Jalopnik Gives Us Its Favorite Vehicles of the Millennium (So Far)
Filed under: Audi, BMW, Chevrolet, Ferrari, Ford, Honda, Mini, Mitsubishi, Porsche
We’re pretty fond of the Jalopnik gang–partly for their insults against The Truth About Cars, and partly for their grassroots fondness for automotive and aeronautical performance. Joining a common trend this is their “Best10″ (a play on Car and Driver’s “10Best”) cars of the decade.
Here’s the list with the watered-down specs:
The Ten Best Concepts of the Decade #10: Chevrolet Nomad
The 2004 Nomad is all about what could’ve been.
GM was going retro, hyping the HHR as part of a fresh and stylish direction. The Nomad was meant to cover the sport compact scene. GM was well-aware of the popularity of the Mini Cooper, and the Nomad had all the potential to be a great rival. Pininfarina assembled the final product, which evoked the 1950s Corvette-esque original. The Nomad could seat four, had more cargo room than the Coop, and used a turbo 2.2 L Ecotec I-4 to deliver 250 hp.
This seemed to offer so much. It looked great, and had power to boot. The downside? GM’s then-notorious rep for ruining good concepts. Odds are the Nomad would’ve had third-rate plastics all over, stiff seats, a sluggish 4-spd., and an underpowered engine choking out 140. On top of that, it probably would’ve been overpriced.
There could’ve been shot at success: look at what pitiful Dodge pulled with the Neon SRT4. Maybe then the Nomad could have worked out. Then again, Detroiters still say hatchbacks don’t sell. (We think Fit, Impreza, Mazda3, and PT owners would care to argue.)
A Hybrid of a Different Sort: The SV9 Competizione
If an Alfa Romeo 8C is too far out of your range, you may take consolation with the SV Motor Company’s SV9 Competizione.
As the name suggests, this custom-build sports car mimics the Alfa’s appearance, but carries enough different cosmetic features to prevent a lawsuit. The SV9 is actually based on a Corvette platform, and is re-skinned, adorned with a fresh interior, and tweaked for higher performance. The upgrades include Pirelli sport tires, four exclusive wheel combinations, composite panels, an upgraded intake, and a tuned V-8 delivering 400 hp. The SV team is promising a four-second run to sixty and twelve for the quarter-mile.
Pricing for the SV9 is set at $100,000.
Techco’s Low-Cost Answer to the ZR1
Tired of all the gloating from the middle-aged and balding men who pre-ordered a C6 ZR1? Techco has an answer for you.
Specter’s Corvette GTR: Instilling Terror in a Porsche Near You
Specter Werks’s C6 GTR is just flashy enough to win us over at CarVersation. While its appearance may echo polished aluminum, the body is made up in large part of light composites. The aesthetics have been altered with a new splitter and rear-diffuser, 19″ alloys up front and 20″ out back, and a vented hood. The Chevy LS3 V-8 has its displacement raised from 6.2 L to 6.8, pushing up horsepower to 615 and torque to 578 ft.-lbs.
Video: ‘Vette Versus Jet
Y’all should know I’m not a fan of Top Gear.
I utterly hate the show, the cast, the writing–hell, I even hate the magazine. What I hate the most, however, are the absurd comparisons. Taking an un-original page from the Top Gear crew (who did the same thing), the folks at Motor Trend have taken a sinfully fast exotic car and put it up against one of the best fighter jets in the world.
In dealing with an entertaining, but still silly, video, I’m going to give you guys some serious background info and raw data.
Friday Flashback: When Ford Tried to Minimize McLaren
The Ford sports car has been an ongoing issue for the company to this very day. The Thunderbird was a wildly popular two-seater in the 1950s, easily outselling Chevrolet’s Corvette. Bean counters opted to enlarge the T’Bird and add rear seats, leaving GM to offer the only serious American sports car. Ford’s top brass couldn’t argue with the “Big Bird’s” growing sales figures, so it decided to support other efforts like the Shelby Cobra and the De Tomaso Pantera.
After a rough time from the mid-’70s to the ’80s, Ford mounted a big comeback. With the ’90s, Ford felt confident enough the test the supercar waters. It sought to revive the excitement from its classic GT40 race car with a fresh, high-tech design. The result was the GT90.
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