The five most expensive cars!

[lil_angel9]

Saleen


Saleen S7 $395,000
Exotic supercars are extreme in every sense. But what to make of this claim: According to the Saleen S7 press release, its aerodynamic ground effects are so effective, and create so much down force (what holds a car to the road at high speeds), that even if you drove the S7 upside down at 160 mph on some sort of Hot Wheels roller-coaster track that exploded into real-life scale, the car wouldn't lose its contact with the road. Of course they didn't explain how they know this, and, sorry, we're not volunteering to test out the theory.

Meanwhile, the S7 power plant is decidedly less outlandish than its ground effects. The motor is derived from a Ford Mustang, then deeply modified. It's made entirely of aluminum, has stainless-steel valves with titanium retainers, and a high vacuum dry sump and stainless-steel exhaust. It breathes through roof-mounted intakes and is mated to a six-speed manual transmission. Power output is a claimed 550 horsepower, with performance of less than four seconds to 60 mph and a top speed in excess of 200 mph.





Rolls-Royce


Rolls-Royce Corniche Convertible $363,990
The Corniche Convertible may be the world's last completely anachronistic automobile. That is, it's a Rolls-Royce, a car in which anyone with any sense would want to be driven. And yet the Corniche has less backseat room than a C-Class Mercedes-Benz--and you could buy a dozen C-Classes for one Corniche Convertible. Also, there's only seven cubic feet of trunk space, which isn't much better than the trunk space of a Mazda Miata. OK, you don't buy a Rolls to be practical, but the car at least should be big, right?

Also, Rolls-Royce is a company under new management, namely, BMW's. And that muddies the picture even further, since the Corniche shares an engine with Bentley, the 6.75-liter V-8. But even if Corniche cars are still made after 2002 (BMW is working on a replacement for the $229,990 Silver Seraph, set to debut in summer 2003), it isn't clear if BMW will continue to purchase them from Bentley.

Meanwhile, there's the 2002 Corniche, which is in production only until the end of this summer. True, it is sort of a white elephant, but at least it's a known quantity in that it will have the grand torque (544 foot pounds) of an old Rolls, as well as the plushest ride on the planet. That's not only thanks to a huge wheelbase for what is really a sort of cushy GT, but also due to computer-actuated dampers, auto ride-height control and load compensation controls that level the ride no matter the disparity in passenger weight (should you have your grand, fat, old aunt Gertrude Godiva riding shotgun at some point).

We'd give you more specs, but every Corniche is made to order, from the paint to the wood, hide, trim, even the position of the intercrossed Rs in the cockpit. The only thing we'd wager will be the same on every Corniche (unless you somehow wanted it omitted) is the flying lady on the hood.






Bentley


Bentley Azure Convertible Mulliner $376,485
If this car looks a lot like the Rolls Corniche Convertible, you're on to something. Both cars ride on the same wheelbase and have the same motor, although in the Bentley you get much more torque and horsepower.

That still doesn't put the Azure Convertible on par with the all-new Arnage T (which we'll review next week), but with 590 foot-pounds of torque, the Azure does at least make this big car feel exceedingly sporty. There's even less backseat room in the Azure Convertible than in the Rolls, however, which gives front-seaters (Bentleys are driver's cars, remember) plenty of legroom and makes the backseat a great place to park your briefcase.






Lamborghini Murciélago


Lamborghini Murciélago $273,000
The newest Lamborghini has gotten some criticism of late because it's not as gonzo as the first Countach was when it debuted. Funny thing is, a lot of those critics haven't even seen a Murciélago in person. When you do, your jaw drops and then closes again, and your mouth forms a grin. And you do not criticize. This may not be as groundbreaking a design as the first shark-like Lambo, but it's still one awesome-looking machine. And you know what, there's no mistaking it for anything else. That's why the design wins for us.

As for the chassis, it's also a work of balance between extremes, with a carbon-fiber body over a mid-engine layout (behind the cockpit but in front of the rear axle) and the transmission in front of the cabin for optimal weight balance (42% front and 58% rear). The Murciélago--named, like all Lamborghinis, after a famous bull--also has all-wheel drive, which is somewhat unusual in the supercar realm but keeps maximum juice flowing to the road. In this case, that power is transferred through huge, Pirelli P Zero Rosso tires on 18-inch rims (245/35 in front, 335/30, rear).

Flip the gull-wing door up, lower yourself into the driver's bucket seat (the newest Lambo is said to be easier to climb in and out of, but it still helps to be small and flexible if you want to look at all suave during ingress and egress), and you'll find yourself at the helm of a long, low car with precisely the speed-racer seating geometry you'd anticipate. You sit in, not on, leather-wrapped seats that suck you low and tight, and extend your arms straight to the wheel, your legs to the pedals. The shifter is perfectly within reach of your right arm, and it's a tall-stalked steel-balled six-speed that travels through a steel shift gate.







Aston Martin Vanquish


Aston Martin Vanquish $228,000
No matter how many times we say it, it still sounds sweet: zero to 100 in 10 seconds flat. Yes, the 0-60 time of 4.5 seconds doesn't sound quite as impressive--there are Corvettes that come close to that mark. But 10 seconds to 100 miles per hour is truly remarkable, with very few production cars ever coming close to providing that kind of acceleration.

But what struck us when we drove the Vanquish, and what still impresses us having driven other supercars since, is just how easy this monster is to tame, even at ferociously high speeds or under that hammer of crushing acceleration. It corners with ease, and finding the outer limits of any turn can only be achieved on a racetrack, since otherwise the Vanquish is just rock-solid.

Drive the Vanquish like an old man, though, and you'll be surprised how docile a supercar can be. It's no Honda Civic, but steering action is smooth and even light at slow speeds. For around-town driving there's the auto-shift mode, so you don't even have to think about shifting when you're commuting in your Vanquish.

Also, there's a quite comfortable interior, with plenty of legroom, leather everywhere (you can, of course, choose whatever material you want, and what color) and large, easily navigable controls. So your eyes are never off the road for very long.

Still, you may wonder how this car stacks up versus the Ferrari 575 M, and although it's a valid question, we hardly think it matters. See, the devoted Ferrari buyer is someone who we don't think would even consider this car. Also, if you can actually afford a Vanquish, you might well be able to get both cars and compare for yourself. One thing we can say--the Aston Martin doesn't sound like a Ferrari at all, with a deeper exhaust note and an almost guttural growl. For that reason alone, the Aston is worth every penny.






BMW Z8


BMW Z8 $130,645
The BMW Z8 is a car that has polarized the automotive press. Some love the car for its smooth, easy-to-drive accessibility--the thing that makes autos like the modern Jags such a pleasure. Others feel it's too softly sprung and not "immediate" enough--it doesn't feel as if it's as engaged with the road as a lot of other exotic sports cars are.

We can understand both camps but tend to side with the former crowd, because the Z8 makes you feel like a champion driver without forcing you to break a sweat every time you go for a spin.

In fact, that's the BMW DNA at work in the Z8, for just about every BMW gets progressively more sporty the harder you drive it, but never beats you up if you just want to cruise at a more stately pace.

And even though the Z8 gets the very hot, 394-horsepower V-8 from the BMW M5 (about 60 more hp than you'll find in the BMW M3), there's nothing violent about the on-rush of power that comes from under the hood. Torque is there in a downshift whenever you want it, but the rest of the time power is almost seamless--think, and you're passing someone at 95 on the expressway.

You could almost accuse the Z8 of being lazy for that reason, but not when you throw it hard into a turn, where its excellent aluminum suspension and chassis flex and respond in kind to the pace you've set, and its taut rack and pinion steering transmits just enough information back to your hands for you to respond in kind to the road. Here the Z8 becomes alive and thrilling.







There are 5 cars more, they are called: Ferrari, Porsche, Mercedes-Benz,Jaguar

[lil_angel9]

please reply

[Angelically-Touched]

They are all nice.... but my favourite car is M6 bmw

thanx lil angel forur interesting topics ...

[lil_angel9]

just for you angelic ill put the bmw car

[Angelically-Touched]

sooo sweeeeet

thanx dear....

[lil_angel9]

your welcome