Lamborghini Miura Jota, 1970

Lamborghini Miura Jota, 1970

 

 

The Lamborghini Miura is a sports car built in Italy by Lamborghini between 1966 and 1973. A mid-engined layout had been used successfully in competition, including by the Ford GT40 and Ferrari 250 LM at Le Mans. De Tomaso had produced a road car with this layout, the Vallelunga, but otherwise cars designed for the road were almost uniformly front-engined, rear drive vehicles. The Miura was a trendsetter, the one that made the mid-engined layout de rigueur among two-seater high performance supercars. It is named after the Spanish ranch Miura, whose bulls have a proverbial attack instinct.

Styling
Inspired by the Ford GT40, the Miura astonished showgoers at the 1965 Turin Motor Show where only the chassis was shown, with multiple orders being placed despite the lack of an actual body. Later, Marcello Gandini from Bertone, who would later go on to design almost all of Lamborghini's cars, was chosen to design the body. Both body and chassis were launched five months later at the 1966 Geneva Motor Show. It was a sensation, with its flamboyant bodywork and unusual engine and clam-shell opening hoods on both the front and rear of the car. There was a small trunk located in the very rear of the tail behind the engine.

Miura models
P400
Early Miuras, known internally as P400s, were powered by a 3.9 L version of the famous Lamborghini V12 engine mounted transversely and producing 350 hp (260 kW). 275 P400s were produced between 1966 and 1969, a success for Lamborghini despite its then-steep $20,000 USD price (approx. $114,000 in today's terms). The original Miura engines had the gearbox in the sump of the engine, and the gearbox shared the engine oil for lubrication. This necessitated frequent and consistent oil changes.
 
P400S
The P400S Miura, also known as the Miura S, made its introduction at the Turin Motorshow in Novermber 1968, where the original chassis was introduced 3 years earlier. It was slightly revised from the P400 with its newly added power windows, bright chrome trim around external windows, new overhead inline console with new rocker switches, minor revision engine internals, notched trunk end panels(allowing for slightly more luggage space). Engine changes were good for an additional 20bhp. Other revisions were limited to creature comforts, such as glove box door, reversed position of cigarette lighter and windshield wiper switch and single release handles for front and rear body sections. 338 P400S Miuras were produced between Dec 1968 and March 1971....

P400SV
The last and most famous Miura, the P400SV or Miura SV featured different cam timing, bigger valves and altered carbs, which increased fuel consumption so much that the factory offered a larger 110 litre fuel tank as an option. These gave the engine an additional 15 bhp, to 385. The engine also had a split sump, in that the gearbox now had its lubrication system separate from the engine, which allowed the use of the appropriate types of oil for the gearbox and the engine. The SV can be distinguished from its predecessors from its lack of "eyebrows" over the headlights and wider fenders to accommodate the new 9-inch wheels and Pirelli Cinturato tires. 150 SVs were produced, including one that was owned by Frank Sinatra.

P400 Jota
This one-off Miura (#747) was the development of Lamborghini Development Driver Bob Wallace in 1972, and only one was built initially as a powerful test mule for future Miuras. Lamborghini were forced to sell this car off due to financial problems in the late seventies. In 1980, upon delivery, the driver and a passenger totalled this particular model and survived without any injuries. Lamborghini has since built a replica of this car.

P400 SVJ
Once customers heard about the Jota, they requested their own "Jota" Miura called the SVJ, and so only 5 were built, all of which still exist.

One of the most high profile model was the Metallic Red Burgundy model (#4934), former property to that of the one of the company's best customer, HIH the Shah of Iran Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, he stored this car under armed guard with another SV in Royal Palace in Tehran.

Later, as he fled the country during the Iranian Islamic Revolution, the car with many others were seized by the Iranian government and was later sold into Dubai in 1995. In 1997 this car was sold via a Brooks auction to Nicholas Cage, at US$490,000, becoming the marque's highest ever price sold in an auction. Cage has since sold the car in 2002.

Roadster
Another one-off, the Miura Roadster (actually more of a targa-model, but without any removable roof) was built as a publicity stunt. After having been exhibited at several auto salons the car was sold to a group of companies in the metal business who turned it into a display-vehicle showcasing the possibilities of using their various metal alloys in cars. The car still exists today and has been frequently replicated.

P400 SVJ Spider
This version of the Miura was actually displayed in 1981 at the Geneva Motor Show by Lamborghini, shortly after the new CEO Patrick Mimran took over the factory. The car was actually the yellow Miura S presented at the 1971 Geneva Motor Show, reconstructed in 1980 in Spider by the Swiss Lamborghini Importer, Lambomotor AG. The Miura SVJ Spider was displayed on the Lamborghini stand with the other 1981 new models (Jalpa and LM002), equipped with wide wheels and a rear wing, in the context of the marque's revival, it was considered as a prototype for a possible limited series of Miura Spider.

Details
Early Miuras were notorious for being a fire hazard. The problem was caused by Lamborghini's decision to use Weber 40 IDL 3C1 carburetors which were designed exclusively for racing applications and weren't suitable for road use. The problem occurred when the car sat idling (e.g. at a stoplight), the area above the throttles filled with fuel which often ignited when the car accelerated away from the stop. One of Lamborghini's engineers devised a modification for the carburetors which created a fuel-return. Ferrari, who used these same carburetors in one of their cars, and suffered the same problems, were able to use Lamborghini's modification to solve it.

Some other interesting details: the position of the fuel tank is at the front causing the vehicle to have less weight at the front as the fuel tank gets lighter (closer to empty), thus making the car more difficult to handle at 150+ MPH. Another detail is that the doors resemble a bull's horns when it is opened wide (Lamborghini's logo itself depicts a raging bull).

In 2004, Sports Car International named this car number four on both the list of Top Sports Cars of the 1960s and Top Sports Cars of the 1970s. The car was ranked number four on the list of the Top Sports Car of All Time.

Specifications
Engine
    * Configuration: 60 degree V12, DOHC
    * Engine displacement: 3929cc
    * 350 bhp (261 kW) at 7000 rpm (Base)
    * 370 bhp (276 kW) at 7700 rpm (S)
    * 385 bhp (287 kW) at 7850 rpm (SV)

Performance
    * Top speed: 288 km/h (179 mph)
    * 0-100 km/h: 5.5 second
    * Quarter Mile: ~14 second

Dodge Coronet, 1973

Dodge Coronet, 1973

1973 Dodge Coronet. 4 door inside and out.

Renault Dauphine, 1961

Renault Dauphine, 1961

The Renault Dauphine was an automobile produced by the French manufacturer Renault from 1956 to 1962. A luxury version, badged as the Renault Ondine was sold from 1960 to 1962.

The Dauphine was launched in 1956 to replace the highly successful Renault 4CV. Like the 4CV, the Dauphine used a single-shell monocoque body. It was a four-door sedan design as was the 4CV (but it lacked the rear-hinged "suicide doors" of the 4CV). It was also heavier and 12 inches longer than its predecessor, but used the same engine, albeit a version increased in size and power from 760 cc to 845 cc and 19 hp to 32 hp (14 to 24 kW) (the Dauphine was infamously slow: Road & Track magazine measured the Dauphine's 0-60 mph acceleration time as 32 seconds). The Dauphine was originally intended to be called the Corvette, but was changed to Dauphine (the female form of the French feudal title of Dauphin) to avoid confusion with the recently-launched Chevrolet Corvette.

2 limited editions of the Dauphine tuned to get more power from the engine were launched during its lifetime: firstly, Renault performance guru Amedee Gordini (who was to later produce high performance versions of the Renault 8, Renault 12 and Renault 15 among others) engineered a version of the Dauphine tuned to 37 hp (27.2 kW), which was sold as the Dauphine Gordini. Also, the final run of Dauphines, a limited edition of 1000 called the 1093, were similarly tuned to 55 hp (41 kW) and featured a twin barrel carburetor, rear track rods, five-speed manual transmission and tachometer, and had a top speed of 140 km/h. The 1093 was only available in white with two blue stripes down each side. A luxury version of the Dauphine called the Ondine was sold during the last two years of its prodution run.

A version of the Dauphine Gordini, called simply the Renault Gordini, was manufactured in Brazil under license by Willys-Overland.
Among the many aftermarket options available for the Dauphine were a supercharger designed by American company Judson Research & Mfg. Co, sold in 1958 for US$165, and designed to be installed in about two hours without any chassis or body modifications.

The Dauphine's legacy is somewhat dominated by both its infamously poor performance as well as its poor reliability: in many markets (particularly the United States and the United Kingdom) the car became notorious for mechanical problems and rust issues. In 2002, the auto enthusiasts' website Car Talk voted the Dauphine the 9th Worst Car Of The Millennium, calling it "truly unencumbered by the engineering process". Nevertheless, it remains popular as an antique/classic car, particularly in Europe.

Oldsmobile Aurora, 2002

Oldsmobile Aurora, 2002

 

The Oldsmobile Aurora was a luxury automobile made by the Oldsmobile division of General Motors and launched in 1995 to replace the discontinued Toronado 2-door personal luxury coupe. It was a luxurious 4-door sedan riding on the same Cadillac-derived G platform as the 2-door Buick Riviera. Since the demise of the Ninety Eight in 1996, the Aurora became the flagship Oldsmobile. Also, in a way it is the successor of the Ninety-Eight or the Eighty-Eight (at least for 2000). A V6-powered version was introduced in 2001 to supplant the Eighty-Eight and the LSS. It was introduced to bring new life to Oldsmobile, but the first few years of Aurora did not even feature the Oldsmobile name. There was even a rumor at the time that the name of the whole Oldsmobile marque would be changed to simply "Aurora."

Second Generation
Oldsmobile's original intention for the second generation was to move the Aurora further upmarket, retaining its V8-only drivetrain and sharing a platform with the new Buick Riviera, as the original Aurora had done. This would have created more room within the Oldsmobile lineup for a four-door Eighty-Eight successor known as the Antares. However, Buick dropped its Riviera development plans and fiscal trouble found Oldsmobile, so Oldsmobile was forced to re-engineer the Antares into an acceptable Aurora in short time. The Aurora was downsized as the successor for the H-body Eighty-Eight on the short-wheelbase G-body (on which the Buick LeSabre and Pontiac Bonneville joined, as they used to be on the H-body). The 2001 Aurora is the product of that re-engineering.

The second-generation Aurora used a new, less-expensive version of the G platform with a shorter wheelbase. Unlike the original Aurora, this platform was shared with other GM divisions, with Buick offering the Park Avenue and LeSabre, and Pontiac offering the Bonneville.

Oldsmobile offered a V6 engine in the Aurora for the first time. The V6 in question was the LX-5, a cut-down relation of the DOHC Aurora V8, dubbed the "Shortstar." The V6-powered Aurora was produced for the 2001 and 2002 model years only, with production ceasing in mid-2002.

The second generation Aurora went into production on November 10, 1999. The last Aurora 3.5s rolled off the assembly line on June 21, 2002. The Final 500 Aurora 4.0s ended production on March 28, 2003. The Orion, Michigan plant built a total of 71,722 second-generation Auroras (53,640 in 2001, 10,865 in 2002, 7,217 in 2003).

Mazda MX-5, 1989

Mazda MX-5, 1989

 

The Mazda MX-5 is a popular sports car built by Mazda in Hiroshima, Japan, since 1989. It is known as MX-5 Miata (or popularly just Miata) in North America, MX-5 in Oceania and Europe, and Roadster (under the Eunos marque until 1996) in Japan. The MX-5 is one of the world's best-selling sports cars, with 748,904 cars sold until the end of 2005. Beginning with the third-generation 2006 model, Mazda consolidated worldwide (excluding Japan) marketing using the MX-5 name, though enthusiasts in the USA (and the company itself) still refer to it as Miata, a name that means "reward" in Old High German.

The return of the sports roadster
The MX-5 was envisioned by its designers as a small roadster with a minimum of unnecessary weight and complexity, a direct descendant of the small British roadsters of the 1960s such as the Triumph Spitfire, MG Midget, Lotus Elan, and Porsche 550 Spider. By the early 1980s, roadsters had all but vanished from the market, sacrificed to the increasing safety and anti-pollution regulations everywhere. The MX-5 would thus mark the return of the roadster, using modern technology allied to the tradition of the roadster type.

As a result, the MX-5 has a traditional FR (front-engine, rear-wheel-drive) layout and 4-wheel independent double wishbone suspension. It comes with a longitudinally mounted four cylinder engine coupled to a manual transmission (an automatic transmission is available as an option).

The body is a conventional, but very light, unibody shell. The MX-5 also incorporates a unique trusswork called the Powerplant Frame (PPF) which connects the engine to the differential, minimizing flex and creating a tight, responsive feel. Many MX-5s feature limited slip differentials and antilock brakes. Traction control is an option available on some models.

With an approximate 50:50 front/rear weight balance, the car has very neutral handling, which makes it easy to drive for the beginner, and fun for the advanced driver. Inducing oversteer is easy and very controllable. The MX-5 is thus popular in amateur and stock racing events, including, in the USA, the Sports Car Club of America's Solo2 autocross and Spec Miata race series.

As a measure for success, the Guinness Book of Records declared the MX-5 Miata the world's best-selling sports car on February 13, 2002, with more than 700,000 sold until that date.

The MX-5 has won over 150 awards in its history, including making Car and Driver magazine's annual Ten Best list seven times; Wheels Magazine 's Car of the Year for 1989 and 2005; Sports Car International's "best sports car of the 1990s" and "ten best sports cars of all time"; 2005-2006 Car of the Year Japan; and 2005 Australian Car of the Year.

There have been three generations of the MX-5, each introducing overall changes to the exterior, interior and mechanical components of the car: the first generation, with production code NA, was produced from 1990 to 1997 in model years; the second generation, NB, from 1999 to 2005; and the current third generation, NC, from 2006.

The competition to design the MX-5
The design of the first MX-5 was the result of an internal Mazda competition between the two Design Studios in California, USA and Tokyo, Japan. The role of designing an FR (front-engine, rear-wheel drive) light-weight sports car was assigned to the California Design Studio whilst at Tokyo two different models were entered the competition: an FF layout (front-engined, front-wheel drive) and an MR layout (mid-engined, rear-wheel drive).

The first round of judging the competing designs for the MX-5 was held in April 1984. Designs were presented on paper. The mid-engined car appeared the most impressive, although it was known at the time that such a layout would struggle to meet the noise, vibration and harshness (NVH) requirements of the project. It was only at the second round of the competition in August 1984, when full-scale clay models were presented, that the California FR design, codenamed "Duo 101", won the competition and was selected as the basis for Mazda's new light-weight sports car.

The Duo 101 design, so named as either a soft-top or hard-top could be used, incorporated many key stylistic cues inspired by the Lotus Elan, a 1960s roadster widely considered as one of the best-handling sports cars of its day. International Automotive Design (IAD) in Worthing, England was commissioned to develop a running prototype. It was built with a fiberglass body, a 1.4-liter engine from a Mazda Familia and components from a variety of early Mazda models. The prototype was completed in August 1985.

After some minor changes in the design, the project received final approval on January 18, 1986 and the car was now codenamed P729. The task of constructing five engineering mules (more developed prototypes) was again allocated to IAD, which also conducted the first front and rear crash tests on the P729. The project was moved to Japan for final engineering details and production issues to be decided. The MX-5 was almost ready to be introduced to the world as a a true light-weight sports car, weighing just 940 kg (2070 lb).

Porsche 911 Carrera RS, 1995

Porsche 911 Carrera RS, 1995

The Porsche 911 Carrera RS is a lightweight variant of the Porsche 993 Carrera. It features a naturally aspirated 3.8 liter engine with 300 hp (DIN). On the outside, it is easily distinguishable by a special non-retractable rear wing, small front flaps and 3-piece 18-inch (460 mm) aluminum wheels. The headlight washers were deleted for weight saving reasons. Inside the rear seats were removed, and special racing seats and spartan door cards were installed. Sound proofing was reduced to a minimum.

There are further RS variants, in particular a track-oriented Carrera RS Clubsport with only limited road usability. The Clubsport has a welded roll cage, and certain comfort features removed, such as carpets, power windows, a/c and radio. It carries a larger rear wing and deeper chin spoiler.

The Porsche 911 Carrera RS was produced in model year 1995 and 1996. It was street legal in European and many other countries, but was not exported to the US.

Jaguar F-Type Concept, 2000

Jaguar F-Type Concept, 2000

Jaguar reaps awards at the 2000 North American International Auto Show winning several important honors. Jaguar's F-Type Concept was awarded the AutoWeek Editors' Award for Best In Show and the Jaguar S-TYPE was awarded several honors by both African Americans On Wheels and American Woman Motorscene. Mike Dale, president of Jaguar North America, was honored by African Americans On Wheels at their Fourth Annual Urban Wheel Awards for his work on diversity programs within Jaguar.

AutoWeek's editors walked the show floor and conferred on which cars best embody and exemplify four categories - most fun, best concept, most significant, and best in show. The AutoWeek staff unanimously agreed upon the F-Type Concept for the Best In Show category.

The Jaguar F-Type Concept, the most compact Jaguar sports car in more than forty years, presents the company's ideas for a roadster that would take Jaguar into a new segment of the global market. "The F-Type Concept is the sexiest machine on this show floor," commented Kevin Wilson, executive editor of AutoWeek. The F-Type Concept, unveiled at the Detroit show, was created to invoke the public's reaction to the concept of a Jaguar roadster.

Jaguar XK180 Concept, 1998

Jaguar XK180 Concept, 1998

Jaguar North America unveiled the second edition of the XK180 roadster concept at the 1998 North American International Auto Show. This fully operational prototype is a further-developed version of the original XK180 concept car, which debuted at last fall's Paris Motor Show.

Like the first XK180, this vehicle is a product of Jaguar's Special Vehicle Operations (SVO), hand-built in the SVO shops at Browns Lane in Coventry, England. The second-edition car is better adapted for American driving conditions with left hand drive, and it embodies a number of detail changes, including a new wheel design, a revised shade for the exterior color, a switch in the hue of the interior leather and subtle modifications to feature lines on the lower body section.
Created to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the XK series sports cars, the XK180 design draws inspiration from some of the most successful production and competition cars of Jaguar's history.

The performance standards set at the XK's introduction will be celebrated by the XK180, too. Just as the XK120 proved itself worthy of the numerical designation a half century ago with a 126.448 mph run at Jabbeke, Belgium.

While the building of a second XK180 offered SVO an opportunity to incorporate a number of alterations, the performance attributes are unchanged in this version. The engine is a supercharged and intercooled variant of the AJ-V8, modified to achieve an output of 450 horsepower. The five-speed automatic transmission incorporates a Jaguar-engineered selector system which enables gear changes using pushbuttons located on the steering wheel. A Brembo braking system featuring aluminum four-piston calipers and cross-drilled, ventilated rotors provides commensurate stopping power. The 20-inch diameter wheels are fitted with ultra low profile Pirelli Pzero tires.

To create the XK180, the SVO group disassembled a production XKR (an XK8 with the 370-horsepower supercharged AJ-V8) and shortened the chassis by five inches. The aluminum exterior body panels were formed at Abbey Panels in Coventry, working to drawings by Keith Helfet, a senior designer in the Jaguar Styling Department.

Jaguar XJ220, 1992

Jaguar XJ220, 1992

 Jaguar XJ220, 1992

Audi Q7, 2006

Audi Q7, 2006

When it was first rolled out three years ago, the Audi Q7 performance SUV immediately achieved a leadership position - as a sporty, comfortable as well as high-performance recreational and business vehicle on a grand scale. Now Audi is making it even better - more elegant and more efficient, with lower emissions: the Audi Q7 3.0 TDI consumes only 9.1 liters per 100 kilometers (25.85 US mpg). And now it's also available in a new version as a TDI clean diesel, with the world's cleanest diesel technology and even lower fuel consumption of only 8.9 liters/100 km (26.43 US mpg).

The design: The language of dynamics
At the front end, the large single-frame radiator grille has been redesigned. Vertical chrome bars contrast with its black high-gloss finish. The bumpers too have been restyled. Their lower section is now painted in a contrasting black or gray, depending on the body color. The newly integrated underbody protection in the center section of the bumper has a distinctive ribbed design.

As alternatives to the standard halogen headlights, Audi offers a xenon plus variant and a new adaptive-light system that integrates not only low-beam, high-beam and a special superhighway beam but also turning and cornering lights. In conjunction with the xenon headlights, light-emitting diodes assembled to form U-shaped bands provide the daytime running lights. The front blinkers are also composed of LEDs as straight-line arrays, located at the upper edge of the air intakes.

The side view too, with its coupe-like roofline, low window area and tautly curved body surfaces, reinforces the dynamic look of the Audi Q7. Door moldings have been modified to add interest. The lightweight alloy wheels are size 7.5 J x 18, the wheels size 235/60. In the V6 vehicles they have seven spokes, in the V8 versions they have six.

At the rear end, the bumper has also been given two-tone paintwork; the tailgate, which includes a portion of the rear pillars in an S-shaped contour, has been given a new and distinctively 3D shape in the vicinity of the license plate bracket. To reduce the weight of the Audi Q7, the tailgate has been made of aluminum, as have the engine hood and the fenders. Standard LEDs in the tail lights create a distinctive lighting pattern.

The interior: Room to spare
Thanks to its luxurious 300-centimeter (118.11-inch) wheelbase within an overall length of 5.09 meters (16.70 feet), the Audi Q7 has interior room to spare, and the interior flexibility is unrivalled. The seatbacks in the second row are divided into three fold-down sections to provide a level cargo floor.

A multitude of detailed improvements in the interior enhance the elegance and the sense of well-being. The instrument cluster has been redesigned: the large, round, easily readable instruments are encircled by metallic frames. Interior lights in the door linings and an inlay on the passenger side enhance the interior styling. Many details of the control elements have been restyled and also enhanced by chrome elements.

The selection of interior colors and materials is also new. Upholstery fabrics are available in black and light gray; leather upholstery additionally also in Para Brown, Savannah Beige and Cardamon Beige. Standard inlays are finished in matt black. In optional design packages, aluminum and wood finishes are used.

The power train: Performance and efficiency
The Audi Q7 is available with six powerful and highly efficient direct injection engines, two of them gasoline-powered and four diesel engines, including the world's most powerful diesel SUV, the Audi Q7 V12 TDI. Their power is transmitted via a convenient and fast-shifting six-speed tiptronic to the quattro permanent all-wheel drive, which distributes it between the axles with slightly more than half to the rear.

The 3.0 TDI puts out 176 kW (240 bhp) and delivers as much as 550 Nm between 2,000 and 2,250 rpm, yet on the EU cycle it consumes only 9.1 liters / 100 km (25.85 US mpg). The optionally available 3.0 TDI clean diesel even consumes 0.2 liters (0.05 US gallons) less.

Despite highly complex exhaust gas recirculation and the resulting world's cleanest diesel technology, it consumes just 8.9 liters/100 km (26.43 US mpg). It meets the strict LEV II Bin 5 US standard and already complies with the Euro 6 limits announced for 2014.

The technology of the TDI clean diesel is highly complex. An advanced version of the common rail injection system with 2,000 bars of pressure, new combustion chamber sensors and a high-performance exhaust recirculating system ensure a highly efficient combustion process. An innovative DeNOx catalytic converter reduces the remaining nitrogen oxides. Just upstream of it, a pump injects an additive named AdBlue into the hot exhaust flow, where this solution decomposes into ammonia, which splits the nitrogen oxides into harmless nitrogen and water. Audi partners replenish the additive during regular maintenance servicing.

In the Q7 4.2 TDI too, fuel consumption has been drastically reduced - from 11.1 (21.19 US mpg) to 9.9 liters per 100 km (23.76 US mpg). Yet the V8 diesel is more powerful: with an output of 250 kW (340 bhp) and a torque of 760 Nm, it develops enormous propulsive power. This maximum torque is available in the range from 1,750 to 3,000 rpm.

The chassis: Safe and sporty
In its suspension technology too the Audi Q7 is exceptional. As a customer option, Audi equips the Q7 with adaptive air suspension - a pneumatic suspension system that operates in conjunction with an electronic shock absorber control, varies the ground clearance at five different levels, and lets the driver select three driving modes: comfort, automatic and dynamic. In its road handling the Audi Q7 excels in its sporty, highly responsive precision. Off-road, it provides a superior ride on widely varying terrains.

Audi RSQ Concept, 2004

Audi RSQ Concept, 2004

Audi RSQ

The Audi RSQ is a mid-engined concept car developed for use as a product placement in the 2004 sci-fi movie I Robot. It is meant to depict a technologically advanced automobile from the year 2035.

The sports coupé is a visionary interpretation of Audi's typical automobile design. An important challenge presented to the designers was that despite its extreme character the car still had to be recognized by the audience as an Audi. To accommodate this demand, the engineers implemented a current Audi front-end design that includes a single-frame grille and the company's trademark overlapping rings.

The RSQ also includes special features suggested by movie director Alex Proyas. It utilizes spheres instead of wheels and its two butterfly doors are hinged to the C-posts of the body.

Though this kind of collaboration was a first for Audi, a similar project was developed by Lexus for use in the 2002 film Minority Report

ABT Audi TT-Limited Wide Body, 2002

ABT Audi TT-Limited Wide Body, 2002

Abt TT-limited wide body. From the race track to the road.

Two well-known Abt highlights played a role in the concept of the TT-limited wide-body: the TT-Sport and the TT-limited. In the past few month, both of them have attracted many customers and even more fans. With the limited wide body, the Abt team is now showing a spectacular synthesis of its two most extreme tuning versions of the TT. Thus, the successful company from Kempten demonstrates the state-of-the-art in TT-tuning.

This becomes also clear to the average layman, who might be led to believe that the TT-limited wide-body has got lost from the race track directly on the open road. Responsible for this is the spectacular bodywork kit. As a result of extensive wind tunnel tests, the specialists from Kempten have established an aerodynamic kit, which results into more downforce and therefore a better road-holding. No matter if on local roads or on the motorway. And, of course, on the race track. For instance at the Nurburgring, where Laurent Aiello has scored two brilliant victories for the Team Abt Sportsline with the Hasseroder-yellow Abt-Audi TT-R. The limited wide body not only shares the front spoilers and the extended fenders with the race car, but also the side skirts, a rear wing and a complicated diffuser, which gives downforce at the rear. The several carbonfibre parts also add to the racy feeling.

Aerodynamics, suspension and the impressive sport braking system - all of this serves for controlling the fireworks, that the Abt-technicians are lighting underneath the bonnet. 228 kW (310 hp) are the result of a power boost, that turns the standard 165 kW (225 hp) strong engine into a racing machine. An Abt turbocharger with intercooler and exhaust system allow the standard power plant to breathe freely. A top speed of approx. 254 kph and an acceleration from 0-100 kph in approx. 5.6 seconds speak for themselves.