supercars

When McLaren showed off its P1 supercar as a concept at last year's Paris Motor Show, I predicted it would have a similar engine to McLaren's other car, the MP4-12C. Turns out I was half right.

McLaren announced that the P1, which receives its production debut at the International Motor Show in Geneva the first week of March, will host not only a twin-turbo 3.8-liter V-8, but an electric drive motor as well.

The P1 will be a plug-in hybrid, joining other production cars such as the Toyota Prius Plug-in and the Ford C-Max Energi. Crazy, right?… Read more

I can that imagine someone at Lamborghini thinks that the Aventador's 700-horsepower split between all four wheels is probably enough power for one car. (And no, I don't agree with that person.) I assume this because rather than getting a nominal power bump for this model year's update, the 2013 Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4 gets a mile per gallon bump thanks to the addition of cylinder deactivation and idle stop-start technologies that allow the V-12 engine to instantaneously and momentarily make less power in the pursuit of using less fuel.

The Cylinder Deactivation System (CDS) works like this: … Read more

Croatian automotive startup Rimac has officially opened the order books for the electric supercar it debuted at the 2011 Frankfurt Auto Show. Only 88 of these exotic vehicles will be produced, but don't feel like you have to rush to order. Rimac may have a hard time finding buyers willing to throw down the near $1 million it will take to purchase the Concept One.

The Concept One went on sale at the start of the Top Marques Monaco, where Prince Albert II of Monaco spent some time behind the wheel of the EV. It's priced at $980,… Read more

A Prius is great on gas mileage, but sometimes saving your city from a megalomaniacal super villain takes priority over saving the planet--at least I presume that's the ethical calculus Bruce Wayne must have done when he opted to lay down some serious green for the Batmobile.

But just how big of a bank account or estate do you need to drive home in the pinnacle of fantasy supercar/weapons on wheels?

That kind of question sounds like a party to the number-crunching superfan Lehigh University economics students who blog at Centives--you know, the same aspiring pop-culture economists who gave us an estimate for building a real Death Star.

They got together and pored over the list of vehicles that have served as the base model for the Batmobile in various comics, movies, games, and other media forms over the last century. It's a very lengthy list that includes everything from the original Batmobile based on a 1936 Cord 812, to a 1955 Lincoln Futura or the more modern Lamborghini Murcielago. … Read more

It apparently took eight Ferraris, a Lamborghini, and two Mercedes-Benzes to bring down one Prius on a Japanese freeway.

Supercar crashes always fascinate us due to the forced disassembling of a very expensive piece of engineering, and some secret glee at observing the poor driving skills of the very wealthy. But this crash in Japan takes the cake, as it involved not one, but eight Ferraris, a Lamborghini, and two Mercedes-Benzes. Oh, and one poor Prius seems to have gotten caught up in the crash.

According to reports, the drivers were convoying to a supercar meet-up, when the driver of … Read more

As I accelerated out of the rain-slicked Turn 2 of Infineon Raceway, I could feel the rear end of the Lexus LFA begin to slip and spin. "Holy crap," I thought, "how am I going to be able to pay for this $375,000 Lexus?"

Fortunately, my moment of terror was, despite the slippery conditions, both brief and isolated. But before I get into that, let's discuss how I came to find myself on a wet racetrack behind the most exotic vehicle to ever come out of Japan.

Lexus LFA performance driving schoolThe day's … Read more

Sometimes, if you want a car that delivers major savings on gas, it's going to cost you. Case in point is the upcoming Trident Iceni, a $150,000 convertible sportster that pulls down 70 miles on the road per gallon of green biodiesel burned. In addition to the big-time fuel savings and instant eco-credibility, the Iceni also comes with another bonus--it's a badass supercar.

The Iceni has been on again and off again for a while now, but it appears to really be on this time, with a launch planned for the Cholmondeley Pageant of Power in the U.K. on July 15. At the heart of the green monster is a 6.6 liter, twin-turbo diesel V8 running biofuel, and it's reported the Iceni will run to 230 mph and accelerate from zero to 60 in less than four seconds. And those fuel savings don't just come at low speeds--the Iceni is said to deliver 70 miles per gallon at a constant 70 mph.

The key to the Iceni's combination of power and efficiency apparently has to do with being lightweight and carrying an innovative 8-speed transmission, which... well, why don't I just let this guy tell you more:

(Via Gizmag)… Read more

The only thing not to love about the 2012 Audi R8 GT would be its price tag. Audi announced that the fastest and lightest production car in its lineup will start at $196,800, $4K more than a starter Ferrari California. Factor in the $1,250 destination charge, and you're pretty close to $200,000 before you factor in taxes, licensing, registration, and options. But it's about what you'd expect for a 560-horsepower supercar made of this much carbon fiber.

Generous use of the lightweight material is how the Audi R8 GT keeps the weight down. To … Read more

Yesterday, we saw Nissan promoting its Juke by pitting the cute 'ute against a Sports Illustrated swimsuit model in a series of challenges. Today, we have Lexus promoting its LFA supercar by doing donuts around--you guessed it--a Sports Illustrated swimsuit model.

The video below features champion drifter Rhys Millen discussing the power and control that the LFA enables and photographer Yu Tsai explaining how it was used to create the perfect shot for the 2011 SI Swimsuit Issue. But let's be honest, it's really just a thinly veiled excuse to power slide a bright yellow supercar around supermodel … Read more