##@strop Empyrean Infernus
This is another of the cars that stood out to me based on its design. I love it. It gives off a feeling of performance and class while being very modern. It’s the little details that stand out the more you look at it that really add to the Infernus. I would like one of these cars that require time to simply admire, to see how all the little details fit together like a Renaissance painting. It was certainly designed by one of the best European designers, with such a cohesive appearance.
The exterior quality ranges from good to excellent, and the mix of carbon fibre and aluminium is pretty well standard fare today. The engine bay holds a 6.2L twin-turbo V12 making 878 hp and 630 ft-lb of torque; certainly more than enough. Like the rest of the car, the engine quality ranges from good to excellent.
The cabin holds a high quality premium interior and electronics. Certainly nothing special, but nothing wrong there either, though the safety features are quite average. More high class features would certainly help this car appear more prestigious. The drive to the track is what I’ve come to expect as pretty standard, though the comfort is a bit on the low end due to the interior only being at the premium level. I’m quite surprised at the fuel economy: this car gets almost 25 mpg. This is simply unheard of for a V12 supercar. This large car also only weighs 1760 kg, making it rather nimble.
The track is another strong point for this car. Very much so. 0-100 is done in a rather astonishing 2.5 seconds while the top speed is 395 km/h. I manage a lap in 1:58.20. While I wasn’t looking for too much of a track monster, this one manages to be a good daily driver with performance levels approaching a stripped out track monster.
Final verdict: This car has some good and some bad. The interior was compromised for the track, but it’s not too much of a compromise. At $158,600 I feel that the most of that budget was well spent, but I could do with a better interior at the cost of performance on the track. An almost perfect balance of comfort and speed.
##@TR8R Thunderhawk
This brightly painted land yacht definitely stood out from the pack. Approaching it, I’m not sure if it’s a restomod or a retro design. The name doesn’t offer any clues, so I can only assume this is yet another one-off. The front end is different and I have to say it rather works, except for the ill-fitting hood. The rear, however, is rather… meh. It seems the designer left and an engineer just slapped on the required lights and called it a day.
While the body and fixtures are of excellent quality, the underpinnings are all average, so I’m not quite sure what was going on here. Just barely squeezed in the engine bay is an 8L naturally aspirated V12, a fairly rare configuration it seems, producing 819 hp and 585 ft-lb of torque. The quality is good, so I’m pleased here. The engine cooling is not quite adequate, so there might be some problems with that.
The interior is hand made with luxury electronics, but the quality of it all is average, so I’m a bit disappointed here. It definitely looks like this car was designed by a couple of experts and many amateurs. It is ultimately quite comfortable, I’m just worried about how it might fare in the long run. This car is surprisingly drivable though the suspension is a bit hard. That’s what the hand made interior is designed to compensate for. The classic design comes with an increased ride height that’s certainly a plus on the dirt road.
0-100 is done in 3.2 seconds, a bit on the slow side, and the top speed is just over 338 km/h. I manage the track in 2:11.64, so it’s toward the bottom end of the cars so far. A land yacht can only handle so well.
Final verdict: An odd supercar to say the least, but not particularly bad. More could have been spent to improve the quality of a lot of things, as it comes in at $124,800. Really a shame, it could have been a really good oddball car but fell a bit short. Different isn’t always good.
##@Rk38 Huadai Evoka GSX Sports Limited Edition
My first impression of the Huadai is that of a modern drift car. While the simple yet aggressive styling does not convey class, I still like it. The name is quite a mouthful and I wonder which takes longer: the 0-100 km/h sprint or reading out the name. It certainly is one of the cars that fits nicely outside the mold of the standard supercar.
While most of the exterior quality is good or very good, this is yet another car that has average brakes and suspension, as well as fixtures. The AHS steel frame and aluminium body, a surprisingly not uncommon combination, still seems a bit strange to me. Under the hood, I’m quite surprised to only find a 3.7L twin-turbo V6. It does achieve 728 hp and 489 ft-lb of torque. The bottom end is average but the quality of everything else is excellent, and it seems to be very reliable. As well built as this engine is, and with the performance stacking up, I’m still hesitant about a V6 supercar.
Inside, I’m disappointed by the average premium design, electronics, and safety features. It seems all the efforts were devoted to make the V6 a viable supercar engine and the interior was simply forgotten. It certainly isn’t prestigious. The drivability is quite average for these supercars, but it’s quite uncomfortable, to the point that I don’t want to drive this long distances. The very stiff suspension makes the dirt road feel quite grueling, transferring every bump through the average seat and into my spine. I can’t wait to reach the track.
Finally at the track, I need to take a break from the drive. This car has exceptional performance for a V6, with a 0-100 time of 2.9 seconds and a top speed of 340 km/h. I think the 0-100 is actually faster than saying its name. I manage a 2:04.04 around the track, placing it around the middle of the pack.
Final verdict: The least amount of cylinders but the engineers have wondrously made the most of it. It really is a shame about the interior quality and comfort, and at $138,800, more could have been spent to improve it. Like Godzilla, it looks menacing but doesn’t have any class.
##@Madrias Storm Taipan GTX
Menacing is the best way to describe the Storm Taipan GTX. It’s low-slung, has massive exhausts, wings, and vents everywhere. This is one way to make an entrance. The rear could have done with a bit more designing to match the front, however. This is one of the designs that appears to have practical reasons.
There is a lot of average quality, which is off putting, but at least the mechanical aspects are of good quality. Under the hugely bulging and vented hood lies an 8.2L twin-turbo V12 producing 959 hp and 868 ft-lb of torque. The quality ranges from good to excellent, and the reliability appears to be great.
In the cabin, I find a good quality premium interior and luxury electronics, and very good quality safety. This just might be the safest car here. The prestige is a bit low, certainly due to going with premium, as is the comfort of the seats but it’s manageable. The car drives in quite an average way, so nothing of note here.
On the track, this car’s performance is… quite average as well. 0-100 in 2.9 seconds, top speed of 386 km/h, which is one of the higher ones, and I manage a lap in 2:03.36. I did expect more out of the car from the wild design. It certainly has the appearance of a track monster.
Final verdict: Average. That’s the best word I can use to describe this outlandish looking car. Some things are quite good, others fell a bit short, and the overall effect is of a car in the middle of the pack. Costing $158,400 it’s no bargain for being average. Plenty of bark but not much bite.
##@JohnWaldock JHW Vigilante
The next car is another odd one: a shooting brake. The first thing that stands out is the colour: it reminds me of snot, and if I choose this one, I’ll most certainly get a different colour. The design is simple and modern, and the body style has some class to it. I wonder how it will fare.
The quality of everything is… average. I certainly expected quality in a shooting brake. The engine is a 6L naturally aspirated V12 producing 723 hp and 470 ft-lb of torque. Unlike the rest of the car, the quality ranges from very good to excellent. At least they made a proper engine, and this is another with commendable reliability.
Stepping into the spacious cabin, I’m taken aback. I expected a luxurious and comfortable interior befitting this classy looking car, but instead, I’m treated to a bare-bones sport interior and a standard CD player. Is this some kind of joke? There’s no luxury or prestige here, and it’s all of average quality. It’s got four seats but I wouldn’t want to take anyone on a drive in this. This is the least comfortable car, even with the hydropneumatic suspension, and so the drive to the track is quite a chore. The drivability is fairly good, so it’s got that going for it, but the fuel economy is lower than what I wanted. It certainly isn’t what I’m looking for as a daily driver or something to show off at classy events.
0-100 takes 3.1 seconds and the top speed is 352 km/h, while I manage a lap of the track in 2:08.50. It’s a bit on the slow side, really. I figure the hydropneumatic suspension is at fault here, as I would expect better handling from a car weighing less than 1800 kg.
Final verdict: While I was initially excited for this classy looking shooting brake, it turned out to not be what I was looking for. Costing $110,600 it just isn’t in the class of cars I want. JHW could have done with delivering a more prestigious model than this one. A car that tries to be too much but just isn’t enough.
##@Dragawn Dragotec Rapier
The Rapier has a classic look to it tha definitely exudes class. It feels like the modern interpretation of a 1950s grand tourer, and I like it. Certainly the kind of car that will turn heads at the most formal events. There’s a clear and cohesive design that isn’t retro to the point of being tacky, and I really hope the rest of the car lives up to these looks.
All the exterior quality ranges from good to very good. The engine is a 5.7L twin-turbo V12 producing 833 hp and 589 ft-lb of torque, and the quality here is very good as well. These Dragotec engineers do know their stuff.
I open the door and find a luxuriously appointed interior with luxury electronics. All of it is of good quality, though the safety features are average. This still happens to be one of the safer cars for me to test, so hopefully it can hold up over the years. Taking it out on the road, it drive quite well and I realise it weighs less than I thought it did, so that’s certainly a plus. It also averages 23 mpg, making it one of the better cars today in terms of fuel economy. The comfort levels are good and certainly make the drive worthwhile. With luxury comes comfort and prestige, so while it’s hard to gauge what exactly prestige is, luxurious comfort is certainly a big part of the equation.
At the track I come to realise that this car manages to balance itself as a grand tourer and a supercar. 0-100 in 3.1 seconds and a top speed of 361 km/h, while not spectacular, bring me around the track in 2:03.04. One of the averagely good times of the day, and it does handle the curves quite well.
Final verdict: One of the classier rides here today and certainly the kind of car I’m looking for. At an even $160,000 it certainly makes the most of its budget in offering a comfortable and capable car. Like a real rapier, it’s fast and exudes class.
##@AirJordan Smooth Mapel SR
In nearly the same almost-black colour as the Dragotec before it, the Smooth Mapel SR also has a simple and classy appearance. I do wonder if the name is an erroneous spelling of maple… Regardless, it’s certainly a classically style mid engined supercar. I can certainly tell Smooth got an experienced designer to style this car and the results are great.
The exterior quality ranges from just above average to excellent. It could have done with being a little more even, but I’m mostly glad it’s all above average. The engine is one of the smaller ones of the day, a 3.9L twin-turbo V8. It produces 511 hp and 391 ft-lb of torque, which will hopefully be enough to move this car quickly. Let’s hope it’s light.
Inside, I’m once again confronted with a sport interior, but it’s paired with premium electronics and is all high quality. I’m rather hesitant about the daily comfort of this sport design, though it has some prestige to it, and the same hesitation goes for the average quality of the safety features. The drivability is quite good and the fuel economy is alright, but comfort isn’t all that good, which is a downside for a daily driver. The suspension works well so it doesn’t get much worse when driving on the dirt road. I really want to like this car but the sport interior is quite a downside.
Weighing just over 1300 kg means the 511 hp and 391 ft-lb of torque is more than enough for a 0-100 time of 3 seconds and a top speed of 326 km/h. Neither is paticularly impressive, so I’m hoping the low weight and high agility will help around the track. I manage a 2:03.64, so it’s fairly good.
Final verdict: This is a case of a car being almost there but not quite due to one major flaw, in this case the sport interior. The $150,600 would have allowed for a more comfortable and prestigious interior, but it certainly would have been detrimental to the performance that’s in the middle of the pack. Beautiful on the outside, not so much on the inside.
##@oppositelock GSI Scorpion
The GSI Scorpion is another of the cars that stood out from the beginning, mainly from its bright orange colour. The design is very similar to the Bugatti EB110, so while it is pleasing, it’s quite dated for 2006. Driving this around I might have people thinking it’s a classic supercar. I’m not really sure if that would be a good thing or a bad thing.
My closer inspection finds the exterior quality to range from good to very good. The engine is a 6L twin-turbo V12 producing 850 hp and 622 ft-lb or torque. Quality is consistently excellent for it all and the reliability is very good; the engineers certainly realise how important the heart of the supercar should be. Now this is what I had in mind for an engine.
Opening the door, I find a pleasantly luxurious interior with luxury electronics, but the quality of everything is average. I really do hesitate about the long term reliability with average quality components. The drivability turns out to not be so good, though I can’t really pinpoint it on anything. It’s quite strange, but it really isn’t all that easy to handle. The fuel economy is certainly commendable at nearly 26 mpg, making it one of the more economical cars. The drive turns out to be a bit more tiring than the more drivable cars but ultimately isn’t all that bad.
The track shows me that this car has one of the best acceleration, doing the 0-100 in 2.5 seconds and heading to a top speed just over 368 km/h. The 1:59.57 around the track certainly makes this a fast car. So it’s a bit hard to drive on the road, but it’s certainly at home on the track.
Final verdict: It’s not spectacular, but it’s quite good. The design is dated, the interior quality average, the drivability rather low, but I still like this car. It has some faults but manages to remain well balanced. The $158,200 price is reasonable for this package. Being good isn’t so bad.
##@Denta Paragata Kilat
There’s no denying the Kilat is a supercar when looking at it. Low, aggressive, and covered in vents. It certainly is more brash than classy, but it’s still an attractive design. Everything is cohesive, which is not as common as one might think. I’ll have to see how it holds up against the rest of the competition. The fog lamps are a nice touch; they’ll certainly be useful during snow storms.
The quality of the bodywork is quite average, but the rest, from the fixtures to underpinnings, ranges from good to excellent. High quality active suspension is precisely what I want on my supercar. The engine bay holds a 6.4L naturally aspirated V12 producing 840 hp and 539 ft-lb of torque. The quality ranges from good to great, mostly the latter. I do hope they spent as much care on the interior.
I open the door and I’m greeted with a good quality premium interior and electronics, and even good quality safety features, seemingly a rarity today. So premium is not entirely what I had in mind for prestige, but I certainly can’t fault the quality of it all. It still manages to be fairly comfortable, and the good drivability is certainly in line with what I had in mind. This car has the looks for something amazing on the track, so I want to get there quickly and see what it has in store for me.
0-100 in 2.9 seconds and a top speed of 384 km/h. Not bad at all, certainly what I expected from this naturally aspirated beast. I manage a lap in 2:01.32, so while not spectacular, it’s certainly fast. It’s a bit heavy but has great handling on the tight curves.
Final verdict: Certainly a good supercar, and what it lacks in class in makes up for in brashness. Another of the cars that’s great on the track at the downside of a premium interior, but that’s not quite the compromise I had in mind. At $159,600 it certainly hasn’t wasted its budget. Sometimes the prestige is to be found at high speeds.
##@BobLoblaw Ventnor Gambini
Sleek and modern are the best words to describe this car. It’s purely functional in its design but still attractive, standing as a stark contrast to cars like the DSD and the Storm. While I’m not a fan of the colour, I do like how much it’s been polished and would certainly like to see that with a more classic colour.
A closer inspection reveals that everything is of very good quality. This is certainly pleasing and so there isn’t much else to say about it. Under the back window I find a positively tiny 3.2L twin-turbo V8 producing 591 hp and 491 ft-lb of torque. Like the rest of the car, the engine quality is all very good and I’m sure it will hold up for years to come.
The cabin is… disappointing. I should say that the quality of it all is very good, so I don’t doubt that it will stand the test of time. The interior is premium, so that’s not really bad, but I just don’t understand why Ventnor would put a standard CD player in here. This is a mistake I’ve seen a few times today and it really disappoints me to have an otherwise good car ruined by this oversight. I want luxury and prestige with my speed and handling, and standard electronics don’t allow that. Ultimately the comfort levels are a bit low, as is the drivability, but it isn’t too bad. The understeer seems odd for a mid engined car that isn’t all that heavy.
Once at the track, I realise this is one of the slower cars. 0-100 in 3.4 seconds and a top speed of 338 km/h. A time of 2:07.32 around the track is a bit slow but isn’t all that bad when compared to some of the other cars. It seems the aerodynamics have not been properly tuned, lowering the potential of this car.
Final verdict: At $151,800, there was enough left in the budget for better electronics, as that is the biggest issue with this car. While the late spooling turbo allows smooth daily driving, it slows this car down and only lets its potential appear at high RPMs. Overlooked features make me overlook this car.
##@Puffster ABR Lynx CLS
This is certainly the most unique vehicle here. An SUV, as a supercar? I’ll certainly have to try it and see. It’s clearly designed to be driven off road and could probably be used for a camping trip. Design wise, it’s modern, its intentions are clear, but the short rear doors confuse me a bit as they seem rather impractical.
My typical inspection finds everything to be above average to very good. I’m also surprised to find a carbon fibre monocoque and suspension worthy of a supercar. This might just be a supercar disguised as an SUV. Lifting the hood, I look down onto a 7.5L naturally aspirated V12 producing 686 hp and 573 ft-lb of torque. Everything is of good quality, so I have no complaints. I just hope the Lynx isn’t so heavy to make this engine inadequate.
Opening the door to the spacious cabin, I’m surprised to find only four seats. They are good quality luxury seats, however, with just as good premium electronics and safety features. This is even more spacious than the sedans and the shooting brake, so there’s an unexpected plus in a supercar. Taking it out on the road, I can feel some rolling that can only be present in such a tall vehicle, but it’s very drivable. The dirt road was conquered quite easily, but it didn’t fare as well as the cliffhanger. Where that’s a supercar off roader, this is an SUV supercar, so ride height was the main thing going for it.
The track makes it clear that there are performance limitations to an SUV. 0-100 in 3.0 seconds, but a top speed of 324 km/h, just barely squeezing into the supercar territory. 2:08.82 makes it the fastest SUV I know of, though it’s a bit slower than most of the other cars.
Final verdict: This is certainly one of the most interesting rides of the day. It’s a supercar disguised as an SUV, and a pretty good one at that. It somehow manages to have a good compromise between practicality and performance, and it certainly is a sleeper. Not your redneck uncle’s SUV.
##@phale Pearlite Volara Carbon
This is another of the mean looking machines of the day. Batman himself would certainly be at home behind the wheel. It find that it has a look similar to our snowmobiles, so that might be a bonus. The tires have me curious, as they’re very much not the common low profiles of supercars.
Most of the quality is good, but the brakes and underbody turn out to be pretty average. It is all carbon fibre, so the name is fitting, and the offroad skid tray seems a bit strange. I’ll have to see where this goes. That long hood hides a 6L twin-turbo V12 producing 642 hp and 480 ft-lb of torque. The quality is fairly good, so nothing spectacular but nothing wrong either.
I open the door and am greeted with a premium interior and electronics. Where the quality of the electronics is very good, the rest of the interior is quite average and so are the safety features. There isn’t much prestige in here, but based on the exterior design I expect it to be more about the performance. Out on the highway the drivability proves to be good, and the same can be said about the comfort, despite the premium interior. I’m also surprised at the good economy of 24 mpg. Turning onto the dirt road is when I realise why the tires were so thick. They’re hard, the car also has off road suspension, a manual locker, and the skid tray I noticed earlier. Along with the increased ride height, I get to drive this one much like the cliffhanger.
With a 0-100 time of 3.1 seconds and a top speed of 342 km/h, it’s a bit slower than most, but that’s the cost of the off road capabilities. I lap the track in 2:06.55, quicker than I expected from this car. It manages to be more than adequate on the track and off the pavement.
Final verdict: Another oddball supercar and this one works. It offers a good compromise of comfort, drivability, off road capabilities, and track performance. The $160,000 price certainly reflects this car. Batman would approve.
##@Fayeding_Spray Alpheim Reykjavic
Well, it ain’t pretty, that’s the first thing in my mind when coming up to the last car of the day. Even the light of the setting sun isn’t helping it. It has a functional feel to it; hopefully there’s a reason for that.
A closer inspection shows that everything is average. Just the fixtures are a touch above. Such a shame, I doubt this car will hold up too well over time. It does make full use of carbon fibre, which turned out to be less common than I thought it would be in these cars. The engine is a 7L twin-turbo V8 producing 678 hp and 748 ft-lb of torque. Like the exterior, quality is almost entirely average, with only a few good components. I have doubts about the overall reliability of the car due to how low it is. I don’t want something that will break down any time soon.
The interior leaves me just as unimpressed as the exterior. Sport with premium electronics, and everything is very average in quality. Yet another car that has limited comfort and prestige to be found inside. The drivability is really not that good, and the fuel economy is at the bare minimum for what I want. It’s also really not comfortable, the biggest downside to the sport seats. Turning onto the dirt road, I find some redemption for this car. It’s got hard tires that do quite well here.
With a 0-100 of 3.2 seconds and a top speed of 332 km/h, the Reykjavic is on the slow side of the competition. The 2:09.24 around the track is also quite slow. The aerodynamics on this car are quite bad, and some tuning could have improved performance and even fuel economy. It also understeers, which is quite obvious on the track.
Final verdict: So I started my day with a car that wasn’t what I’m looking for and end it in the same way. My first impression of this car stayed throughout the entire test, as I just wasn’t impressed by any of it. I don’t see how it cost $154,000, as some of the cheaper cars manage to be better than this one. Sometimes our first impressions are correct.
After this long day of testing a variety of supercars, I need to find a winner. It’s the one I’ll be driving to the local country club for the classy Canada Day event. There were some bad cars, a lot of cars that turned out to be similarly good, and a few standout ones.
Five cars stand out to me: the cliffhanger, the Komodo Serba, the Empyrean Infernus, the Dragotec Rapier, and the Pearlite Volara Carbon. All have their positives and negatives, and all have appealed to me in different ways.
Ultimately, there can only be one car for now. That car is…
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##The Dragotec Rapier
This car had all the class and prestige I wanted. It’s also comfortable and drivable, has good economy, and simply made the right compromises for my tastes while making the most of the budget.
Congratulations to @Dragawn for having the best car for my tastes.
