Latest news with #sportscar
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Automotive
- Daily Mail
RAY MASSEY: New Aston Martin would leave Bond shaken and stirred!
The suntan I earned should tell you everything. Spent mainly in glorious sunshine with the roof down, my day behind the wheel of Aston Martin's new open-top Vanquish Volante was both exhilarating and exciting. Hailed by Aston Martin as the jewel in its crown, the two-door, two-seater drop-top sportscar is supposedly 'the fastest, most powerful open-top series production Aston Martin to date', and 'the world's fastest, most powerful front-engined convertible' on sale today. But does it live up to the billing? To find out, I drove it through some of Britain's most beautiful scenery – the Yorkshire Dales and North Yorkshire moors. This is Herriot Country, after the vet James Herriot of All Creatures Great And Small fame. Fitting, really: the new Volante is one big beast that deserves respect. Push that accelerator hard, and the power – fed from the vast engine to the rear wheels via an eight-speed gearbox – is truly awesome. Propelled by an 835hp, twin-turbo 5.2-litre V12 engine, the new Volante accelerates from 0 to 62 mph in just 3.4 seconds, up to a top speed of 214 mph. That's just 0.1 seconds slower than its hard-top coupé sibling, developed alongside the cabriolet and launched last autumn. The standard GT grand tourer cruising mode offers effortlessly long-legged performance, but I quickly graduated to the more responsive Sport mode as my default setting – rationing the dynamic Sport+ mode for those moments of really letting rip. But while the rip-roaring blast gives an instant thrill, it also tires you out. Despite its power, the Volante entices you to sit back and take in your surroundings – especially on the winding roads of this region. First convertible deliveries will start in the autumn, with prices from £361,000 – a £27,000 uplift on the hard-top. The car I drove cost nearer £400,000 due to extras including dark Chimera Blue metallic paint, and orange brake calipers and livery. Inside were comfortable 16-way adjustable Sports Plus seats and a heated steering wheel. If new James Bond director Denis Villeneuve is looking for a sexy Aston Martin supercar for 007's next big-screen outing, he could certainly do worse. A convertible without compromise Aston Martin said designing and engineering both the hard-top Vanquish coupe and open top Volante variant simultaneously allowed them to create a convertible car without compromise while maintaining the design - whether the hood is raised or stored – and retaining maximum rigidity with minimum weight gain. The car's Electronic Stability Programme (ESP) and suspension helped give me extra confidence, grip and stability negotiating tighter corners. A newly developed stainless steel exhaust system with quad tailpipes allows occupants to experience the full V12 howl – though my car was fitted with the optional 10.5kg lighter titanium exhaust system, which uses a smaller muffler to give an even louder and distinctive roar. Putting up the acoustically enhanced fabric roof creates a snug cabin that feels little if at all different from the metal-top Vanquish coupe thanks to comparable levels of thermal insulation. Retracted to a height of just 260mm the roof can be stowed under the tonneau behind the seats without interrupting the car's flowing lines. Aston Martin's next generation infotainment system - with a Bowers & Wilkins 15-speaker surround sound system - combines a digital 10.25-inch driver display and the integrated 10.25-inch touchscreen system with single and multi-finger gesture control. A machine-knurled rotary dial surrounding the illuminated Stop/Start button made it easy to select my desired drive mode. Push button switches for Chassis, ESP, Exhaust and Park Distance Control meant I could operate the most used controls without taking my eyes off the road. Putting up the acoustically enhanced fabric roof creates a snug cabin that feels little if at all different from the metal-top Vanquish coupe thanks to comparable levels of thermal insulation Retracted to a height of just 260mm the roof can be stowed under the tonneau behind the seats without interrupting the car's flowing lines Aston Martin engineers worked with tyre partner Pirelli to develop a new Pirelli P ZERO Summer and Winter tyre designed specifically for Vanquish Coupe and Volante. A carbon ceramic brake system weighing 27kg less than conventional iron discs is fitted as standard to provide 'suitable stopping ability.' Smaller and sleeker frameless door mirrors aid the aerodynamic profile. Electronically deployable flush-fit door handles retain the smooth lines of its side profile. VERDICT Given the choice of the metal-roofed Vanquish coupe or the open-top fabric roofed Volante, I'd go for the latter as it offers a more fun and flexible option whether we're in a heatwave or enduring a deluge – and recently we've enjoyed or endured both. WILL IF FIT IN MY GARAGE? Price: from around £361,000 (a £27,000 uplift on the hard-top coupe) My car as driven: around £400,000 Style: 2-seater convertible Doors: 2 On sale: Now First deliveries: Autumn Convertible roof: Opens in 14-seconds, closes in 16-seconds at speeds up to 31mph Length: 4,850mm Width: 2,120mm (including mirrors) Width: 2,044mm (mirrors folded) Height: 1,296mm Wheelbase: 2,885mm Weight: 1,880kg Engine: 5.2 litre Twin Turbo V12 Power: 835horse-power Gears: 8-speed ZF automatic, with manual paddles. 0 to 60mph: 3.3 seconds 0 to 62mph: 3.4 seconds Top speed: 214mph MPG: TBC (expect circa 17 to 20mph) Boot space: Roof closed: 219 litres Roof stowed: 187 litres Extras on my car: Exterior:Chimera Blue metallic paint Gloss black grille Tinted carbon exterior tweaks Titanium exhaust Satin black 21-inch star-spoke wheels Orange brake calipers and livery Interior: Sports Plus seats with adjustable 16-ways with heating and ventilation Obsidian Black carpet Satin dark chrome highlights Heated steering wheel
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Here's a teaser of the sportscar that could become Mercedes' next GT3 model
Mercedes has released teaser images of a new sportscar that is set to be the base for its next-generation GT3 racer. What the German manufacturer is calling the Concept AMG GT Track Sport is described as an 'uncompromising concept vehicle' that has been 'designed for absolute driving dynamic peak performance to set new standards and record times'. It demonstrates Mercedes-AMG's 'great expertise as a sportscar manufacturer and provides a preview of a possible expansion of the GT series', the short statement accompanying camouflaged images of the concept car continued. No mention was made of racing or the GT3 category, but the statement revealed that the car 'offers an exclusive insight into the development workshop in Affalterbach'. That is a reference to the new Affalterbach Racing GmbH division established last year on the takeover of the HWA organisation that developed the previous two Mercedes GT3 contenders, the SLS and AMG respectively released to customers in 2011 and 2016. Mercedes announced the start of the new company last July at the same time as revealing that a successor to the AMG GT3 would be developed at its facilities to the north of Stuttgart. Mercedes AMG Concept AMG GT Track Sport The only technical detail of the concept car acknowledged by Mercedes is that it is powered by a V8 engine like the first two GT3 racers. The 6.2-litre normally-aspirated powerplant was carried over from the SLS to the AMG GT3 even though there was no such engine in the road car range of the latter machine. Mercedes appears to be developing what might be described as a racer for the road in order to remain in a category in which it has enjoyed considerable success, including a pair of victories in each of the 24-hour classics at Spa and the Nurburgring. A study of the C192 model GT, introduced in 2023 to replace the C190 on which the current Mercedes-AMG GT3 is based, determined the car's unsuitability for motorsport. It is a 2+2 rather than a two-seater like its predecessor. No timeline was mentioned in the Mercedes statement for a possible introduction of the car, though it suggested that a commencement of testing is imminent. It talked of the project being 'finalised' prior to the concept car 'proving itself on the test tracks'. Read Also: George Russell 'at peace' with future as Mercedes focus on results after Max Verstappen talks To read more articles visit our website.
Top Gear
7 days ago
- Automotive
- Top Gear
Honda's official motorsport partner is building a sportscar designed by Pininfarina
Honda's official motorsport partner is building a sportscar designed by Pininfarina JAS Motorsport is building a 'high-performance' road car, and Italy's sketching it Skip 1 photos in the image carousel and continue reading Turn on Javascript to see all the available pictures. A company called JAS Motorsport has revealed it is building a high-performance road car. JAS Motorsport has been Honda's official racing partner since 1998, winning touring car, GT and Rally titles, so it knows a thing or three about going fast. And a company called Pininfarina will design it. Pininfarina has knocked out some of the finest looking cars of the 20th and 21st century, so it knows a thing or fifteen about sketching out a high-performance road car. Advertisement - Page continues below We know nothing of what'll power this new high-performance road car, nor what it'll look like, barring the teaser image above. Pininfarina has only said it'll collaborate with JAS Motorsport on reimagining 'one of the most iconic sportscars of the past and offer it to the world of car enthusiasts and collectors'. Does that latter bit mean it'll be another slice of unobtanium? Certainly points to it, considering Pininfarina said it'll be built in Milan in an 'extremely limited edition'. As to the 'iconic sportscars' bit, your guess is as good as ours. Apparently the platform will be 'mechanical' (as opposed to… theoretical?) with 'the very latest automotive technology', will 'respect' its origins, and feature 'modern styling cues that will dress a chassis at the forefront of cutting edge construction technology'. So, there's that. We'll know more as both JAS and Pininfarina begin ramping up the development of the new sportscar, scheduled for a 2026 reveal. More as we get it. Advertisement - Page continues below Top Gear Newsletter Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. Look out for your regular round-up of news, reviews and offers in your inbox. Get all the latest news, reviews and exclusives, direct to your inbox. Success Your Email*
Times
19-07-2025
- Automotive
- Times
Sixty years of the Porsche 911 Targa: divisive but drop-dead gorgeous
There's no derivative of the Porsche 911 more divisive than the Targa. Drivers who go to track days and pride themselves on being steely-eyed helmspeople take great joy in telling anyone who'll listen that the Targa is usually the heaviest iteration of the 911. With a chassis derived from the cabriolet, it has the same additional strengthening under the body but with more added weight in the rollover bar. Even worse, that extra mass is high up in the structure, which affects handling. As such, to these true motoring doyens the Targa is (along with the cabriolet, of course) a no-no. Yet for others, it has always been a thing of drool-inducing desirability. There are a number of reasons for that. For one, 911 Targas are rare beasts, built in lower numbers since its launch 60 years ago, in 1965, than the coupé and cabriolet versions of Porsche's legendary sports car. It's thought that fewer than 10 per cent of the 997 generation were Targas, for example. • Read more expert reviews, news and insights on cars and motoring Another reason to like the Targa is that while they're heavier than convertible 911s, they're also stiffer through the chassis, thanks to that extra bracing up top, meaning they flex less under load. That results in more predictable handling. It's a difference that is probably undetectable to most motorists, mind you, but those who treat their cars roughly will claim to be able to tell the difference. Perhaps one of the easiest reasons for falling for the 911 Targa is that they look sensational. They always have, even in those generations when the characteristic rollover hoop was done away with. Famously, that rollover hoop was introduced to the original 911 Cabriolet to meet an anticipated toughening of safety legislation in America. At the time it was feared convertibles would be banned completely. The result was an all-new bodystyle — neither coupé nor cabriolet — and Porsche needed a name. Those considered for the new style revolved around famous races at which Porsche had had success: Sebring and Daytona are a couple the marketers considered. But when someone mentioned the Targa Florio, a road race that Porsche had won five times up to that point, including in 1964, the answer was clear. It is only later that someone noticed the Italian word Targa translates as 'plate', which can also be interpreted as 'shield' — serendipitous indeed. For the first few years 911 Targa owners got a removable top panel and, for the rear section, a 'soft window' that could be folded away when not needed. None of these made it to the UK, sadly, because the first imports to our shores arrived in 1973 and by then the soft window had already been ditched. Late in 1967 Porsche started offering an optional fixed glass window, which was heated to avoid misting and offered improved sound and insulation, as well as extra security. It also meant people weren't having to deal with fiddly popper fixings. It became standard equipment just a year later. And the Targa look remained very much the same, through the G Series, introduced in 1974, and then the 964, which arrived in 1989. We also saw Targa versions of the 914 and 924. But with the revolutionary 993 generation, which has become ridiculously coveted because it turned out to be the last of the air-cooled 911s, the Targa changed considerably. Instead of the rollover hoop, the 993 Targa — launched in November 1995 — switched to a fixed-glass roof section with body-coloured metal frame that aped the look of the coupé more closely. Underneath it was still a 911 Cabriolet, though with a discrete roof featuring a large section of glass that slid backwards underneath the rear window. So owners could still get that halfway house experience between a full droptop and a coupé, and with the roof closed a lot of light was still allowed into the cabin. Retractable mesh screens came to the rescue on particularly sunny days. This idea continued through the 996 and 997 generations (1997 and 2006 respectively), though with both getting an innovative hatchback-style opening rear window, allowing owners to get at their luggage in the rear seats easily. But when the 991 Targa arrived in 2014 it was given a thoroughly modern interpretation… Transformers-style. The rollover hoop was back, but at the touch of a button the rear glass lifted up and back, the shoulders of the hoop opened up and the canvas roof then retracted for storage above the engine bay. The hoop sections then closed and the rear section returned to its seated position. And so it has remained. What hasn't remained, of course, is the need for Targa. Modern convertibles have rollover protection — a pair of hoops that pop out behind the driver and passenger seats in the event of a rollover — and windscreen structures are so much sturdier than they were in 1965. And yet Targa lives on. An unnecessary bodystyle, overly complicated in its current guise and still one that comes with added weight. But 60 years after its launch, for many enthusiasts there is still very much a place for Targa within the Porsche pantheon.
Telegraph
13-07-2025
- Automotive
- Telegraph
Would you let your 11-year-old drive a 180mph Porsche?
My first feeling on seeing my son Finn climb into the driver's seat of a Porsche 911 is, simply, envy. I've never been a passenger in a Porsche, let alone driven one; and yet here he is, taking the wheel of this elegant sports car with a top speed upwards of 180mph. At the tender age of 11. As far as driving goes, he's peaked way too soon. We're at the Dunsfold Aerodrome near Guildford – AKA the Top Gear test track, where stars including Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz took the wheel of the Reasonably Priced Car back in the day – the latest addition to the 70-plus venues around the country where the company Young Driver offers driving experiences for children between nine and 17. Finn is a huge fan of cars and something of a demon on the driving-simulation games and go-kart tracks that have so far been the sum of his time behind a wheel. The question is whether driving a real car will similarly feel like a game – and, crucially, whether his foot will reach the accelerator pedal. Taking the wheel The experience starts with a taster session in a little Suzuki Swift hatchback, fitted with dual controls as you would find in any driving school car. His instructor spends a brief few minutes running through the basics, after which Finn pulls away surprisingly smoothly for a first-timer and takes off down the track. By the end of his 30-minute lesson, he has not only circled the track a few times but also practised indicating, braking and parking, learned to change gear, navigated some cones and performed a three-point turn (his favourite bit, he tells us later). But really it's all about the midnight-blue Porsche 911, which Finn has watched gliding around the track, eyes wide. Time for the Porsche When this most famous of sports cars arrives, it's a different beast altogether. Like the Suzuki, it has been fitted with dual controls – good to know, given it can accelerate from 0 to 60mph in less than four seconds – and, once again, the focus of the lesson is on safe, controlled driving. After Finn fastens the seatbelt and adjusts the rear-view mirror, his instructor talks him through operating the clutch, which is considerably heavier than the Suzuki's, and he drives off. There's a dashcam in the car with a splitscreen view, with one side of the screen showing what Finn can see (very much like a video game, in fact), the other side showing the expression on his face as he drives. While he could be forgiven for being a little apprehensive, he's apparently as cool as a cucumber (he tells us later that he wasn't nervous at all, simply excited). The instructor, just out of shot, can be heard reminding him to look at the road rather than the gearlever when changing gear, as well as to slow smoothly when approaching a corner, or steer a little more to the right or left. Playing it safe There's a nominal speed limit of 40mph, although children who are confident and practised enough are allowed to go a little faster. This way, they get a sense of the potency of a powerful engine and the dynamics of one of the world's greatest sports cars, as opposed to a go-kart, but in a safe, controlled environment. They are not simply having a junior petrolhead moment, but learning the basics of responsible driving. The theory is that children who take driving lessons at a young age are more receptive to instruction, but have not yet developed the arrogance that can make some 17- and 18-year-olds more difficult to teach. It follows that children who have already had driving lessons in a safe setting such as this are more likely to require fewer lessons once they reach legal driving age. They are also more likely to pass their test first time – not an insignificant consideration given the current waiting time for a test is up to around six months, as well as the costs involved in lessons. Perhaps the most compelling statistic, however, is that children who have experience of driving before the age of 17 are also far less likely to have a crash in those potentially dangerous first weeks and months after passing their test. According to research by Young Driver, its former students have been involved in 84 per cent fewer road accidents in the first six months after passing their driving tests, compared with the national average. The verdict The average 11-year-old, of course, doesn't really have road safety front of mind, although one hopes they will be taking it in on a subconscious level. For Finn, the experience is one of pure adrenaline – and pure fun: as he unsurprisingly puts it, 'the best day ever'. While the driving video games he has played have helped him, he thinks, to be more precise when steering on the track, the experience of not only being in but actually controlling a real car is entirely different from go-karting: 'bigger, faster, more powerful'. He is confident that he would now be able to drive a car safely on the road, but slightly dismayed when told that won't be happening for another six years. On the way home in our now hopelessly underwhelming Nissan Qashqai family car, it appears his expectations have been irrevocably raised. Bentley.'
