2007 Aston Martin V8 Vantage N400
Aston Martin is not only showing the DBS for the first time in Europe at the Frankfurt motor show next week but will also showcase two new special editions – the Aston Martin DB9 LM and the V8 Vantage N400. Both special editions draw inspiration from the company’s recent achievements at Le Mans and the Nurburgring 24-hour races.
The V8 Vantage N400 commemorates Aston Martin’s achievements at the Nurburgring where the company enjoyed success in the gruelling ADAC 24-hour race with the V8 Vantage N24 production race car. Aston Martin develops and tests all of its road cars extensively on the Nurburgring Nordschleife circuit and the Vantage N400 recently broke the eight minute benchmark around the legendary 14-mile circuit.
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2006 BMW Z4 M Coupe Motorsport Version
The Motorsport Version of the BMW Z4 M Coupé, which has already made a big impression as a production model, is the first two-seater BMW Motorsport offers for customer teams. When it came to the development, BMW faced a huge challenge: The car had to have what is needed to race successfully on the world’s most demanding and spectacular racetrack, the Nürburgring’s famous Nordschleife. The new motorsport coupé can be used by private BMW customer teams in the German Endurance Championship and in the Nürburgring 24-Hour Race.
The power unit of the beefy coupe is a BMW Motorsport designed 3.2-litre in-line 6-cylinder engine delivering about 400bhp, with the suspension area in particular benefiting from the knowledge gained from the successful BMW M3 GTR project.
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2007 9FF Porsche 911 Turbo GT9
H&R is known the world over for their sport suspension and chassis components, as well as maintaining a prominent sponsoring presence with many motorsport teams. It is safe to say that H&R is a company on a mission. Back in August 2006 during a six hour endurance race at Nurburgring which ended in an early accident, the Mission 400 Plus project, was born. The foundation of the Mission 400 Plus project saw a cooperation between H&R and RS Tuning to build a record breaking 400 km/h street legal sports car. Later that year the 1054hp Porsche 911 Turbo prototype was presented at the Essen Motor Show.
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2008 Volkswagen Scirocco GT24 Debut
The Scirocco GT24 concept is a sister vehicle to the race cars which not only won their class at the recent Nürburgring 24 hour race but also finished 11th overall out of over 200 starters among far more exotic machinery. Sharing the same drivetrain, carbon panels and 325 PS 2.0-litre TSI engine the Scirocco GT24 adds a series of detail changes to the interior including leather bucket seats and a rear-facing camera to record the expression on the passenger’s face as the car races up the notorious Goodwood Hill.
Making a total of six runs up the hill over the three days, The Festival of Speed marks the first time the Scirocco GT24 has been driven in the UK.
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Citroen GT
Polyphony Digital’s Citroën GT is set to become one of the most expensive “production cars” (if you can really call it that…) sold today, coming in at £1.1 million pounds or approximately $1.8 million U.S. dollars. AutoCar got the scoop from “senior inside sources”, who revealed that only six of the cars will be made – all of which will be powered by either a “Ford or GM V8″. That’s considerably less than the 20 production models that were hinted at before, but according to AutoCar, “most of the concept’s features should make the final production version, including the carbon-fibre construction and eccentric interior details such as the copper trim.” Sweet! The final production version of the car is expected to be launched at the Frankfurt Motor Show this September.
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2008 Cadillac Coming to Australia
The new CTS is expected to be a strong contributor to Cadillac’s global growth. “Cadillac sales have exceeded our expectations and have been growing steadily,” said Taylor. “We believe the CTS will be an appealing choice for those seeking a compelling combination of luxury and performance.” In total, sales of Cadillac luxury vehicles have increased in the Asia Pacific region by 98.4 percent, by 45.3% in Europe, and by 49.4% in Latin America, Africa and Middle East.
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2007 AC Schnitzer BMW M Coupe PROFILE 350hp Concept
The AC Schnitzer PROFILE. Take the first ascent of the 8,848 metre high Mount Everest, the expeditions to the poles or the dive into the 11 km deep canyon of the Mariana Trench. There have always been individuals and extreme characters who have pushed our boundaries and discovered new terrain. An extreme region for automotive tuners, where only a few venture, has always been the BMW M-series cars, in particular the uncompromising Z4 M-Coupé, a thoroughbred driving machine.
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2008 Mini Clubman
Retro but not old-fashioned – sassy and practical – authentic but no copy: Few cars have mastered the balancing act as well as the new MINI, the latest generation of which is now in the showrooms. In design terms it remains true to its predecessor, but doesn’t stop there technically. In detail no MINI looks like the next, because individuality takes priority amongst its owners.
Anyone wanting to stand out from the crowd of MINI owners, not just in appearance but also in performance, should turn to AC Schnitzer. The present focus of the tuner’s development activities is the new 170 HP turbo engine in the Cooper S, for which AC Schnitzer develops a performance upgrade. And when the driver puts the power down, the sound track plays loud and clear, thanks to the sonorous twin sports silencer with chromed Racing tailpipe.
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2007 Autodelta Alfa Romeo 147 GTA AM 3.7 422hp
The new Autodelta 147 GTA AM 3.7 Super pushes the engine and chassis dynamics of the Alfa 147 GTA to its most extreme point yet. This new version builds on the impressive upgrades we have already wrought to the Alfa V6 engine: capacity increased to 3,750cc, a remapped management system and a Ferrari-derived throttle body, coupled to the fitting of a Rotrex C38-81 supercharger delivering 0.75 bar of boost; now all taken to a new even higher level – bringing the car’s maximum power up to 422 bhp at 7,000 rpm (standard Alfa 147 GTA power is 250bhp at 6,200 rpm) and torque significantly improved to 520 Nm.
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2008 Chevrolet Cobalt SS 260hp Turbo
Developed by GM Performance Division (GMPD) and powered by a 260-horsepower (194 kW) turbocharged and intercooled 2.0L Ecotec engine, the Cobalt SS delivers 55 horses (41 kW) more than the previous Cobalt SS Supercharged, and its driving experience was validated on racetracks throughout North America and Europe, including Germany’s legendary Nürburgring circuit.
“The Cobalt SS is the very essence of Chevrolet’s fun spirit and serious performance,” said Ed Peper, Chevrolet general manager. “The horsepower will put a permanent smile on your face and you’ll find yourself wanting to turn around and zip through your favorite stretch of twisty roads again.”
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