Special Editions Car reviews

The Nurburgring is arguably the world’s most famous race track, and if that distinction is attached to your name, automakers are likely to come up with any reason to release special edition models in your name. Take Audi, for example. The German automaker carries one of the richest racing legacies on the ‘Ring.

Since 2012, Audi has dominated the Green Hell, winning the 24 Hours of Nurburgring race five times. Not one to be bashful about its achievements, Audi is celebrating those victories with a special edition R8 called the Green Hell.

Four months after unveiling the TLX PMC Edition, Acura is giving the same special edition treatment to its RDX crossover. Dubbed the RDX PMC Edition, the special edition crossover benefits from the same exclusive additions Acura gave to the TLX. That includes the Thermal Orange Pearl paint finish that’s arguably one of the best colors you can get in the market. The RDX PMC Edition now occupies the range-topping slot in the lineup, combining the two trims sitting underneath it — the A-Spec and Advance Package — into one model. Befitting its status as a top-of-the-line special edition model, Acura is limiting the production of the special edition crossover to just 360 units, all of which are earmarked for the North American market. Each unit of the RDX PMC will carry a sticker price of “in the low $50,000,” according to Acura.

While everyone is going stir crazy over the Nissan Z Proto’s arrival, Nissan has quietly unveiled a special edition model for one of its veteran nameplates. It’s called the Nissan Maxima 40th Anniversary Edition, and, as the name clearly indicates, it’s a celebratory model of the Maxima’s 40-year run in the U.S.

Yes, the Maxima has been in America that long. It’s the longest-running nameplate in the country, and to mark that occasion, Nissan went all-out in dressing the Maxima 40th Anniversary with all the bells and whistles.

The 2020 McLaren Senna GTR LM is a limited-edition version of the Senna GTR. A customer-commissioned series, the 2020 Senna GTR LM was designed as a tribute to McLaren’s 1995 24 Hours of Le Mans campaign, which saw the F1 GTR win the race for the very first time. The 2020 Senna GTR LM is limited to five units, each designed as a homage to the five F1 GTR race cars that finished the 1995 24 Hours of Le Mans in first, third, fourth, fifth, and 13th positions. The 2020 Senna GTR LM shouldn’t be confused with the 2020 Senna LM.The latter also celebrates 25 years since McLaren won the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and it’s also limited to five cars, but it was commissioned by two U.S. McLaren dealerships. And while the Senna LM is based on the regular Senna, the Senna GTR LM is built around the track-only Senna GTR model.

The 2021 Bentley Continental GT Mulliner is a special-edition version of the Continental GT. As the name suggests, the coupe has been customized by Mulliner, the company’s bespoke division. Although it doesn’t look very different compared to the standard model, the Mulliner model stands out through numerous exclusive features inside and out. Designed for customers who want an even greater focus on customization, the 2021 Continental GT Mulliner is basically the range-topping version of the current luxury coupe. Engine choices are similar to the regular model, so you get to choose between the gasoline V-8 and W-12 mills. Let’s find out more about it in the review below.

Customers in the U.S. have been craving the Ranger Raptor since it was announced for other markets. Ford has denied giving the pleasure so far, but there is news of the Ranger Raptor finally heading Stateside when the 2022 Ranger arrives. Since that is still some time away, the Blue Oval has decided to give us a taste of what to expect by introducing the Tremor off-road package for the mid-size pickup truck. While it is no Raptor, it is a lot more capable than the existing FX4 off-road package. Ford has priced the package at $4,290, but the catch is that is won’t be available on all the trims.

The Lexus RC F is one of the most fascinating two-door coupes on the market. It looks sharp, packs plenty of power, and it drives like a genuine sports car. Unfortunately, the RC F still lacks the verve that some of its German rivals possess. Lexus knows that there’s plenty of room for improvement with the RC F, and with the arrival of this new special edition model, we might see these improvements sooner than we thought. The model is called the Lexus RC F Fuji Speedway Edition, and not only does it pay tribute to the iconic racetrack in the foothills of the world-famous mountain, but, more importantly, it comes with an array of special edition touches that provide that singular appeal that a lot of special edition models possess. Highlights include a distinctive look that’s bolstered by several technical improve Only 60 units of the RC F Fuji Speedway Edition will be made, and while Lexus has yet to release pricing details for the special edition sports car, don’t expect it to close lower than $70,000.

The 2020 Aston Martin Victor is a bespoke, one-off supercar developed by the company’s Q division. Built around a carbon-fiber monocoque from the One-77, a car that Aston Martin offered from 2009 to 2012, the Victor draws styling cues from the V8 Vantage of 1970s, as well as the race-spec DBS V8 (also known as the RHAM/1) that Aston Martin built in the late 1970s for the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

The 2020 Victor is powered by a naturally aspirated V-12 also sourced from the One-77, but some drivetrain components come from the much newer Valkyrie supercar. Q by Aston Martin built just one, so it’s one of those supercars that you can only hope to see in the metal at a fancy auto show.

McLaren’s road-spec 620R is one of the most hardcore machines to come out of Woking, England in recent years. Not only is it the most powerful “Sports Series” McLaren in the lineup, but it was developed specifically to go fast. Nothing about the 620R counts as subtle, and that includes McLaren’s new “R Pack,” which the automaker is launching to make what is already a hardcore supercar even more hardcore.

The 2020 McLaren Senna LM is a limited-edition supercar build by the McLaren Special Operations division. Designed to commemorate 25 years since the iconic McLaren F1 GTR won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1995, the 2020 Senna LM is a spiritual successor to the P1 LM, which in turn followed the iconic F1 LM. Unlike other versions of the Senna, the Senna LM wasn’t commissioned by McLaren. This supercar, limited to just five units, was commissioned by the McLaren Orlando and McLaren North Jersey dealerships, so it’s a U.S.-exclusive model.

Since most of the focus this year has been on the Ram 1500 TRX, the other trucks had taken a backseat in terms of updates and upgrades. However, Ram decided to throw in a little something for the 2021 model year. So it introduced a new ‘Limited Night Edition’ for the 1500 and the Heavy Duty trucks. These are pretty much just cosmetic upgrades, but well, something is better than nothing!

There’s no denying that the Audi RS6 Avant is one hell of a beast. With almost 600 horses under the hood, this wagon can hit the 60 mph mark in no time. Such is its popularity that it has even become a popular vehicle amongst tuners.

It didn’t have a presence in the U.S. until now, but the automaker decided to bring it to our shores as well. Earlier this year, the German automaker announced the six-digit pricing for the U.S.-spec RS6 Avant. To make RS6 Avant’s arrival here even special, Audi has announced a limited-edition RS6 Avant “Tribute Edition” that pays homage to the yesteryear RS2 Avant.

It’s been about a week since Ram revealed the 2021 1500 TRX. It came with a lot of exciting features in and out and hit the bulls eye in almost every department. The starting price of $69,995 (excluding destination charges), too, wasn’t bad for the stuff that’s on offer. But, as is the norm these days, the Ram 1500 TRX was also introduced with a special “Launch Edition”.

Priced at over $90,000, this edition was limited to just 702 examples – the same amount of horsepower that the truck offers. At the onset, it seemed a little too expensive, but all 702 examples of the 2021 Ram 1500 TRX Launch Edition were officially sold out within three hours after the bookings opened. How about that!

The 2020 Rolls-Royce Cullinan Black Badge is a version of the Cullinan, the British company’s first-ever SUV. Designed for "younger, more adventurous clients," the Black Badge is basically a package that adds darker trim on the outside and extra, unique features on the inside. It also comes with extra power and torque, so it can also be considered a higher performance version of the standard Cullinan. The SUV is the fourth Rolls-Royce available with the Black Badge treatment, following the Wraith and Ghost in 2016 and the Dawn in 2017. Let’s find out what makes it special in the review below.

Let’s be honest: the current-gen Mazda MX-5 ‘Miata’ is becoming pretty long in the tooth. The fourth-gen MX-5 (codenamed ND) was shown six years ago and entered the market in 2015. So it’s only natural that Mazda is doing its best to keep it fresh and appealing. This time, the Japanese carmaker focused on the U.K. market, with the so-called GT Sport Tech treatment. Here’s what it’s all about.

The Ford GT is getting a splash of color in the form of a new graphics package that prospective owners can choose from to bring life to their beloved supercar. The exclusive series, called the Ford GT Studio Collection, comes to life by way of a design collaboration between Ford Performance and Ford GT manufacturer, Multimatic.

Together, the two parties created an avenue for Ford GT owners to personalize the look and color of their supercars through this graphics package. It comes with exclusive body colors, racing stripes, trims, accents, and everything in between. Unfortunately, access to the Ford GT Studio Collection is limited to just 40 units of the Ford GT, spread out across the 2021 and 2022 model years.