What is the Jaguar F-Type V8 S?
This is Jaguar’s return to building a true sports car. For a long time, under Ford, Jaguar really only built luxury sedans and coupes. You could maybe get away with calling the early 2000s XKR a grand touring car, but it wasn’t even remotely close to being a proper, driver-focused sports car. Much of Jaguar’s brand image has been built on racing success, and building iconic sports cars, such as the E-Type, so the new F-Type is a much needed return to form.
A couple of weeks ago, I spent the weekend in Boston visiting my cousin and her husband. While I was up there, I revisited the Larz Anderson Auto Museum in Brookline just outside of town. I hadn’t been there in more than 4 years, so I was excited to come back and see what had changed. Here is a selection of what was at the museum at the time I was there, including a 1953 Corvette, a prewar Bugatti four-door cabriolet in beautiful shape, a Mercer runabout, a selection of classic racers from the 50s and 60s, and a pristine Corvette Stingray in the back room. The museum has a smorgasbord of prewar cars on display both upstairs and in the family’s personal collection, located in the basement. This is definitely a great place to go if you like smaller car museums with an eclectic and ever-changing display set. Enjoy the photos. Continue reading Presenting a selection from the Larz Anderson Auto Museum in Brookline, MA.
There were over 700 Lamborghini Miuras produced over a period of six years, but the car you see here is the one and only roofless example. Built by Bertone for the 1968 Brussels Auto Show, the Miura Roadster may well be the most stunning Miura of them all, with its vibrant, sparkling aqua-blue paint job.
We had the unexpected privilege of seeing this car up close at last year’s Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance. The Miura Roadster was in attendance as a part of Lamborghini’s 50 year anniversary celebration, and it even took the first place prize in the Lamborghini judging class. I had actually seen the car once before at Pebble Beach in 2008, but this time around I was able to get far better photos.
The one-off Miura Roadster set the precedent for the roadster versions of the Diablo, Murcielago, and now, the Aventador. Open-top V12 motoring is something we should all be glad exists. Enjoy the photos!
Continue reading Lamborghini Miura Roadster at the Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance
Most cars of the Fifties are celebrated after 1955 or so, with some exceptions. The 1954 Cadillacs, in my opinion, get a bit overlooked by the elegant 1953 models and the ostentatious, outrageous late Fifties cars, because they’re in that bridge year between the introductory Eldorado, and the Fab Fifties era. This black one happens to be a very straight and shined-up Series 62 convertible, and in its tuxedo over red combination, it looks great here on the Scarsdale street corner. Just a few feet away sat this breathtaking soft-yellow 1955 Packard Four Hundred hardtop–a car overlooked because of the famous Packard Caribbean. Well, I decided not to overlook either of the two, and now, nor will any of you. Enjoy the photos.
Continue reading 1954 Cadillac Series 62 Convertible and 1955 Packard Four Hundred Hardtop at the Scarsdale Concours
With new cars like the McLaren P1, Porsche 918 Spyder and Ferrari LaFerrari hitting the streets now, the question of what raises a supercar to the level of hypercar is at the forefront of the minds of car enthusiasts all over the world. Drive’s video on supercars vs hypercars last week got me thinking, so I decided to weigh in with my thoughts on the issue with a video of my own. Let me know your take in the comments!
-Nick
This episode of After Drive delves into the question of, what is the difference between a “supercar” and a “hypercar?” Let us know your thoughts in the comments, and expect a further post from us on the subject soon.
-Nick
Considering the time frame I had to buy a car back in May 2012, I lucked out rather well. After narrowing down my choices of chariot to just two cars via figuring out that a Pontiac G8 GT would bankrupt me in fuel costs and a Dodge Charger was too much to insure, I was stuck between two cars after driving plenty, including a Volkswagen R32 (which turned out to be a dud with repairs needed immediately) and this black Subaru. I almost didn’t even look at it. It took a win by the New York Mets (yup, those 2012 Mets, not the 1986 squad) and some poking and prodding by my brother Matt, who knew I was still looking into this very car, to even dial up the dealership. In the end though, the rest was history, and now, more than 18 months later, I’m making payments on this black bundle of joy and driving it constantly. These are my thoughts.
Continue reading 2008 Subaru Legacy GT – Al’s Daily Driver (GRADE: B+)
Capitalizing off of their immensely successful video review of the McLaren P1 last week, now over 750,000 views, Drive has released the full conversation between the always entertaining Chris Harris and McLaren Chief Test Driver, and extremely lucky bastard, Chris Goodwin. This is some hearty car nerd stuff for sure, but definitely worth the watch if you are into this stuff.
-Nick
I found this drag-prepped Chevy Nova sitting at a shop near where I work. It looked really cool so I snapped a photo of it. It has what seem to be bullet holes in its driver side door, and that just raises so many questions. Apparently this car beat someone so badly that they had nothing left to do but try and shoot it dead.
-Nick
Early Rolls-Royces were out in full force on the second day of the New Hope Car Show, which is normally reserved for European classics. Behind the high school that the show uses as its venue, there were Rolls and Bentley classics parked as far as the eye could see. Luckily for my bad right ankle, this Rolls Royce Silver Ghost, in a very fetching eggshell-white paintjob with wire wheels, was parked right next to the wall of the school, making for some great backdrops. Of course, my camera packed up on me at this very moment, and the zoom stopped working while I was taking shots of this Ghost. Luckily, the photos survived for your viewing pleasure. Enjoy the photos. Continue reading 1922 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost at the New Hope Classic Car Show
We want to throw out a big congratulations to Hennessey Performance Engineering on their record-setting, 270mph run in the Venom GT. The run was doused with an extra helping of awesome because it was held at the Kennedy Space Center’s 3.2 mile runway… you cannot get more ‘Murica if you tried!
For those unfamiliar, the Hennessey Venom GT is a million dollar hypercar produced in very limited numbers by Hennessey Performance Engineering in Texas. It is powered by a twin turbocharged V8 that makes 1244hp, and only runs on the finest concoction of Freedom and Liberty that money can buy. Computers have said all along that the Venom GT should be able to hit the 270mph mark, but now it has been definitively proven. In fact, Hennessey said that the Venom GT was still gaining 1mph second when it passed 270mph, and that means 280mph could be a possibility with another couple miles of straight, flat tarmac.
Now, they weren’t able to do a conformation run in the opposite direction, so the record doesn’t stand for the Guiness Book of World Records, but let’s all be real here, people, 270mph is 270mph. The Venom GT is now officially the fastest production car on Earth, at least for the time being, so let’s all give credit where credit is due.
I know I have been critical of the Venom GT in the past, and I still am to this day. There is no denying its awesome performance, though, and the scale of Hennessey Performance Engineering’s achievement. For all intents and purposes, what has happened here is a David and Goliath scenario. A small performance shop in Texas has succeeded in toppling the technological masterpiece, and flagship, of one of the largest automotive corporations in the world, Volkswagen, despite their comparatively unlimited resources.
Your move Germans…
-Nick
This beautiful Ferrari 250 GT SWB was at Festivals of Speed: Amelia Island last year. It is a stunning example of this iconic Italian racing car painted in Ferrari’s signature red. This classic Ferrari was one of many stunning cars at the show last year, and we are looking forward to attending this year’s event in a few weeks. I’m sure there will be much more where this came from. Till then, enjoy the photos.
Continue reading Ferrari 250 GT SWB at Festivals Of Speed: Amelia Island 2013
Mind Over Motor 