When Aston Martin unveiled its $2 million supercar, the One-77, in Europe a few months ago, American fans of the British carmaker have waited with baited breath for the One-77 to make its first official appearance on US soil.
That day has finally come after Aston Martin pulled the covers out of its latest supercar at the 2009 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. Noteworthy for its jaw-dropping performance - even for supercar standards - the One-77 boasts of 7.3-liter V-12 engine, capable of churning up more than 700 horsepower, a top speed of well over 200 mph and a 0-60 mph time of 3.9 seconds.
To justify the car’s stratospheric price tag, Aston Martin spared no expense in fine-tuning every detail in the car, including carbon ceramic wheels, LED headlights, and a white leather interior with personalized stitching of the two-seat cabin. There’s only one other car that has approached a $2 million fetching price: the Bugatti Veyron. The Aston Martin One-77 is looking to join that ultra-exclusive list as it goes country hopping in anticipation of the car’s official release sometime down the road.
For now, the sight of the One-77 in the flesh should suffice, especially for Americans who have waited months to catch a glimpse of the ‘next big thing’ of supercars up close and personal.
The Korean automaker Hyundai waited until the perfect moment to announce that the Equus flagship sedan will in fact be making its way into dealerships right here in the U.S. The announcement came from the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance after much anticipation and speculation as to whether the American market was ready for an ultra premium sedan from Hyundai, and judging by the Genesis sedan’s warm reception, it looks like we are.
Hyundai Motor America president and CEO John Krafcik said that "We showed the car at the New York Auto Show earlier this year, and the response was fantastic,... Since then, we’ve had a fleet travelling around the country, capturing input from our dealers and consumers. Here, too, the response was extraordinarily positive, and similar to the market reaction to the award-winning Genesis, so we’ve decided to bring it to the U.S.” In the states Hyunudai hopes to steal a few luxury buyers from the likes of Mercedes, BMW and Lexus.
Congratulations are in order for the Korean automaker making a bold move and not being afraid to ruffle a few feathers at the world’s greatest car show. So while the 2009 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance will be featuring names like Bugatti and Bentley and celebrating a century of Morgan, Audi and the designs of Zagato; Hyundai has given everyone something else to think about.
Ladies and gentlemen, the Panameras have landed. The first fleet of Porsche Panameras – 31 of them, in fact – has arrived in the US just in time for its American debut at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance on August 9.
If you must know, the cars were airlifted via the cargo hold of a 747 all the way from its production facility in Leipzig, Germany where it shares the production line with a number of other Porsche models including the Cayenne SUV. While the Panameras are expected to go on sale in the US on October 17, Porsche’s new crown jewel is expected to make a few pit-stops along the way, including an appearance at the aforementioned Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance – where, as we’ve said, it’s going to make its US debut – and at the Monterey Auto Week later this year.
The Panameras that are arriving in the US are those of the V8-powered gas variant, which also comes in three models: the Panamera S, the Panamera AWD 4S, and the flagship Turbo, with the price tag for the three models coming in at $89,800, $93,800, and $132,000, respectively. It may be a steep price to pay for a car, especially considering the circumstances we’re all facing these days. Then again, it’s the Porsche Panamera; we’re pretty confident that a lot of Americans are lining up their pockets for a chance to be one of the first to be driving these babies out on the American highway.
Now that the Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport has officially gone into full fledged production the imagineers at Bugatti have a little extra free time on their hands, so the exotic Italian automaker got to work preparing the usual round of special editions based on the upcoming Grand Sport.
It is only fitting that the first of these multi-million dollar special edition vehicles debut at the world’s greatest car show this August at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. If we reflect on what Bugatti did with the original Veyron coupe, we can safely assume that this initial limited edition vehicle will be a blacked out Sang Noir edition, and will cost owners somewhere around $2 Million.
At the same event we will also see such vehicles as: the new Jaguar XJ, the Bentley Arnage replacement, a virtual preview of the 2011 Infiniti M luxury sedan, the Aston Martin DBS Volante and the Fisker Karma; just to name a few.
It turns out that the next the rendering of the next generation Inifiniti M class full size sedan might just be what the luxury automaker is going to unveil on August 14th at the world’s greatest auto show, the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in Monterey California. In a bold move, the Japanese automaker will be on the same stage as exotic car builders like Bugatti and Bentley. However the 2011 Infiniti M won’t exactly be at the show, instead Infiniti will be trying something different. Using what they call “virtual video mapping,” a full scale clay model of the Mercedes Benz E Class and BMW 5 Series competitor will be the center of attention. Infiniti’s crafty technical department will then set up a projector to shine the final design of the production model onto the clay figure.
In a recent interview with Edmunds our old friend Kyle Bazemore, head of Infiniti’s communications department said that “the car will look like it is actually there. It will be full-size, and, if you didn’t know it was a virtual mapping, you would think it was the real thing from a distance... it gives consumers a preview of the vehicle in advance of its December debut, before any actual vehicles have been built.” So if Mr. Bazemore has been honest with us, it looks like we will be seeing the a working model of the 2011 Infiniti M at the L.A. International Auto Show.
From August 10-16, the entire automotive world will converge at Monterey, California for the highly awaited – and internationally acclaimed – Monterey Car Week show and exhibit.
The week-long festivity is a must-attend event for all car enthusiasts all over the world. Featuring a steady diet of exhibits, races, auctions, and award ceremonies spread out in seven days, the Monterey Car Week is shaping up to be an event to be remembered.
In addition to the plethora of activities lined up, the Monterey Car Week will also be attended by a number of the world’s most distinguished auto makers, many of whom will bring some of their most expensive and historical vehicles to the event.
We’re not usually this excited in attending a car festivals, but this particular Monterey Car Week is one that we’ve circled in our calendars for a long time. Not only is it going to be as good as advertised, but the week-long extravaganza is replete with can’t-miss activities and events that – it’s safe to say – has us counting down the days to August 10.
For more information on the event, as well as a glimpse of what’s in store at the Monterey Car Week, don’t hesitate to pay a visit to their website at the link below.
The Bentley Boys were a group of privileged young British racing enthusiasts from the 1920s who chose the English automaker as their drug of choice, along with the women and booze, to compete in motor racing throughout Europe. The boys had a notorious reputation for playing hard and driving even harder. These young chaps are responsible for establishing the brand as a luxurious sports car builder that could cater to the wealthy and the speed to compete with the best makes of its day.
So it is only fitting that the world’s most exclusive car show, Pebble Beach, will be honoring the marque’s 90th anniversary by setting aside a special part of the 18th fairway for Bentley racing models. Started by W.O. Bentley himself; the car company was founded with one purpose only, to “make a fast car, a good car, the best in its class.” Thanks to the Bentley Boys, that includes four consecutive wins at the 24 Hours of Le Mans from 1927 to 1930.
Last year the organizers of the famed Concours d’Elegance honored GM’s historic vehicles, with an impressive row of 16 cylinder Cadillacs. This year the theme will be British motoring, starring the flying B. In addition to the show’s dedicated racing class, there will also be two classes set aside for unique Vintage Bentleys, a class of Derby Bentleys, and several other models from various classes. Peter Hageman of the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance promises that their “Bentley racing class promises to be the most impressive collection of Bentley team cars ever assembled.”
There will be a new super car making its debut this July at the 2009 Pebble Beach Concourse d’ Elegance. What better place for the American made machine from Devon Motorworks, the racing team is owned by Justin Bell, son of the great Derek Bell, Justin has raced everything from Trans-Am cars to Daytona Prototypes, so there is plenty of R&D from the race track to go into the future GTX road car. The company claims that when completed, they will take the Devon GTX to Germany in order to break the single lap record at the Nürburgring track.
The Devon GTX is a pure driving machine; with an inherent beauty that comes from a simplistic and functional design. The body features wide arches that stick out even more with the two tone paint scheme. The interior is filled with retro touches like the cueball looking shift knob that looks like it came right out of an old Shelby Mustang. With the GTX, Devon Motorsports is looking to create the future super car. An entire lineup of high performance machines could be in the racing team’s near future, having offered Chrysler $5.5 Million for the Dodge Viper, although it is well under Chrysler’s $10 Million asking price, this could be a new era for American made, world class sports cars.
Motorcycles will be part of the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance for the first time this year. The event on August 16 will showcase British bikes, including the Legendary Vincent HRD V-Twins nicknamed “Gunga Din” and the John Edgar “Rollie Free” bike.
Cadillac is getting serious about the European market, and that’s evident with the premiere of the CTS Sport Wagon. While wagons have not always been the preference for North American customers, the extra space finds favor with European customers. The wagon was a natural evolution for Cadillac considering the CTS was designed to compete with sedans from Germany such as the Audi A4 and the BMW 3-Series. The more aggressive lines suggest that the CTS Sport Wagon is going after A4 Avant customers.
The base engine in North America will be the 3.6-liter 263 horsepower V-6. Optional will be a the 3.6-liter with added direct injection, which increases output to 304 horsepower. There is also a 2.9-liter turbo-diesel V-6 engine option making 250 horsepower for the European and Asian markets. The gas engine V-6 Sport Wagon’s fuel economy is expected to be similar to the peak rating of the sedan’s 26 mpg highway rating. All will be available with either a six-speed manual or six-speed automatic transmission as well as all-wheel drive.
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