In its sixth generation, the Corvette retains strong ties to the five generations of star-spangled sports cars that preceded it. Power still comes from a V-8 equipped with pushrods and two valves per cylinder, just like the original 1955 small-block Chevy V-8. Modern technology extracts copious power and excellent fuel economy while reducing the original V-8’s light weight and tidy size.

The Corvette’s composite body also hearkens back to the seminal 1953 model. But here again, newer materials, such as the balsa-core composite panels used in the floor panels, combine with a sophisticated structure to yield one of the few cars that haven’t grown heavier over time, despite the pound-packing pressures of stricter safety standards, higher power, bigger brakes, and grippier tires.

This combination of heritage and sophistication gives the Corvette a uniquely American blend of performance, swagger, and everyday livability — characteristics that are all amplified in the 505-hp Z06 version. And in one final bow to tradition, the Corvette delivers this virtue at a price vastly lower than any of its competitors’.

Drive one for yourself. Check out www.driveyourdream.com

Callaway Cars is celebrating its 30th anniversary of producing limited-edition high-performance sports cars with the introduction of the Callaway C16 Cabrio.

Based on the current Chevrolet Corvette, the Callaway C16 Cabrio incorporates powertrain, brake and suspension updates to take the C16 to a whole new level of performance. Powered by a 560-horsepower supercharged 6.0-liter V8 engine that produces 529 lb-ft of torque at 4750 rpm, the C16 is mated to a 6-speed manual transmission or a paddle-shift automatic transmission.

With the optional Performance Package the power increases to 616 horsepower and 582 lb-ft of torque, good for a zero to 60 mph time of 3.5 seconds with the automatic transmission according to Callaway.

The Performance Package is also good for a quarter-mile time in the low 11-second range with an estimated top speed of over 200 mph. The fuel economy rating is 18 mpg city and 28 mpg highway. Callaway’s warranty covers the equipment for 5 years or 100,000 miles.

The C16 also includes Callaway body and interior updates to the Corvette, designed by Paul Deutschman who has a 20-year history of vehicle design with Callaway. Deutschman created the “Callaway Look” that includes the 254 mph Sledgehammer and Le Mans race cars as well as the C16, which is a new design but retains the link to previous Callaway projects.

“With this car, we’ve maintained the C16’s class-leading performance, while creating a gorgeous ‘Cabrio’ version, based on one of the best sports car platforms available anywhere,” says company founder Reeves Callaway. “In true Callaway tradition, it incorporates our race-proven technologies, painstaking testing and validation efforts, and expert craftsmanship in an arresting and appealing style.”

Interior and Suspension Updates
    
On the inside, the Callaway C16 receives updates to the dash, steering wheel and door sills with Callaway signature badging. The optional Deutschleder package adds German leather and Alcantara with custom seats by Recaro for Callaway. Each C16 Cabrio is built to order and the customer can choose the exterior and interior colors.

The C16 Multi-Pro coil-over suspension is newly developed by Callaway and Eibach with an advanced spring/damper system that includes 10 different adjustable positions for compression and rebound. The adjustable suspension allows the driver to adjust the suspension for optimum performance on the track but also adjust for a more comfortable ride on the street.

As far as the brakes, the C16 Cabrio utilizes a StopTech brake system engineered to Callaway specifications that include 6-piston front calipers and 4-piston rear calipers and 14-inch calipers.

The special wheels for the C16 from Callaway/Dyman are approximately half of the weight of similar aluminum wheels to reduce the unsprung weight for improved performance. The wheels feature forged magnesium centers and carbon fiber rims. The front wheels are 19 inches in diameter and 10 inches wide, fitted with 285/30ZR19 Yokohama AdvanSport tires developed specifically for the C16. At the rear, the wheels are 20 inches in diameter and 12 inches wide with 325/25ZR20 AdvanSport tires.

The Callaway C16 Cabrio starts at $128,765. Callaway C16 components are also available individually for 2005 to 2007 model Corvettes through Callaway authorized retailers and installers. Callaway C16 Cabrios are built by Callaway facilities in California, Connecticut, and Germany and are available exclusively through Callaway Cars’ authorized dealer network.
http://autoshow.autos.msn.com/autoshow/NewYork2007/Article.aspx?cp-documentid=4652974

The full name of this car is the Porsche 911 Targa 4S. Each morsel of word, each number in that grandiloquent name, adds significant numbers to the sticker price.

The journey to a Targa 4S begins with a rear-drive, 325-hp flat-six Porsche 911 Carrera ($73,260). Tack on a “4,” for four-wheel drive ($79,060), and then you’ll want the more powerful 355-hp engine that puts the S in 4S ($89,260), and now you’ve just overshot the sanity turnoff, so why not go all the way and get the two-sectioned, sliding-glass Targa roof ($96,760) that turns it into a hatchback? Or forget the whole thing and just buy that recently foreclosed house on the corner, outright.

Meanwhile, back on the interstate, somehow I’m almost at 90—how did that happen?—and begin nose giggling because there’s still a ton of juice under my right foot; even in the manual’s sixth gear, it will surge forward with the slightest pressure on the pedal, at which point it occurs to me that it was the intention of Alfred Hitchcock, the director of North by Northwest, to call that movie The Man in Lincoln’s Nose.

As usual, Porsche sent over this Targa 4S equipped with everything but the kitchen sink, pushing the price heavenward. The full-leather option means the layer of beef critter is extended over not just the seats but also the door panels and the dashboard and the armrests, and you go down for another $3365. The regular nine-speaker Bose music box has four more and costs $1390, the navigation system is $2070, the power-seat deal is $1550. And so it goes, right up to $108,520. No wonder I can’t think straight.

But what a car it is. The horizontally opposed 3.8-liter 355-horse “boxer” nosebleeder with double overhead cams and four valves per cylinder and variable valve timing is an engine that fully confirms the notion that German engineering is next to cleanliness and will get the car to 100 mph from a standstill in the time it took to count out Mike Tyson the last time he demonstrated why he most likely will no longer be able to afford one. Both events took 10 seconds (well, 10.2 in a Targa 4S that we tested in the May 2006 issue). Did you know that in his heyday Tyson spent something like $250,000 a year on pet food?

Why don’t you check out www.driveyourdream.com. See if they have on you can drive for yourself.

We thought it was getting to be a long time since Forbes had put together another Top Ten list, but this time the journal of choice for successful businessmen put a twist on the annual tradition: instead of simply picking ten cars and assigning ranks by degree of sexiness, Forbes picked the sexiest ride for each of ten categories of personalities, including ballers, mobsters, divorcés and talent agents. If you don’t fit into any of the categories, chances are you probably don’t have the cash to spend on any of these cars. But if you’ve got the greenbacks and don’t match the list, you might have to figure it out for yourself.

It’s all a matter of taste, but Chris Bangle fans will notice the conspicuous absence of any BMWs, while enthusiasts of Italian automobiles will take note of the the Maserati, the Lamborghini and the two Ferraris that made the cut.

Here’s what Forbes has nominated for this year:

• Sexiest Car for Hip-Hop Moguls: Rolls-Royce Phantom
• Sexiest Car for Hollywood Agents: Lexus LS Hybrid
• Sexiest Car for Miami Beach Plastic Surgeons: Lamborghini Murciélago Roadster
• Sexiest Car for Mobsters: Cadillac Escalade & EXT
• Sexiest Car for Newly Divorced Dads: Chevrolet Corvette Convertible
• Sexiest Car for Newly Divorced Moms: Mercedes-Benz SL65 AMG
• Sexiest Car for Lobbyists: Cadillac CTS
• Sexiest Car for Forbes Readers: Maserati Quattroporte
• Sexiest Car for NBA Players: Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano
• Sexiest Car for Driving Purists: Aston Martin DB9 and Ferrari F430 (tie)

We’ll take one of each or rent one for the day @ www.driveyourdream.com.

Source: http://economy.autoblog.com/2007/04/16/forbes-picks-the-10-sexiest-cars/

One of the most anticipated debuts of NAIAS 2007, the 2008 IS-F is the first production Lexus to wear an “F” designation, which will distinguish special high-performance Lexus models. The IS-F is based on the rear-wheel-drive IS and powered by a specially tuned 5.0-liter V8 engine that develops more than 400 horsepower and 350 lb-ft of torque.

To put the power to the ground, Lexus developed the world’s first eight-speed direct sport-shift transmission. The transmission features an advanced manual mode with paddles located behind the steering wheel to allow the driver to shift manually.

A new torque converter lock-up produces more direct, crisp gear shifts through constant lock-up of the torque converter in second through eighth gears. Precise throttle blips match engine speed to vehicle speed during downshifts.

Impressive Custom Brakes

Lexus claims that zero to 60 mph will be less than 4.9 seconds and an impressive brake package was commissioned to match the speed potential. Developed by Brembo to specifications from Lexus engineers, the front discs are 14.2 inches in diameter with six-piston aluminum calipers. The rear discs are 13.6 inches with two-piston calipers. High-friction brake pads are fitted and the calipers are branded with the Lexus name.

The IS’s suspension has a one-inch lowered ride height so the fenders fit tightly over the custom 19-inch forged alloy wheels produced by BBS. A new three-mode version of the Lexus Vehicle Dynamics Integrated Management (VDIM) allows the driver to choose between Normal, Sport and Off modes.

Styling cues that differentiate the IS-F from other IS versions include dual exhaust with quad tailpipes, wider front fenders, a larger grille, a special hood, an enlarged lower air intake and a rear spoiler.

Inside the IS-F includes an oil temperature gauge, shift indicator lights, aluminized composite trim, an “F” logo on the steering wheel and special sport seats with high-contrast white and black trim.

Sorry, ZZ Top, but despite those three letters clustered together in the name, superleggera does not translate to anything directly relating to a woman’s stems. Indirectly, though, you could make the argument. In English, superleggera means “superlight.” What it means is that this newest Gallardo, like the Ferrari F430 Challenge Stradale, leans out a few pounds and packs on a (very) little bit more muscle, giving the car indeed a touch more leg to stretch.

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Although European-spec Gallardo Superleggeras are lighter by the equivalent of a portly passenger (220 pounds), cars bound for the U.S. lose a trimmer sidekick and come in only 150 pounds lighter than more-pedestrian Gallardos. This is due to our side-impact standards, which mandate that Lamborghini leave the side airbags in the seats. We’ll still get one-piece carbon-fiber sport seats, but with pinhead cushions packed and waiting in the wings. Europeans get four-point harnesses; we make do with plain old three-point belts.

The New Black: Carbon Fiber

Elsewhere in the interior, carbon fiber covers the center tunnel and the door panels, and anything that was once leather is now Alcantara. The interior door panels are sheets of carbon fiber with an Alcantara pull strap for closing. Very utilitarian and purposeful, but we’d be horrified if we were paying for it. Stitching color-matched to the exterior adorns the seats and the dash, and the same color peeks through a perforated strip of the headliner over each occupant’s head. Unique gauges look cool at first glance, but on closer inspection, they might be off the clearance rack at Murray’s. Their tiny, swollen text is completely illegible, further compounding the problem we had driving Euro-spec cars with km/h speedometers on American roads. Uncertain of our speed, our default behavior was to assume we were going too slowly, squish the now pedal, and zoom away. Actually, it worked out just fine.

Carbon fiber is also used to shave weight outside. The underbody tray, the rear diffuser, the engine cover, the side skirts, and the side mirrors are all replaced with carbon-fiber copies. Polycarbonate takes the place of the glass in the rear window and engine cover. Revised intake and exhaust systems play on both sides of the power-to-weight equation, cutting weight and increasing power 10 horsepower, to 523. The new exhaust system gives the Gallardo a little extra snarl, but inside, the change is magnified by the hard door panels and the loss of 12 pounds of sound-deadening material. The result is an even more stirring aural enlightenment than in the regular car.

Slide behind the wheel of either 6 series car, and you’ll notice what is becoming a family trait of all BMWs these days — lots of metal, lots of plastic (but high-snoot plastic), plenty of leather and sculptural shapes to all of the trim. Wood is gone as the common byword for luxury, and it makes BMWs look unique.

To do this took imagination, not just money.

We know this because when we look at the air vents of a lot of high-end cars (even $80,000 luxury cars), we often see something a tad annoying — they’re the same ones used in cars that cost less than half as much. Ditto the cutouts for radios and consoles, for instruments and door levers. This is OK when the company (like BMW) has thought about these shapes and dimensions, and made the parameters fit both lower-end and top-end vehicles, each of which may use different materials but in similar patterns.

But when you pay top dollar for a car, you don’t want to see cheap or flimsy controls from a company’s bottom-rung-equipment closet. You also want prestige, and a limited-edition quality even if you know there will be thousands of cars like yours.

The point is that the 6 series has this kind of style in spades. You might counter that the BMW cockpit is no longer warm or inviting, that the car is an exercise in artistry over function and that the iDrive computer system, though simpler, is still annoying to use. And in some ways you’d be right. For instance, the CLK gets a much warmer environment, as does the Maserati. And why must essentially simple functions, such as radio tuning, be complicated by overly technical flat-panel displays?

Speaking of basic functions, the Mercedes CLK has more backseat room than the BMW. We packed four adults into both the 6 series Coupe and Convertible, and if each trip had been longer, those unfortunate enough to be stuck in back would have been begging to get out. (I should know; at one point I was in the backseat!)

Still, none of these cars is really about pragmatism. Get a Grand Marquis if you want function over form.

Another point about form: We wish BMW had found a way to lose the B pillars in this car. Drop the windows on the CLK coupe and you’ve got a wide-open, metal-and-glass-free space shooting right through the sides of the car. Sure, that makes structural stability tougher to achieve, but with B pillars, as the BMW has, you’ve just made a very sexy car look a little less so. And besides, somehow BMW achieved tremendous stiffness (actually with more bracing throughout the undercarriage) in the 6 series convertible, and that car doesn’t have any B pillars.

Ahh, but what it does have is sheer élan.

Drop the electric clothtop (in a mere 26 seconds), and you discover an open car that’s just gloriously sexy. And it comes with a really clever device: BMW engineers designed an extra rear glass baffle that pops up vertically aft of the backseats. This prevents annoying wind buffeting (air gathering in the cabin and cutting forward toward the windscreen, pounding in your ears and making open-top driving fatiguing). Also smart: BMW designed this car’s lid to be very well insulated, so when the roof is up, external noises don’t invade the cabin space as shockingly as they do in some convertibles.

Either way, lid up or down, there’s actually decent trunk room in the 6 series convertible, with a weekend’s worth of luggage fitting easily. We even got a bicycle — wheels off and stacked on top of the bike frame — to fit.

As for driving, we’re somewhat torn about the options list. The 325-hp V-8 comes with both coupe and convertible (good for sub six-second sprints to 60 mph). But you can opt for one of three transmissions: a six-speed automatic; a six-speed manual gearbox or a six-speed sequential manual gearbox (SMG) that’s shifted from paddles that bracket the steering wheel and is operable sans clutch pedal.

We’d skip the automatic — why get a car this sporty and drive it like a Buick?

But the six-speed manual is thrilling (tap the SPORT button and you further increase throttle tip-in, so acceleration is that much quicker), as is the SMG. To review: SMG allows quick gear changes with a flip of either the left or right paddles that bracket the steering wheel. This is much faster than working a clutch and gearshift, and although there’s something lost in the translation (you’ll never need to know how to "heel/toe" the clutch and brake, for instance), there’s something gained as well, since the SMG features a "Drive" mode that lets you forget about shifting entirely. This is very helpful in bumper-to-bumper commuting, when even the best manual gearbox becomes a chore to labor at, not a labor of love.

So since most of us, sadly, must deal with traffic, the SMG is probably the way to go. That said, there’s one function BMW reserves for the SMG in the BMW M series cars: variable shift speed. In those vehicles there’s a small dial that lets you alter gear-change quickness so it’s either sports-car abrupt or downright easygoing. We bet when an M6 comes (and it will) you’ll have that option.

Meanwhile, there isn’t much we don’t love about driving this car.

Some testers have griped about the BMW’s "active steering," which varies the number of turns of the steering wheel required from lock to lock (far left to far right rotation of the wheel) depending on vehicle speed. Active steering makes parking a snap, since it takes less than two rotations to lock at parking lot speeds. And it makes freeway cruising sweet as well, because it takes a lot of turns to move the car off line (look away for a split second to grab your cup of joe and you won’t steer the car into a median).

What critics have said, though, is that in the process BMW’s robbed these cars (active steering also comes on the new 5 series) of road feel. We think that’s really a misplaced gripe. Yes, the new BMWs feel a tad more wooden at the wheel, but only somewhat. And given that this system also offers active countersteer — so that if you have to correct a skid you can "catch" it that much more quickly — we’re not sure why anyone would really think there’s been a net loss.

Especially when both of these BMWs handle so adroitly.

Yes, the hardtop corners even more flatly than the convertible, but throw either car into a bend and you’ll be stunned at how neutrally it turns. Then realize you’re going 15 mph faster than should be possible and the tires aren’t howling, and you’ll really be impressed.

By the way, among the many joys of the 645Ci convertible is listening to the V-8 rumble when the lid is down. Few cars sound this exotic and, as we said before, just a little brasher than you’d expect.

source:http://www.forbesautos.com/research/reviews/2005/bmw/645/testdrive_2.html

When i saw one of my neighbors drive down the street with this car i knew instantly i had to have one. When i looked at the price tag i knew that my wife would kill me if i bought it. So i went to DFW Elite Auto Rental to rent one instead.

Always Burning Rubber

     While at the NY auto show last week people checked out the all-new Lexus LX 570. As you can gather by the name, the new Lexus SUV now uses the same engine (and 6-speed transmission) from the just released Toyota Tundra. Unlike the Tundra, it has permanent 4WD (with a high and low speed transfer case).

Upon first glance, it looks like Lexus is offering a “low-rider” SUV, as it appears to sit awfully close to the ground. You can thank the Four-Wheel Electro-Hydraulic Suspension with Active Height Control (AHC) and Adaptive Variable Suspension for that. Speaking of the suspension, I was disappointed to see that the rear suspension still employs a solid axle. You would think that—especially in this market segment—that an IRS would be a must-have feature; not so here, however.

One of the penalties paid for not having an IRS is that the LX 570 does not have a fold-into-the rear-floor third-row seat. It does have, however, fold-up rear seats that reside up against the interior sides. While better than the GM Tahoe/Suburban solution, it’s still not great, as it causes a huge blind spot for the driver on the right side.

As to styling, it’s certainly better than the model it replaces, but it still comes across as a bit awkward to my eyes. I’m glad to see that Lexus has kept the vehicle roughly the same size as the outgoing model. Towing has been raised to 8500 pounds, which is good.

Source: http://blogs.edmunds.com/Straightline/2637

You can’t beat this GM concept for pure front. This wild modern-day hot rod is a 21st Century rendition of Australia’s most famous car, the FJ Holden, and was originally unveiled at the Australian International Motor Show in Sydney. EFIJY is a radical pillarless custom coupe built on a Chevrolet Corvette chassis and powered 6.0-liter V8. The Soprano Purple paintwork highlights its curvaceous body, reinterpreting the classic design cues of the iconic 1953 FJ Holden.

By Hugh Poulter 

http://autoshow.autos.msn.com/autoshow/detroit2007/Article.aspx?cp-documentid=2361941

The Arnage T’s traction-control system is programmed such that, per Bentley, “you can drift the car with some wheelspin, but it never lets you get in any trouble.” Attaching this statement to a 5700-pound, nearly 18-foot-long cache of burled wood, Connolly leather, and handcrafted pomp is reason enough to make us like it.

Bentley’s sales have increased sixfold in the past three years, due largely to the success of the new Continental, a car sold mostly to first-time Bentley buyers. “Old” Bentley buyers, however, are less interested in a 198-mph top speed than in an ownership experience similar to that of their father and father’s father. The Arnage remains the classic Bentley sedan, available as the “standard” 450-hp R, the long-wheelbase RL, or the more-spirited 500-hp T.

The T starts at $250,985, but if you throw in a champagne cooler and choose custom interior and exterior hues and perhaps some factory grenade proofing, plan on fiddling with the number in the leftmost column. If it helps paint the picture, whereas the average Continental buyer possesses a net worth of $3 million, the average Arnage buyer is worth some $30 million, and a popular option in the Queen’s country are sill plates emblazoned with the family crest.

Getting Along in Years

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The nearly decade-old platform does show its age, especially when you hop from the T into the ultramodern and capable Continental GT, but regardless, Bentley will sell each and every example it builds. An all-new Arnage is coming sometime before 2010. We can assume it will have a stiffer chassis, brakes with shorter travel, more precise steering, and a better integrated electronics experience. But we hope the new car will still carry the old-world charm of the Viagra-fied Arnage T.

Nearly all Arnages are built to order. Bentley’s Mulliner coachwork division is able to handle just about any request, and the options list is so comprehensive that few duplicate cars are produced. Our T was swathed in quilted, rich brown leather; the interior is comely in a comforting way if your youth was spent exploring the drawing rooms, overstuffed chairs, and servants’ quarters of a Park Avenue or Mayfair residence. Think polished, knurled, burnished, and conditioned.

The huge chromed aluminum dash vents, which rotate 360 degrees in their sockets, are of such mass that they could, in a pinch, be used as mortar rounds. Through these vents, the whoosh of conditioned air assumes three distinct tones for no good reason that we’re aware of other than whimsy, which is reason enough.

A single lot of wood is reserved for the matched book-end veneer that lines the interior of each Arnage. The remaining pieces do not go into other cars but are marked and placed in a giant humidor so the wood will match perfectly if repairs need to be made, a feat that would otherwise be an impossibility.