Sports Cars

We recently learned that the Corvette C8 is going to miss the upcoming Detroit Auto Show in January 2019. According to GM Authority, anonymous sources have said that the automaker is delaying the mid-engined ‘Vette by six months after the engineers discovered a "major electrical issue" with the car. If true, this screw-up is quite embarrassing for the automaker.

The process of maturing from the Concept phase to the production phase usually entails a dramatic design transformation of a car. Not so in the case of the new 2020 Toyota Supra A90. With the design heavily based around the Toyota FT-1 Concept, I can clearly say that Toyota designers are brazen. Under the engineering hand of Tetsuya Tada, the Supra’s design team managed to capture all the important styling cues from the FT-1 and successfully translate them into the production car. At least judging by the one leaked photo that revealed the front end of the new Supra. Sure, the photo was captured in a transportation wagon, probably headed for Detroit, but it does reveal main cues rooted in the design of the FT-1 that was unveiled five years ago at the 2014 Detroit Auto Show.

So, how does exactly the new 2020 Toyota Supra A90 compare with the Toyota FT-1 Concept?

A few weeks after the Toyota Supra makes its long-awaited debut at the 2019 North American International Auto Show, the first production version of the Japanese sports coupe will go under the hammer at the Barrett-Jackson auction in Scottsdale, Arizona. Toyota isn’t actually bringing the actual production model to the Barrett-Jackson auction, but, rather, a prototype model that’s representative of the actual production Supra. The first production model will be delivered to the winning bidder in the first half of 2019. Line up your checkbooks, folks. The Barrett-Jackson auction in Scottsdale, Arizona will take place on January 19, 2019.

The moment we’ve all been waiting for isn’t around the corner. GM has made it official that the mid-engined, C8 Corvette won’t be unveiled at the Detroit Auto Show. Ford will, however, launch the 2020 Mustang Shelby GT500. Did Chevrolet chicken out at the last moment and tried to avoid direct comparisons with the GT500?

It sounds like an incredible hypothesis, but what if it’s true? Or what if Chevrolet actually encountered some other issues during the final tests of the C8 that pushed the American giant to delay the launch of, maybe, their most awaited product ever? In any case, the most bad-ass sixth-generation Mustang will be at NAIAS and Chevrolet will have no ’answer’ for it at their stand. This is interesting.

As is often the case, Ferrari doesn’t expect to have much of a presence at the 2019 North American International Auto Show this January. But two months later, in Geneva? That’s a completely different story. Information filtering through the FerrariChat forum puts the spotlight on the Italian automaker potentially having a number of debuts in Geneva, including the successor to the 488 GTB. None of the chatter is verified, but a number of members claim that the 488’s successor is coming sooner than later, possibly as soon as Geneva. The supercar’s timeline fits in with the claims as the 488 has been around since 2015 after replacing the 458 Italia. A four- to five-year run would be enough for the 488 GTB and would be enough for Ferrari to start thinking about what comes next after the model rides off into the sunset.

Genovation GXE is an electric vehicle based on the C7-Gen Chevy Corvette with plenty of power as well as visual treatment to let onlookers know it’s something a bit special. Wraps officially came off the limited production version at the 2018 LA motor show, where we were informed of its strict 75-unit production cap as well as the fact that the company expects to deliver the first ones in mid-2019.

Now while Genovation rips out the Corvette’s V-8 and replaces it with two electric motors, the company leaves the stock transmission inside, and you can even choose whether it’s a manual or automatic. Exact performance numbers aren’t mentioned, but we are informed of the vehicle’s sub-3-second zero to sixty time.

Visually, the GXE does stand out among Corvettes, with its unique bumpers, rims, and LED strips that highlight some of its design features. You will definitely know something is up when one of these drives by, not only due to the extra exterior lighting but also because of its almost complete lack of noise as it moves along.

Its only slight problem is the fact that you are asked to part with $750,000 in exchange for one. And, while the sheer novelty of having a usable, more luxurious, custom, and fully electric Corvette it is going to be out of the reach of most enthusiasts, it’s important to remember that you can buy no fewer than six Corvette ZR1s for the same money. You know, just to put things into perspective.

McLaren, the car company founded by Bruce McLaren of New Zealand in the ’60s as a racing car manufacturer and motorsports outfit, continues to celebrate its storied past with six evocative McLaren 570S models - three coupes and three cabriolets. These cars, commisioned by Mclaren of Beverly Hills and built by McLaren Special Operations, showcase three key periods in McLaren’s racing history.

Each of the three periods is presented on a 570S Coupe and a570S Spider that share the same exterior color. There’s the ’Muriwai Theme’ that harkens back to Bruce McLaren’s early racing exploits, the ’Papaya Spark Theme’ which recalls the days of the orange racing McLarens in the ’60s and ’70s, and the ’Sarthe Gray Theme’ that’s a tribute to McLaren’s overall victory at Le Mans back in 1995.

Understandably, the Toyota Supra is all that everyone’s talking about these days. It’s scheduled to make its long-awaited debut at the 2019 North American International Auto Show and just yesterday, leaked photos of the production version made their way to the Internet. But don’t focus all of your attention on the Supra just yet because it appears that it’s not the only retro Toyota sports car that’s making a comeback. Brace yourselves for months, maybe even years, of anticipation, folks. Word has it that Toyota is bringing back the MR2 as part of a joint development with Subaru. Neither Toyota nor Subaru have confirmed these plans, but if it’s true, our dreams of reviving the nostalgia of Toyota’s trinity of sports cars is two-thirds of the way from becoming reality.

The Audi RS5, built between 2010 and 2015, was powered by a screaming, high-revving, V-8 engine and was widely acknowledged as being one of the best of its kind. However, what do you do when your car doesn’t have an engine or its engine is junk and you need to replace it with something else? How about you slot in a Tesla motor and battery pack to see how that transforms the car.

It’s not even 2019, and we’re already talking about the hybridized version of the new 992-generation Porsche 911. Yes, the plug-in model will only be unveiled in late 2020 for the 2021 model but August Achleitner, Porsche’s current head of sports car development, has already shed some light on how the German company prepared for this move.

We knew ever since the new 911 was presented to the world at the L.A. Auto Show that it would have some built-in features that would, later on, make the adaptation of a hybrid powertrain simpler. Now, we get a bit of insight of how Porsche is working to fit the battery pack and the electric motors onto the 911s platform.

We have something special for you today - the first look at the long-awaited Toyota Supra A90. SupraMKV forum leaked the picture that clearly shows the front end of the new Toyota Supra. Of course, nothing is official as of yet, but I am really confident that this is the real deal. It shows the Toyota Supra being transported by a car transport wagon. The photo we have does show clear links with the FT-1 concept Toyota presented five years ago. That is a really good thing as the FT-1 looks rather stunning. The first public image of the new Toyota Supra in grey is the biggest news today, and I can say right now that this car does not look like the Z4 as some have feared.

Yes, that is right. The 2020 Ford Shelby GT500 will have 3D printed parts! The most expected muscle car of the decade will be partially 3D printed. Well, partially is a slightly too strong word here. It will get two 3D printed parts. However, this made me think about the 3D printing Ford has been screaming about for the last couple of years. It may very well be the biggest change in the world of mass production in ages.

On December 1st, 1913, Henry Ford started the first moving assembly line for the mass production of a car. History.com reports that “his innovation reduced the time it took to build a car from more than 12 hours to two hours and 30 minutes.”

Jump to today, and astounding news has emerged - “The 2020 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 Have 3D Printed Parts Brakes?”

I wonder, could this innovation be as industry shattering as the first production line was all that time ago? Of course, I am not the only one who thought about this.

"More than 100 years ago, Ford created the moving assembly line, forever changing how vehicles would be mass-produced," Joe Hinrichs, Ford’s President of Global Operations, said in a statement. "Today, we are reinventing tomorrow’s assembly line — tapping technologies once only dreamed of on the big screen — to increase our manufacturing efficiency and quality."

Ford is one of the hundreds (if not thousands) of companies that are working on perfecting the 3D printing process. It has been doing it from the very start (all the way back in the Eighties), but since sometime in early 2000s, it integrated the 3D printing process into its production affairs. The result is a disturbing fact - if by some magic, 3D printing at Ford stopped, the company would not be able to produce cars.

At all.

"We touch a significant portion of the vehicle with 3D printing now," said Harold Sears, Technical Expert of rapid manufacturing technologies with Ford’s manufacturing division. "We’re prototyping virtually everything [using 3D printing] from the road to roof."

So, what the hell does all of this have with the Shelby GT500?

These are some facts you have to know:

Were you expecting to see the mid-engine Corvette C8 at the Detroit Auto Show in January? Well, hold your breath no more because it’s not going to happen. When reached to comment about whether or not something will be unveiled at the 2019 North-American International Auto Show, GM stated that there’s nothing planned for the Chevrolet brand - something that’s leaving everyone frustrated.

The rumor mill’s been going and going at an unimaginable speed when it comes to the upcoming Corvette generation. It’s no wonder when you think that it’s been the wet dream of Zora Arkus-Duntov himself to see a mid-engine Corvette in showrooms and now it’s finally about to happen. But the unveiling won’t happen, as many were hoping, at the final Detroit Auto Show to be held in January. Instead, the only new car that will come from the whole GM stable should be Cadillac’s XT6 crossover. Not really something to cause a massive stir like the Corvette would have done.

After several years left on the shelf to rot, the Z4 nameplate is making its comeback. Official details are still trickling out, but now we’ve got a sneak peek at the goods thanks to a number of documents that just leaked online.

The Acura RSX was the U.S. version of the Honda Integra DC5. It’s a car revered to this day by car fans who look for cheap thrills. However, there are some who want to see those thrills multiplied by a thousand. One such guy is Ryan Standke who made a mission out of installing two LS4 V-8s in an RSX for an output of over 1,500 horsepower.

Yes, before you rush to the calendars to see if you’ve somehow traveled through a wormhole all the way to April 1st, it’s still the middle of December, and yes, this is a real story. Of course, there’s still a long way until the RSX will descend upon one of the country’s drag strips but if all goes well - and we hope it does - that day will be one for the ages.

Pininfarina, the company that once acted as Ferrari’s favorite coachbuilder, will soon be in the business of making cars of its own. A supercar is planned, named PF0, as well as three SUVs. The fastest of the lot, known as PF1, will use the same platform as the Rivian R1S SUV and will target Lamborghini’s Urus in terms of performance.

It’s been almost 90 years since Battista Farina funded the Pinin Farina coachbuilding company and over half a century since the company’s name was changed to Pininfarina. Many cars have featured Pininfarina bodies over the years, beyond the countless Prancing Horses, and, now, a fleet of SUVs is in the oven beside the company’s own supercar.

Like some kind of weird reverse hibernation, Subaru drivers wake up the moment a single snowflake falls from the sky. Winter time is the right time for the Six-Star badge to come out and shine because when the traction drops, the fun can begin. So hit play and watch as these Scooby’s get to play hero.