I remember, not that long ago, people said the V8 and high horse power cars were going to be a thing of the past. Well, as we have seen, predictions are not as reliable as they used to be. For example, here are some of the least expensive cars available today with over 500hp (in order of price):
Ford Mustang Shelby GT350 – 526 HP – $47,995
Dodge Challenger/Charger Hellcat – 707 HP – $64,195/$67,645
Mercedes-AMG C63 S – 503 HP – $73,250
Chevrolet Corvette Z06 – 650 HP – $79,400
Range Rover Sport Supercharged – 510 HP – $79,950
Cadillac CTS-V – 640 HP – $83,995
Dodge Viper SRT Coupe – 645 HP – $89,995
BMW M5 – 560 HP – $94,100
BMW X5 M – 567 HP – $98,800
Mercedes-AMG GLE63 – 550 HP – $99,950
But the real news for American sports car [...]
Car and Drivers just put out their 2017 10-Best Cars list and the Corvette Grand Sport is on the list. For more than three decades, Car and Drivers staff put dozens of new cars through thousands of miles of cumulative evaluation to determine their annual list of the very best automobiles for sale in America. Winning isn’t easy, as winners must offer good value, excel at its given mission, and, critically, deliver a pleasurable driving experience.
The Corvette C7 is no stranger to this Top 10 list, being on it for the first 2 years, but in 2016 it fell off, as the 2016 Z06 was over $80,000, Car and Drivers cutoff price.
Now enter the 2017 Grand Sport, which mates the regular Corvette powertrain to the chassis of the mighty Z06, can be parked in your driveway for as little as $66,445, and Corvette is back on the list.
Chevrolet made a great thing even better with the Corvette Grand Sport, AutoGuide.com’s 2017 Reader’s Choice Sports Car of the Year.
Powered by a 6.2-liter V8 engine cranking 460 horsepower and 465 pound-feet of torque, the Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport starts from $66,445. Best of all, for true sports car enthusiasts, the Corvette Grand Sport can be had with a seven-speed manual transmission as it looks to best the Ford Shelby Cobra. It’s not quite a Corvette Z06, but the Grand Sport packs plenty of additional performance goods, placing it on a new level compared to the standard Corvette Stingray. Upgrades include wider fenders and rear quarter panels, stiffer springs, thicker sway bars and larger Brembo brakes. Then there’s the more aggressive styling and aerodynamic bits while it shaves a bit of weight to tip the scales at 3,252 pounds.
“For all its on-track accoutrement, the Grand Sport proves an excellent accomplice on the road,” [...]
Sorry for posting about the same subject twice in is as many weeks, but Jay Leno just tweeted a trailer showing more about the drag race between Joe Biden and Colin Powell. I found the video very entertaining to watch and hope you do too.
From the video, it does not look like it is going to be a fair match, as Powell is driving a C7 Coupe and Biden is in his 1-owner 1967 300hp Corvette Convertible. To make matters worse, this is only the third time in seven years Biden has been behind the wheel. I guess the Secret Service does not trust that he will not speed; watch the video to see why I say this, hint 152.
You can watch the video by clicking here.
If you hate the thought of the Corvette and other beastly cars one day using a turbocharged four-cylinder engine, worry no more. A report from Reuters says engines should actually start growing in size, reversing the trend of shrinking them. After all, there’s no replacement for displacement, or something like that.
Basically, the whole reason for the shift is Dieselgate. That’s right, stricter emissions standards coming down the pipeline after Volkswagen played the system could mean fewer gerbil-powered cars.
Reuters says VW, Renault and GM are going to either ditch, or enlarge their smaller engines in about three years’ time. This should trigger an industry trend for gasoline and diesel engines.
Ironically, this move will mean automakers can’t meet tough carbon dioxide goals. Basically automakers are in a huge Catch 22. You could call this the failure of government regulation.
Speaking of regulation, starting next year car emissions will be measured on the road, instead [...]
