Carrera, but this version is sans-turbos. Either way, power output is pegged at 450HP, more than enough to make the RS leave blurred streaks of neon through the air. A wider track, custom suspension and light weight body work improve grip, handling and general sex appeal. Full gallery below, but there’s two track videos after the jump!
Out with the old, in with the new. Although Porsche hasn’t made any real changes to the exterior, it’s whats under the hood (boot?) that counts. And Porsche delivered for 2010; gone is the peppy 3.6-liter, replaced by the Carrera’s beefier 3.8-liter flat-six. Not only does the new engine have 5.5% more displacement, but it also features direct-injection, which gives a bump to power and fuel economy. What also gives a bump to power? The twin set of variable-geometry turbines they mounted to the boxer.
Power output has been raised to an incredible 500 ponies, and if you can keep your lead foot in check, you can also expect an EPA-estimated 24.1 MPG with the 6-speed tranny. If you want to go for the 7-speed Doppelkupplungsgetriebe (aka: dual-clutch) system, you get bumped up to an environmentally-friendly 24.8 MPG. Being green never felt soooo good. :)
What else is new? A refined Porsche Traction Management System (PTMS), a more rear-wheel-biased Porsche Stability Management (PSM) and an optional set of super expensive, super light RS Spyder Rims. The Coupe runs $132,800, but you can expect to pay another $11,000 if you want to sport the convertible. All this amounts to quite an upgrade for the 911, probably Porsche’s way of pushing back on the GT-R. Check out the full photo gallery after the jump.
Lets face it, sometimes the postal service leaves a little to be desired. They may push through rain, sleet and snow, but I know I’ve waited a couple of weeks for a letter that should have taken 3-4 days. Sometimes it seems like I could have driven my my aunt’s house and delivered the letter by hand. Well that’s what Top Gear set out to do in their latest race; they took a Porsche Panamera and pitted it against a postage stamp, watch the videos to find out who wins.
Pop quiz hotshot: there’s a world class auto show happening on the 94th floor of the Shanghai World Financial Center. How do you get your brand spanking new Porsche Panamera up there for all the world to see.
Answer: Employ some good ol’fashioned German engineering!
MotorTrend has tested all of these cars and they have finally lined them up for a drag race. This isn’t just a 1/4 mile race either, they run these cars until they run out of pavement. I’m not going to spoil the results for you, but you should think hard about what the finishing order will be.
9ff has bred this car for pure speed. It’s only got a 4.0 liter twin-turbocharged flat-six engine, but it somehow manages to output an impressive 973 horsepower and 710 lb-ft of torque. That’s 247 HP/liter! The new Corvette ZR1 only produces 100 HP/liter and the Veyron is at 125 HP/liter. This is HUGE power output. Weighing in at 3047 pounds also makes it a light weight contender, a full 1/2 ton lighter than the Veyron. While it looks like a flattened out 911 with the rear bumper missing, it’s aerodynamics are tuned for just enough down force to keep in on the road at 250+ MPH. The 9ff probably won’t be a track monster due to it lacking a big spoiler, but put it on a long stretch of road where you can unwind it properly and you’ll be in for a treat. While it’s 0-60 time is nearly a full second slower than the Bugatti, it’s 0-186 MPH (300KM/H) is a full 0.6 seconds faster! That means this beast is geared for the top end, which is why it’ll eventually beat out the Veyron traveling at a claimed 254.77 MPH, a hair faster than the Veyron. It’s more exclusive than the Veyron as only 20 will be made, and it’s cheaper speed still, costing a mere £350,000 ($693,000).
The buzz on the net is that this is, in fact, a Veyron Killer. I respectfully disagree…while the 9ff is a fast car, the Veyron cannot be bested. It is the divine example a super car you can actually use in everyday life: the ride is comfortable, the interior is lavish and elegant, and the way the Veyron operates is unlike any other. You can take the Veyron to the track, to it’s top speed on the autobahn, or to the grocery store to pick up supper and it’ll do all of those tasks equally well. The Porsche has a bare bones interior, an unfinished exterior, a wooded floor, and no safety features other than a roll cage and a 5-point harness… hell, it doesn’t even have a crumple zone for an impact. Air bag, you don’t need no stinking airbag. Sure, it’s 1 MPH faster at top speed, but does that really matter when you’re butt hurts because the ride quality is terrible and the road noise is deafening? It wouldn’t matter to me.
Porsche has been picking up a lot of Volkswagen shares since 2005. As of April 2007, Porsche had more than a 30% stake in The Volkswagen Group. Although it tried to purchase a controlling stake in 2007, few were willing to sell their beloved shares for the price Porsche offered (read: low-ball offer). This year, however, Porsche made an offer that the VW exec’s couldn’t refuse. Although all the paperwork and legal drama has yet to unfold, it looks as though The VW Group will soon be under new ownership for a dazzling $15.73 billion dollars.
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