Top 10 most expensive cars in the world

We are bringing you the list of 10 most expensive cars in the world. At the top of the list is of course the legendary Bugatti Veyron, most expensive, most powerful, and fastest production car in the world.

Bugatti Veyron $1,700,000

The Bugatti Veyron 16.4 is the most powerful, most expensive, and fastest street-legal production car in the world, with a proven top speed of over 400 km/h (407 km/h or 253 mph). It reached full production in September 2005. The car is built by Volkswagen AG subsidiary Bugatti Automobiles SAS and is sold under the legendary Bugatti marque. It is named after racing driver Pierre Veyron, who won the 24 hours of Le Mans in 1939 while racing for the original Bugatti firm. The Veyron features

a W16 engine—16 cylinders in 4 banks of 4 cylinders.



According to Volkswagen, the final production Veyron engine produces between 1020 and 1040 metric hp (1006 to 1026 SAE net hp), so the car will be advertised as producing "1001 horsepower" in both the US and European markets. This easily makes it the most powerful production road-car engine in history.

Ferrari Enzo $1,000,000

The Enzo Ferrari, sometimes referred to as the the Ferrari Enzo and also F60 is a 12-cylinder Ferrari supercar named after the company's founder, Enzo Ferrari. It was built in 2003 using Formula One technology, such as a carbon-fiber body, F1-style sequential shift transmission, and carbon-ceramic brake discs. Also used are technologies not allowed in F1 such as active aerodynamics. After a maximum downforce of 1709 pounds (775 kg) is reached at 186 mph (301 km/h) the rear spoiler is actuated by computer to maintain that downforce.



Pagani Zonda C12 F $741,000



The Zonda C12 F debuted at the 2005 Geneva Motor Show. It is the most extensive reengineering of the Pagani car yet, though it shares much with its predecessors including the 7.3 L V12. Power is increased to 602 PS (443 kW/594 hp) with a special clubsport model producing 650 PS (478 kW/641 hp). The company promises a 3.2 second sprint to 60 mph (97 km/h, a top speed over 374 km/h (225 mph) and it will be the queen in braking from 300 km/h to 0 (186 mph to 0). The Zonda F clubsport has a power to weight ratio of 521 bhp/ton (384 W/kg) . Compare, for example, the Enzo Ferrari which has a power to weight ratio of 483 bhp/ton (356 W/kg).

Koenigsegg CCX $600,910



The Koenigsegg CCX is the latest supercar from Koenigsegg. CCX is an abbreviation for Competition Coupe X. The X commemorates the 10th anniversary of the completion and test drive of the first CC vehicle in 1996. The CCX is intended to be more suitable for the U.S. market and thus engineered to comply with US regulations. The CCX is powered by a Koenigsegg designed and assembled, all aluminium, 4700 cm³ DOHC 32-valve V8 based on the Ford Modular engine architecture enhanced with twin Rotrex centrifugal superchargers with response system, 1.2 bar boost pressure and an 8.2:1 compression ratio. The engine produces 806 hp (601 kW) and 678 lbf.ft (920 Nm) on 91 octane (U.S. rating) gasoline, 850 hp (634 kW) on 96 octane (Euro rating) gasoline and 900 hp (671 kW) on biofuel.

Porsche Carrera GT $484,000



The Porsche Carrera GT is a supercar, manufactured by Porsche of Germany. The Carrera GT is powered by an all-new 5.7 litre V10 engine producing 612 SAE horsepower (450 kW). Porsche claims it will accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h (62.5 mph) in 3.9 seconds and has a maximum speed of 330 km/h (206 mph), although road tests indicated that in actuality the car could accelerate from 0-60 in under 3.5 seconds and to 0-100 in 6.8 seconds and has a top speed of 335-340km/h (209-212.5mph).

Mercedes SLR McLaren $455,500



The Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren is a sports car and supercar automobile co-developed by DaimlerChrysler and McLaren Cars. It is assembled at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, England. Most people presume "SLR" to stand for "Sportlich, Leicht, Rennsport" (German for "Sport; Light; Racing"). The car's base price is £300,000 or $455,500. The SLR has a supercharged 5.5 (5439cc) litre dry sumped 90 degree V8. It produces 466.8 kW at 6500rpm (626 hp) and 780 N•m (575 ft•lbf) torque at 3250 - 5000 rpm.

Maybach 62 $385,250



The Maybach 57 and 62 were the first automobile models of the Maybach brand since the brand's revival by DaimlerChrysler. They are derived from the Mercedes-Benz Maybach concept car presented at the 1997 Tokyo Motorshow (which was based on the Mercedes-Benz S-Class sedan). DaimlerChrysler attempted to buy the Rolls-Royce/Bentley marque when Vickers offered the company up for sale. When this attempt failed (they were outbid by BMW and Volkswagen respectively) they introduced the Maybach as a direct challenger in 2002. Both models are variants of the same ultra-luxurious automobile. The model numbers reflect the respective lengths of the automobiles in decimetres; the 57 is more likely to be owner-driven while the longer 62 is designed with a chauffeur in mind. The engine is a Mercedes-sourced 5.5-liter twin-turbo V12, generating 550 hp.

Rolls-Royce Phantom $320,000



The Rolls-Royce Phantom is a luxury saloon automobile made by Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, a BMW subsidiary. It was launched in 2003 and is the first Rolls-Royce model made under the ownership of BMW. It has a 6.8 L, 48-valve, V12 engine that produces 453 hp (338 kW) and 531 ft•lbf (720 N•m) of torque. The engine is derived from BMW's existing V12 powerplant. It is 1.63 m (63 in) tall, 1.99 m (74.8 in) wide, 5.83 m (228 in) long, and weighs 2485 kg (5478 lb). The body of the car is built on an aluminium spaceframe and the Phantom can accelerate to 60 mph (100 km/h) in 5.7 s.

Lamborghini Murcielago $279,900



The Lamborghini Murciélago is a GT and supercar automobile made by Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A. and designed by Luc Donckerwolke. It was introduced in 2002 as the successor to the Diablo. The body style is a two door, two seat coupé. The LP640 version was introduced at the Geneva Motor Show in March of 2006. It features a 6.5 L engine, now producing 640 bhp, improving performance substantially. There were also a few minor external changes, primarily to the low air intakes.

Aston Martin Vanquish $255,000



The Aston Martin V12 Vanquish is a supercar manufactured by Aston Martin since 2001. It rose to fame after being featured as the official James Bond car in Die Another Day, the twentieth James Bond film. In the film, the Vanquish has the usual Bond film embellishments, including active camouflage which rendered the vehicle virtually invisible. The Vanquish is powered by a 5.9 L (5935 cc) 48-valve 60° V12 engine, which produces 343 kW (460 hp) and 542 N•m (400 ft•lbf) of torque. It is controlled by a fly-by-wire throttle and a 6 speed 'paddle shift' or semi-automatic transmission. A special V12 Vanquish S debuted at the 2004 Paris Auto Show with the power upped to 388 kW (520 hp) and 577 N•m (426 ft•lbf).

Source :www.automotoportal.com/article/Top_10_most_expensive_cars_in_the_world

2009 Hummer H3T Alpha

Hummer Press Release

Hummer is bringing its unmistakable style and unmatched capability to the truck market with the 2009 H3T. It is based on the architecture of the popular H3, but features a five-passenger crew cab and a separate five-foot-long (1.5 metres) bed.



The H3T is bigger than a midsize truck and smaller than a full-size truck, creating its own niche in the market. It also is infused with the attributes expected of a Hummer, including exceptional off-road capability and a premium interior that is as functional as it is comfortable.

"With its unique size and Hummer traits, the H3T is ideal for the customer who works hard and plays harder," said Martin Walsh, Hummer general manager. "It offers the combination of truck versatility and Hummer off-road prowess that delivers customers to the trail in style."

In addition to its segment-defying size, the H3T also stands apart from other trucks with its signature Hummer off-road capability. It is the only midsize truck to come standard with full-time four-wheel drive, 32-inch tyres and functional skid shields. It also is the only midsize truck to offer front and rear locking differentials, as well as 33-inch tyres. The V8-powered H3T Alpha can tow up to 5,900 pounds (2,676 kg).



The H3T is offered in four trim levels, including five-cylinder models and the popular, V8-powered H3T Alpha edition. Production is scheduled to begin in the third quarter of 2008 at GM's Shreveport, La., assembly plant, with vehicles arriving at Hummer dealerships shortly thereafter. Hummer will sell the H3T in North America, Europe and the Middle East.

Source: Hummer Press Releases

2009 Chevrolet Traverse

8 passenger CUV capable of towing 5,200 pounds

by Derek Maui



Although the Traverse crossover utility vehicle shares underpinnings with the Buick Enclave, GMC Acadia and Saturn Outlook, its styling reflects Chevrolet’s latest design direction.

Wind-cheating fuel economy may be the theme behind the all new 2009 Chevy Traverse, but it has some real numbers to back it up. Its 0.33 aerodynamic drag coefficient makes it the sleekest crossover in the segment. A new, efficient 3.6L V-6 with direct injection technology, fuel-saving

six-speed automatic transmission and exterior designed for minimal resistance all contribute to what is expected to be a segment best highway fuel economy.

The Traverse uses a 3.6L V6 with direct-injection — rated at 286 horsepower and 255 lb-ft of torque (281 horsepower and 253 lb-ft of torque with a single-exhaust setup). Ninety percent of the engine’s peak torque is available from approximately 2,500 rpm to more than 6,000 rpm. The 3.6L engine is mated to the Hydra-Matic 6T75 six-speed automatic transmission, an advanced transmission with clutch-to-clutch shift operation for front- and all-wheel-drive vehicles. Also, the 6T75 offers automatic grade braking, shift stabilization and precise shift control.

Vehicle Highlights:
Powerful and fuel-efficient 3.6L V-6 with direct injection technology
Towing capacity of 5,200 pounds (2,358 kg)
Seating for up to eight
Expressive, Malibu-inspired design
OnStar 8.0 with Turn-by-Turn Navigation and Destination Download eNav feature
Available Bluetooth phone connectivity
XM Satellite Radio with available real-time traffic advisement
Two available rearview camera systems


Source : http://reviews.carreview.com/blog/2009-chevrolet-traverse/

2008 Chevrolet Corvette Convertible Review

by Derek Maui



Pros:
Great driving feel
Extremely fast, yet handles beautifully
Unique, well-executed features like “Head-Up Display”

Cons:
Cheap interior quality; low-grade plastic feel
Poor layout and functionality for interior buttons (radio, AC, etc.)

Introduction

I must admit, I have never been a big fan of Corvettes. Yes, I know it’s supposed to be a great American supercar – all car magazines rave about it, admiring its powerful engine, great handling, and so on. But still. I always thought it never really stood a chance against British, German or Italian supercars. Plus, for some reason over the years the Corvette owner didn’t evoke a very positive image. Somehow that was the image of a guy like the ladies’ man character Larry in the old TV series “Three’s Company”. Shirt open halfway down, gold chain, big fluffy hair…

So I got in the new 2008 Corvette Convertible, not really

convinced I was going to be terribly impressed. Yes my car had some cool features, like keyless access with push-button start, which started the engine with a nice deep growl. But as I first sat in the car I started thinking about reasons to justify my slightly negative bias. And sure enough, I found them. The interior looked somewhat cheap, the car felt too wide, the humps over the two front tires seemed too high, and the ride felt rather heavy when you start driving.

But over the next 2 days of driving something really unexpected happened. I became a true fan.

Driving Impressions

I drove the car from Los Angeles to Palm Springs, California. It’s a 2 ½ hour ride which starts out really unpleasant, going through L.A.’s bumper to bumper traffic, poor road conditions on highway I-10, and not the most beautiful scenery – passing through industrial zone after zone and mobile home sales lot after lot, all the while driving next to freight trains. Not what I had imagined. But once you get closer to the desert the scenery changes, especially when reaching the hundreds of wind propeller machines close to Palm Springs [apparently the entire electrical power of Palm Springs area is generated by wind power, but that’s another story.] Very dramatic.



Scenery and road conditions aside, my initial negative bias flew out the window. I could not say enough about the pleasant driving experience with this car. The Corvette is extremely powerful. When you start driving, the car does feel a bit heavy. But then later on you realize why. A slight touch on the accelerator and you are almost flying. Yet the car handles very tightly. If it was any lighter, you would probably spin out of control. Although the RPM gauge goes to 7,000, I only once could get it over 4,000 – the car would just go so fast that I had to take my foot off the accelerator immediately.

On the highway, it performed beautifully. A prancer when you need to speed up, extremely nimble when changing lanes, super tight in curves, and just overall excellent handling. Initially there is a bit of understeer feel with the steering wheel, but you soon get used to it. In town and in traffic, the car is gentle and subtle, with a very smooth feel. Yet power and agility is immediately there when you need it. The Corvette was a delight to drive.



Really Cool Feature: HUD

The one thing that quickly jumps out at you is what the Corvette instruction manual calls the Head-Up Display (or “HUD”). This is a reflection display on the driver side windshield of some key metrics, like speed, RPM, and interestingly a curious number with a “G” at the end. It turns out that’s the “G-force”, as in gravity force. Supposedly, in heavy twists and turns and fast speeds, you need to know your G-factor, right? Every time I looked mine was 0.00 G. Oh well, I guess I didn’t twist and turn hard enough..



But the curious G factor aside, the HUD display is surprisingly effective. It’s placement on the windshield is just right – not too high to be annoyingly obstructive, not too low to be missed. And it shows very well even in bright sunlight. Some technological feat.
It also switches to display other stuff like changing radio channels and selected gear in manual paddle shift mode (more on that below).

Other Cool but Concerning Feature: Electronic door sensor releases (no handles)

Another really cool feature is there are no door handles on this car – neither outside nor in. To open the door from the outside you need to stick your hand behind the opening on the side of the door, where you ordinarily would have expected there to be a handle to pull. Once the car senses the keys on you (i.e. in your pocket), it electronically releases the door open (no pulling of door handle).





Similarly, once inside, there is no door handle to pull either. Pressing a round button on the door panel electronically releases the door. This is all exciting, but while driving I started wondering what would happen if you are inside the car and there is a power failure? Since everything is electronic – windows, rooftop, trunk, AND doors – how would you get out? Not finding a good solution, I forced those thoughts out of my mind. (Later, I did look at the instruction handbook, and read about a manual release latch for the trunk, but nothing about the doors. Hmm…)

Manual Paddle Shifts

The Corvette came with gear paddle shifts on the steering wheel, which is now beginning to show up more and more, even in more ordinary cars. The paddle shifts don’t work when the gear shift is in D (Drive) mode. You have to pull the main gear shift in the center console down to S (Sport) mode for the paddle shifts to kick in. Unfortunately, when you first shift from D to S, you have no idea what gear you are in – there is no display of selected gear in the instrument cluster or the HUD display. This is not very intuitive, since at first you start looking all the over the instrument cluster looking for the gear indicator. Once you click on the paddle shifts (to change gears), only then the HUD display on the windshield starts showing the selected gear (but still nothing on the instrument cluster). (BTW, I only found this out after looking through the instruction manual. As the saying goes, when all else fails, read the instructions.)




Although the paddle shifts are cool, and give the Corvette that extra supercar driving feel, I was not entirely happy with the way they functioned. On the Corvette, pressing the triangular shaped tab on the front of the steering with the “+” sign shifts to higher gear; to shift down you pull the paddle on the back of steering wheel towards you. The tab/paddle combo on the left and right sides of the steering wheel both do the exact same thing. Which is rather odd and different than other cars I have driven with this feature. On those, one side of the steering shifts up while the other shifts down. Perhaps a creature of habit, I had a hard time getting used to the Corvette way for paddle shifting up and down. I found myself pulling the paddle, which went into lower gear, when actually I wanted to shift to a higher gear. Separately, I felt a slight delay between pressing the “+” tab and the car actually shifting to a higher gear. As much as I appreciated the idea of driving in the paddle shift mode, I kept switching back to automatic mode (D) to let the car do the shifting.

Convertible Top

Operating the convertible top was a cinch. It was intuitive (no instruction manual needed on this one) and quick. The car has to be in Park before you can open the top. You first need to twist the handle under the roof and push up the roof slightly (if you don’t, the message indicator on the instrument cluster tells you so – more on that below).



Then press a button on the left side of the steering wheel.



The roof opening/closing process is similar to other well-operated electronic convertible tops (like Mercedes SL class). The top starts going back, then the hatch behind you automatically opens up, the roof continues to go back and down in the trunk well behind the seats, the hatch comes down and closes tight. The entire process takes less than 30 seconds. [I know this because major desert wind start blowing lots of desert sand and I had to immediately put the convertible top back up while stopped at a red light.]



Trunk Space

While many convertible cars take up at least half, if not most, of the trunk, I thought the Corvette Convertible did a very good job with trunk space. The trunk has a separator between where the opened convertible top would fit and the actual space for luggage, etc. The trunk could fit a roll-away bag, a carry-on computer bag or back-pack, plus additional room for a few shopping bags. The trunk space seemed adequate for a week-end getaway for two (of course depending on how much clothes you take), plus extra room to do some shopping. Additionally, the trunk lid pops open easily with a press of a button on the keyless ‘keys’



Interior

The interior of the Corvette is one area that needs improvement.

On the positive side, I was immediately intrigued by a pleasant, although out-of-the-ordinary, smell inside the car. No, it was neither that ‘new car’ smell, nor the nice leather smell. It was different. I pondered about it for a bit, and then it came to me: it smelled like a boat. Those fast powerboats made of fiberglass. Given the body is made of composite materials, that made sense. There is a large center panel between the two seats with the Corvette badge affixed on it, and where the convertible roof hatch latches into. Perhaps that’s where the smell was emanating from inside the car.




The dashboard instrument cluster is well laid out. All the gauges are placed where they should be and nicely visible when looking through the steering wheel. A really cool feature of the instrument cluster is when you start the engine, the gauge indicators go all the way to the end and then gently come back. I don’t know why it does that, but it looks really cool.

The instrument cluster includes what Corvette calls a “Driver Information Center” (DIC) which is a digital indicator at the bottom that displays readouts for various messages, for example trip mileage, tire pressures, remaining oil life, warnings and so on. Warning messages come in handy: that’s how I knew I forgot to close the convertible roof latch when the display indicator said “Top Not Secure”.



On the down side, the interior buttons, including the keyless ignition button, convertible roof switch, radio and AC buttons, etc., all have a very cheap plastic feel to them. The center console has what appears to be a carbon fiber veneer, yet feels cheap and flimsy to the touch.

For me, the layout and ergonomics of the radio buttons are awkward. For example, the volume and tuning knobs are stacked on top of each other – even after two days of driving, I still changed channels when I intended to change volume and vice versa. And although the radio has integrated XM® Satellite Radio, the buttons are not always intuitive. For example, there is button that shows the XM® music category (news, sports, talk, etc). But I could not figure out how to select the desired category. Plus, the lack of numbers makes it hard to select XM® channels quickly and easily – I had to twist the knob several times or keep pressing the “seek” button for a while to go from, say, channel 20 to 180. The radio display is also narrow, only showing you 2 lines of display, which makes reading song titles and artists difficult.




Also, the seats could have been nicer. Sure, the seats are leather and have automatic adjustment, lumber support and all that good stuff. But the seats themselves feel rather flimsy – not what you’d like to have in a car like this. Higher grade leather would definitely help, and perhaps slightly heavier frame to give the feeling of better quality seats overall.

Engine & Gas Mileage

Looking at the manufacturer specifications, the engine is a 6.2 liter, V8 with 430 hp. Which is pretty big and impressive. So I wasn’t expecting great gas mileage out of it. Rather than read off manufacture stats, I typically prefer to rely on my own driving experience to get a better feel for gas mileage. The entire L.A.-Palm Springs roundtrip, plus additional driving around town was approximately 300 miles, and used up almost the entire tank of gas. Refueling the tank to full took about 16 gallons. So with 300 miles (a mix of highway and city driving, although mostly highway), that works out to 18.75 MPG. Pretty good gas mileage for this type of car.



Summary & Conclusion

I am converted. I now look at Corvettes in a totally new light (although the Three’s Company’s Larry image may prove harder to erase). The car is a delight to drive – it’s extremely powerful, yet has great handling. It comes with some really cool features like the HUD windshield display and the electronic door releases. If they enhanced the interior – higher quality materials, better ergonomics – it would make this car even greater. At a starting price of around $60,000 for the convertible version, this is clearly not your ordinary every day car. But with all that you get for that price, it can be a very serious competitor to other exciting cars in its category.

Rating :

Build : 4.0
Interior : 3.0
Performance : 5.0
Handling : 5.0
Styling : 3.5
Value : 5.0
Overall : 4.25/B+


Link Source http://reviews.carreview.com/blog/2008-chevrolet-corvette-convertible-review/