A Supercar is a sports car, typically an exotic or rare one, whose performance is highly superlative to its contemporary sports cars. They are pure bestial look and performance. Even if you never own one of these they will change the way you feel about cars just by looking at them.
Lamborghini’s have long been the favorites of tuning companies from all over the world. Whether it’s the exotic Italian heritage or the imposing power at its heart, Lamborghini’s are the equivalent to tuners as flames are to moths.
Calling it the Invidia 540, Amari Design took the task of building a comprehensive aerodynamic body kit that has been constructed from carbon fiber, fiber glass, and lightweight ABS plastic. The objective at hand? Turn the Gallardo into something akin to the LP 570-4 Super Trofeo Stradale.
The task is easier said than done, but Amari Design’s new aero body kit is determined to give the Gallardo that oh-so desirable Super Trofeo look. The body kit comprises of a number of new components, including a wider and deeper front front fender and rear arch extensions with vented bumper pieces. It also has wider wings and arches on both the front and rear, a wider rear bumper, a custom rear diffuser, and, need we explain any further, a large carbon effect, a Performante-inspired rear wing, and a new set of 20" alloy wheels finished in matte black.
Inside, the modifications include plenty of soft leather and Alcantara trim on the seats to go with the Invidia logo embroidered on the headrests. There are also custom carbon fiber panels, custom mats, and an modified hi-fi and sat nav system.
Last but certainly not least is the addition of a new high-performance Tubi exhaust system that helps increase the car’s output from 520 horsepower to 540 horsepower. It’s not a huge boost, but a boost nonetheless.
Unlike the One Lap of America race, which recently ended, the Houston Half Mile Shootout is a brand new race for 2012. This year it was run in conjunction with the 4th annual Aeros & Autos event at Ellington Airport in Houston, TX.
This race is much like the Texas Mile, as it is purely a top speed-style of race, where your goal is to reach the highest speed within the half-mile-long track. Simple enough, right? Well, driving in excess of 200 mph is never simple, but rules sure are.
This inaugural run includes cars and motorcycles, both street legal and off-road only, which makes for some really intense speeds, but also some utter disappointment. The biggest disappointment that we see is Mario Williams, an NFL Linebacker, running his Aventador down the half-mile track and only hitting 167 mph in the above video. C’mon, man, open her up a little. That’s just getting that $400,000 supercar warmed up.
On top of that, event organizer John Hennessey shows that he is not a football guy, as he calls Mario Williams an “All Pro defensive player from the Houston Texans,” but Williams signed with the Buffalo Bills in March, oops. We have to give Hennessey a pass though, as the video was taken on March 5th and Williams was still a free agent at the time, but he certainly was not a Texan at the time.
Fortunately that was just a warm-up lap, as we saw much more speed as the event went on.
Click past the jump to read more about the event, cool cars and highlights.
To kick off our very first Photo of the Week, we have decided to start things off with a bang, with one of the most incredible photos ever captured of what is one of the most expensive supercars ever produced: the 2009 Pagani Zonda Cinque.
If reports are to be believed, only three white Cinque coupes were ever produced, with the remaining two units being bright green and bright orange. Furthermore, every single one of the Cinque coupes produced are reportedly all driving around one of the increasingly-luxurious and expensive regions in the world: Singapore.
Taken by Nicholas TJ.R Photography, the following image shows off the incredibly well-detailed and aerodynamically inspired rear end of this hypercar, which cost a cool $1.3 million when it went on sale in 2009.
As a quick refresher, the 2009 Pagani Zonda Cinque features an AMG-sourced 7.3-liter V12 engine producing 678HP and 575lb-ft of torque which is mated to a six-speed sequential transmission. When combined with the extremely lightweight body and those massive rear tires, the car can launch to 62 mph in just 3.4 seconds and 124 mph in 9.6 seconds before continuing onto a top speed in excess of 220 mph.
Welcome to Part II of our series on what the future holds for transmissions and just what technologies are on the rise and expected to overthrow the current might of the dual-clutch transmission. On the agenda today is a company by the name of Zeroshift, which is another British gearbox manufacturer who have been developing their seamless shifting transmission since 2002. They have come up with a recipe which they believe will eventually funnel down to millions of production cars.
If you thought Xtrac’s Instantaneous Gearshift System was hard to understand, then get a load full of how Zeroshift’s breakthrough transmission operates. The Zeroshift system replaces the standard synchromesh system with a pair of interlocking rings which overlap one another and are then mounted onto a dog ring. These two rings transfer torque in opposite directions resulting in the left-hand ring driving the gear to the right and the right-hand ring driving the gear to left.
Under hard acceleration, both rings are pulled to the side of first gear and just before the car hits maximum revs, one of the rings shifts over to the right in preparation of 2nd gear being selected. All said and done, the Zeroshift system can literally shift gears in zero seconds resulting in breathtaking acceleration capabilities.
In fact, Zeroshift’s managing director Bill Martin is so proud of this system that he is sure that if the Zeroshift system arrived first, dual-clutch transmissions would never have been invented.
As of yet no production cars are using this system, however the Joss JP1, Australia’s first ever supercar, will be using Zeroshift’s seamless gear change technology when it hits the production line in a few years. In fact, this system is so effective that the Joss JP1 is capable of hitting 62 mph in less than 3.0 seconds and 100 mph in an incredible 6.0 seconds.
What’s more amazing about these performance times is that the JP1 is only expected to be fitted with a 6.6-liter V-8 engine producing around 500 horsepower, yet it can achieve similar performance times to that of the Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4 and Pagani Huayra, both of which have significantly more powerful engines.
Oh yeah, and we forgot to mention that a top speed of 224 mph is also expected. Not bad for something coming from the ‘Land Down Under.’
Unfortunately, the Zeroshift seamless gear-change system is unlikely to hit mass production for a few more years, but it is clear that the double-clutch gearbox is coming to the end of its relatively short life.
The Hennessey Venom GT has already promised to be one of the craziest, fastest, and most incredible supercars to have ever of come out of such a small production facility in the U.S. for decades. And it’s only been in production for a few months.
Yet, Hennessey has yet to deliver upon any of its promised performance capabilities, but that hasn’t stopped the firm from already developing its first variant of the car, with the Venom GT Spyder, and with deliveries of the exotic car set to begin soon, the tuning firm recently took the car to the dyno and fortunately, The Smoking Tire was there to capture it all.
The particular unit in question is actually the black car recently ordered by Aerosmith rocker, Steven Tyler and is undergoing its final stages of development before being delivered in the following weeks.
As we’re sure you know, the Venom GT is a true, rear-wheel drive, V8 monster and managed to pump out 839 horsepower and 745lb-ft at the rear wheels running on pump gas and only medium boost. It’s currently unclear which performance package Tyler selected for the car as it’s available either in 725HP, 1000HP, or 1200HP options, but based off the results we’d estimate Tyler selected the 1200 horsepower variant, as race gas and full boost could definitely add an extra 300-odd horsepower.
On top of the incredible exhaust note produced by the car, the following video also shows the Venom GT Spyder shooting some incredibly-impressive flames from its rear, demonstrating that it really is a performance car.
There have been plenty of aftermarket companies that have released program options for the Mercedes SLS AMG. And with the car’s popularity continuing to soar, you can expect that more and more companies are ready to take a stab at the German supercar. Some of them even have already done so more than once.
MEC Design is no stranger to working on the SLS AMG, so much so in fact that their first design for the car was introduced 18 months ago. Fast forward to this week and the aftermarket company has prepared a new program for the SLS 63 AMG, one that includes an aerodynamic package for a customer from Florida.
MEC Design’s exterior package for the SLS 63 AMG includes a two-piece front spoiler, a spoiler lip finished in carbon, optional LED headlights, new side sills with four optional LED lights per side, a rear trunk-lid lip, a two-piece rear roof spoiler, a roof air scoop, a custom built, stainless steel sport exhaust system, three different diffuser options (Extreme, Formula, or GT3), and a set of mecxtreme3 allow wheels that are available in either 20" or 21".
Inside the car, MEC Design gave the SLS AMG a sports steering wheel dressed in carbon and Alcantara with leather/Alcantara and carbon/leather combinations coming as added options for customers. Speaking of carbon fiber, there’s plenty of the high-end material placed inside to make it look like its swimming in the posh item. Carbon inserts have been applied on the middle console, door guards, entry guard, the seat casings, and just behind the rear seats.
There’s plenty to see if you have the photos to look at. Fortunately, we have a mega gallery that you can consume at your heart’s desire.
UPDATE 05/22/2012: MEC Design may not have one of the most impressive tuning packages for the Mercedes SLS AMG, but their promo package for the sports coupe is definitely one of the most impressive videos we have seen in the past few months. The video was directed by Daniel Michaelis, filmed by Daniel Michaelis and Willi Fast, and narrated by Claudia Black. Hit the jump to check it out!
Acceleration is one of the key components which create a supercar. Getting that perfect launch requires a combination of an extensive list of factors, namely finding a car with perfectly suited horsepower and torque figures. Finding a supercar with enough grip and a fast enough transmission to whip through the gears is also extremely important in getting off the line and continuing through to the quarter mile.
In the latest episode of Head2Head on the Motor Trend YouTube channel, they pitted the latest generation of carbon fiber constructed supercars against the all-conquering Bugatti Veyron over the quarter mile to see just how close the competition has come and if the Veyron can finally be knocked off its seemingly everlasting pedestal.
Motor Trend gathered the Lexus LFA, the Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4, the McLaren MP4-12C, and a beautiful blue Bugatti Veyron Grandsport and took them to an abandoned runway in the depths of the U.S. They then conducted the review through two knockout rounds in order to find the Veyron’s closest competitor before pitting the remaining car against the Veyron.
So who won, you ask?
Well, we won’t ruin that for you as this video is definitely worth the 7 minutes it lasts.
The Lamborghini Aventador has become quite the tuning attraction. For a new company like German Special Customs, the onus on building a sick program for the Aventador was important to get their name across in the industry.
To their credit, not only did they make one program for the mighty Lamborghini, they actually made two with one being the limited edition Aventador Estatura GXX.
So far, the Aventador Estatura GXX is still in the pipeline of development, but GSC did release some fresh details on the supercar’s new aerodynamic body kit. Built completely from carbon titanium, the external body kit features a bevy of new components, including a new front bumper, a new rear bumper, side skirts, an adjustable racing, a carbon titanium hood, a titanium black exhaust, and a new set of ultralight wheels.
GSC didn’t say anything about performance modifications for the Aventador Estatura GXX, but we do expect something to be developed when the entire program is completed. For now, the supercar still comes packed with a 6.5-liter V12 engine that produces 700 horsepower and 509 lb/ft of torque.
As soon as more details become available regarding the Aventador Estatura GXX, we won’t waste time passing them along to all of you. For now, though, enjoy the photos of the limited edition suepercar!
We have tremendous respect for tuning firms that are able to make a car like the Lamborghini Aventador that much more amazing. Not many have been able to pull it off, but after Oakley Design’s work on the Ferrari 458 Italia, we knew they’d be one of the few to make it happen. To illustrate just how fantastic this package fits with the Aventador, Oakley Design will only be producing five units, and three of them have already been sold.
Focusing on the looks alone, anyone can see the sportier appearance given by the addition of a larger airbox, an intake feed pipe diameter, a titanium exhaust system, and a new set of lighter and wider wheels. Those additions only hint at what’s going on under the hood. Oakley Design worked up the Aventador so that it became 253 lbs lighter than the standard model and, with the help of an ECU remap, 60 HP stronger. The V12 engine now delivers a whopping 760 HP, up from the standard 700 HP. Another impressive feature for this package is that the power will be sent to the rear wheels; no all-wheel drive for this baby. No word yet on how these extra 60 ponies and their delivery will affect the car’s performance, but expect to see a slightly better 0-60 mph time than the 2.9 seconds provided from the factory model.
UPDATE 05/20/2012: Oakley Design has unveiled a new set of images for their LP760-2 package based on the Lamborghini Aventador. The images show the 1st unit of only 5 set to be produced.
About a month ago, Pagani unveiled a pretty cool documentary explaining the technology behind the Huayra. And because people were thoroughly impressed with it, the company decided to offer a new documentary, this time explaining the history of the very successful company.
Parts 1-4 have already been unveiled and talk about the beginnings of the company. Part One talks about Pagani founder Horacio Pagani and reveals a collage of personal photos, while Part Two explains how the company was founded in 1999 and talks about the first vehicle produced by Pagani: the Zonda C12. Part Three goes into years 2005-2008 of the company and the production of the Zonda F and Part Four handles model year 2009 with the Zonda R. Finally, Part 5 covers the 2009-2011 model years with the Zonda Cinque.
Parts Two, Three, Four and Five can be found after the jump. Enjoy!
