The Lexus LFA

 

The Lexus LFA. The exact opposite of everything Lexus represents…and I love it. This is Lexus’ first go at a super car and I think they have done a wonderful job. Its fast, rare, desirable and expensive all the ingredients necessary for a supercar. It is powered by a 4.8 liter V10 producing 552hp. All that power is funneled to the rear wheels via 6-speed flappy paddle gear box. It achieves 0-60mph in 3.6 seconds and will continue on to a modest 202mph. While these numbers are amazing and put it at the top of the performance range I don’t think these are its best quality. For me the greatest part of this car is the noise it makes. There is nothing quite like the scream of a V-10 and the LFA’s exhaust note is perfect. I could listen to it all day long. While this car may not have the track performance of a 599 GTO, that doesn’t really take away from it. I would take this car over the 599 GTO just to be different. I wouldn’t say Ferraris are common but they are to main stream for me. I also like the fact that you can customize the interior of this car to over 1,000,000 configurations. Ultimately, if I was grading Lexus I would give them a 10 for design, 9 for features and 8 for performance. For the next model maybe spend more time pumping power out of that awesome engine. I mean come on the new M5 produces the same power from a twin turbo V8, retailing for $90,000. Great job Lexus but its time to hit the design board for some improvements.  

LFA 

The Lamborghini Reventon

The Lamborghini Reventon. A special edition Lamborghini produced towards the end of the Murciélago’s life cycle. It’s mechanics and underpinnings are all Murciélago. That means this car has plenty of speed and precision. However that’s not what makes this car special. It is about the design elements. Some have likened it to a batmobile. Lamborhini themselves had said that it was inspired by the fastest planes. You can see different design clues all over the car that tip you off to that fact. Even the wheels remind me of helicopter rotor blades. The gauges as well, they are 3-d digital gauges that seriously make you feel like a fighter pilot. This Reventon is particularly special because it is number 20 out of 20….the last one ever produced. One last thing I want to point out is the interior, its all well and good but there is nothing special about it. Compare it to the new Aventador; there is no competition. The Aventador blows the Reventon out of the water. Then when you realize you could buy 3.5 Aventador’s for the cost of one Reventon it becomes clear that you should just buy an Aventador. I mean a Lamborghini is rare enough, let alone a car that only has 19 counterparts. So is it worth it? I say no, go with the Aventador, take the money you saved and, oh I don’t know, buy a house!

Reventon

Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4 Coupe

The Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4 Coupe. Simply put, it is elegant and aggressive all at the same time. It is power and precision. Its unnecessary and totally necessary. Most importantly it is everything you could want from a supercar. It comes standard with 691 horsepower and 509 lb-ft of torque. Weighing in at a mere 3,472 lbs, that comes out to be 5 lbs per hp. That is only .8 lbs heavier than the Bugatti Veyron. So the performance numbers are quite similar. The Aventador screams to 60 in 2.9 seconds and will continue on to 217 mph. All that power is sourced from a 6.5 litre V-12. Another feature of this car is AWD. Some will argue that RWD is the only acceptable drive train for a performance vehicle. However, if you are not Sebastian Vettel, controlling this much power can be a bit tricky. When accelerating out of a parking lot to impress your friends, ending up in a ditch, usually isn’t that impressive. So if you want to stay on the road AWD will definitely be your friend. Personally, one of my favorite features of this car is the start button. You must lift up this red cover that simulates lifting up a cover of a missile launch button in an F-16. That is a perfectly accurate process because one must use caution when getting behind the wheel of this road-bound missile. One last note, I cannot wait until Underground Racing gets their hands on one of these. It will undoubtedly be the greatest car they ever build.

 eBay

R8 V10 TT

The Audi R8. When it was released in late 2006 it was met with the “love it” or “hate it” reaction. However, quickly, it gathered a cult like following and has since become one of the most popular supercars on the market. It now comes in three variants, 4.2 liter V8 coupe, 5.2 liter V10 couple and 5.2 liter V10 spyder. Three great options. They all come equipped with Quattro, four wheel drive, which is great  for handling and inclement weather. Not many supercars are offered with AWD so that gives it a major leg-up on the competition, especially for markets that experience snow, like New England. It has clearly been established that this car is an amazing piece of engineering. Most would be content with what it is and extremely happy with it. Not our friends over at Underground Racing in North Carolina, they had to go and make it a complete animal; and I love it. They started with the already fast V10 then strapped on the stage 3 turbo conversion and now it is beyond fast. It produces a blistering 1000hp on pump gas and an unbelievable 1300 hp on race gas. It has more power than the coveted Bugatti Veyron and and weights less that combination equals fantastic performance. Most likely 0-60 is around the mid two second range. So if you are looking for the comfort, power and exclusivity of a Veyron without the million dollar price range, you have found your ride. 

Audi R8 on Ebay 

Maybach Landaulet

 

Awesome! That is the first adjective I think of when I see the Maybach Landaulet. This car is the epitome of opulence and extravagance, but its all totally necessary. It is really a great example of multipurpose item executed excellently. A lot of times when something tries to be too many thing it sucks at all of them. Think of that restaurant you know that does breakfast, seafood, steaks and Italian food; and it all stinks. Or think of the new Murano Cabriolet. Seriously Nissan? For all of you that are not familiar with this massacre, essentially they built a small crossover convertible, however it is absolutely hideous and I cannot think of why anyone would want a convertible SUV it just seems wrong for some reason. Convertible’s are suppose to be sporty and sexy not slow and chunky. And SUV’s are suppose to be large vehicles with plenty of cargo space and towing ability. However this has no towing capacity and a meager 12.3 cu. feet of cargo space. Moving back to the Landaulet. It is good at everything it does. It is a beautifully sculpted flagship car. It is powered by a 620hp Bi-turbo V-12. The engine works to catapult this car to 60 in a very quick 5.2 seconds. That is especially impressive considering it weights as much as an aircraft carrier. Overall this car is an excellent blend of performance, beauty and comfort. I can assure you that if I had an extra 1.38 million dollars lying around this would definitely be in my garage.

Concept of the blog

I figured I should probably take a moment to let everyone know what the concept of this blog was. Every week in my free time I usually scroll through eBay Motors and check out the recently added exotic and rare cars. One day I realized that I probably have more knowledge than I should about these cars and maybe I could share it. Additionally I wanted to start a blog. I figured the best thing to write about is something I love, thus I chose cars. So essentially I am going to be writing and giving more details about the rare cars on eBay, focusing on both exotic and unique (one-off’s) cars. I hope you find it interesting and maybe helpful if you are in the market for one of these cars. 

Porsche Gt2 RS

The Porsche Gt2 RS. Another excellent example of speed, engineering and beauty. At the most basic level it is the definition of a drivers car. 6-speed transmission and rear-wheel drive. The RS uses the typical flat-6 of  all Porsches, but it also has two variable geometry turbos. The naturally aspirated 3.6 liter engine produces a solid 345 hp and 288 lb-ft of torque. Then when you slap on the two turbos it becomes an absolute animal. That same 3.6 liter engine, turboed produced 620 hp and 516 lb-ft of torque. That makes it the most powerful road-going Porsche ever built. Even more powerful than the hailed Porsche Carrera GT with a V10. The Gt2 RS has a power to weight ratio of 4.87 lbs per hp. The special battery alone saves 22lbs on the car. Add up all the carbon fiber and other weight savings bits and you get the extremely light weight Gt2 RS. That incredible ratio is what helps it launch to 60 mph in a blistering 3.4 seconds. Now that may seem slow in this new world, where a Bugatti Veyron goes 0-60 in 2.5 seconds, Porsche Turbo S, 2.8 sec and the GT-R 0-60 in 2.9 seconds. However, there is one thing to keep in mind, all the above cars have all-wheel drive. That allows them double the grip when they launch. This means that they are faster to 60, but not necessarily around a track, and that is the Gt2’s bread and butter. Being a rear wheel, 6 speed car this is built for the track. Everything about this car is related to the track. That yellow line you see on the steering wheel? That’s so when your flying around corners at breakneck speed you can find dead center on the wheel for correct corner exit. This car is awesome on and off the track and would make any commute (assuming you don’t have back problems) exciting, you won’t even need coffee in the morning, just a healthy dose of boost.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Porsche-911-GT2-RS-2011-/150670753268?pt=US_Cars_Trucks&hash=item2314ad3df4

Bugatti Veyron

The Bugatti Veyron. I guess it was only a matter of time before this car showed up on my blog. I am, simply put, in love with this car. It is an engineering marvel. Lets start with the basics. It is a French company that is managed by the Volkswagen Group. Bugatti has been building very fast cars for over 100 years, but the Veyron is the car that has catapulted Bugatti into the spotlight. This car has broken records and holds all accolades related to straight line speed of a production vehicle. It is powered by a quad turbocharged W-16. That is essentially two V-8’s that share a common crank, aka bolted together. This 16 cyclinder, monster of an engine produces a modest 1,001 hp and around 900lb-ft of torque. That power is sent to all four wheels using a system very similar to Quattro, because VW is the parent company. The AWD coupled to this massive engine leads to a 0-60mph time of sub 3 seconds and 0-150mph below 10 seconds. Just to put that in perspective the Honda fit takes almost a full 12 seconds to just reach 60. However, there is quite literally a “key” to unlocking that power. The first key unlocks only 500 horses. In order to use the other 501 you must place a special key on the floor that unleashes the full power of the engine. Most people are put in awe by its top speed. The car has been recorded at a speed of 253 mph. However at that speed, there are a couple things you should probably know. While at top speed the engine consumes 45,000 liters of air per minute. That’s as much as the human body consumes in four days. At top speed the tires will melt/explode at around 15 minutes, but that shouldn’t concern you because the entire gas tank will be drained in 12 minutes, guzzling 2.3 mpg. I’m pretty sure a dump truck is more fuel efficient than that. Overall this is an amazing showing of engineering marvel and if you can afford one I would say this is a must have for any true car enthusiast. One last piece of food for thought is that VW makes every single $1.2 million Bugatti at a loss. Now why would they do a crazy thing like that?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Dark-red-and-black-metallic-absolutely-stunning-/200656286575?pt=US_Cars_Trucks&hash=item2eb80bf36f 

Batmobile

A Batmobile! A real Batmobile, jet engine and all! This is a one off custom built using the chassis corvette, but as you can see it clearly looks nothing like its original shape. It was just recently completed in 2011. It is powered by a Boing jet engine. A JET ENGINE, in a car. Gone are the days of using pyrotechnics to make it look like a jet blast. The jet engine is a Boing turbo shaft engine producing a modest 365 hp. Now that may seem weak in today’s world where a Ford Taurus produces the same power from a twin-turbo V6. That shouldn’t put you off though, because everyone know a Batmobile is immeasurably cooler than a plain-looking ford. Getting to the practical stuff, it has all the necessary equipment for road use and is DOT approved. It  has disc brakes with fully independent, cockpit adjustable suspension. It also has, most importantly, a dash mounted Ipad with 3G and a stereo system. It runs on both Grade A jet fuel and diesel, which is good because finding Jet fuel can be very frustrating, lets say if your in the middle of suburbia. This would an excellent car for someone who is in the midst of a mid life crisis. It would be fun and exciting while having complete exclusivity. You wouldn’t have to worry about your neighbor across the street one-uping you with the latest Ferrari or Aston Martin. In the end the post comes down to one word, epic. I really don’t have much knowledge on this car to share with the readers but it was just too epic to not bring to peoples attention. 

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Worlds-only-turbine-powered-Batmobile-/280743207347?pt=US_Cars_Trucks&hash=item415d9961b3 

Underground Racing LP1000-4 Twin Turbo Spyder

Today’s featured car of the week is a Twin-turbo charged Lamborghini Gallardo spyder by Underground Racing. Why would one twin-turbo charge a Lamborghini Gallardo? Because sometimes 560 horses galloping to all four wheels isn’t enough. The Underground Racing edition Gallardo is outfitted with a Stage 3 turbo kit, and some engine modifications. This increases power to 1000whp on pump fuel and 1250whp on race fuel.  This practically doubles the output of the engine and it can all be yours for a measly $94,000…on top of the $232,000 base price. For all you non-mathematicians out there that brings the grand total to a whopping  $326,000, and that’s with no options. Lets suppose you want a matte paint job $26,000. How about automatic transmission? $10,000 or carbon ceramic brakes? $16,450. One could see how quickly that base price could spike out of control. All that said lets get back to this specific car. Benefits? Well first of all you won’t be needing coffee in the morning because this goes 0-60 sub 3 seconds, that should be enough adrenaline to get you through the morning. Ladies, you wont be needing that hairdryer anymore either. This is the spyder which is car speak for convertible. At the top speed of 210+ this will definitely dry your hair; gentlemen with toupees be warned. Downsides? Well shopping will become a little difficult, you might fit 1 gallon of milk and a loaf of bread in the trunk, and you’ll go through gas and tires so fast you might want to buy stock in Pirelli and Mobil. All that said this is a beautiful machine, made better right here in the U.S.A and while it may have a few flaws it can easily put a smile on your face, bigger than the new hole in your wallet. 

If you are interested,

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Underground-Racing-LP1000-4-Twin-Turbo-Spyder-/110743284107?pt=US_Cars_Trucks&hash=item19c8d0698b