Bargain supercar of the year

[niky]

Give me a GT-R, a Switzer 1000 hp kit and an extra premium on my insurance policy, because I'm going to need it.

But if I'm going to be on the racetrack every day, I might just go for an Atom, or a DP4...

He won Pike's Peak in that little bugger...

 

[Shoe67]

Heat kind of power is in that thing? How could that win pikes peak?!?!

 

[SlipZtrEm]

Why all the talk of frankenstein'd econocars in comparison to supercars (see: Evo)? Yes, a used car and/or a car with 100k of modifications will most likely destroy the cars in the OP in one or more categories, but it's sort of missing the point. If I'm asked "what do you want for dinner tonight, burgers or tacos?" I'm not going to respond with "pasta".

GT-R is out for me, because as absolutely capable as it is, I still don't see it as a supercar, but as a sports car / coupe on steroids. 911 goes for the same reason. The R8 has aged so well, and it's basically the NSX' everyday supercar formula updated and perfected with Lambo power, but it seems too "safe".

Vote goes to the Viper. It's outrageous (an important ingredient for a supercar, IMO), and unlike the Vette, doesn't start around Boxster prices in a lower-powered base form.

 

[Shoe67]

^^^so, are you voting viper? Also, to th OP, I think there should be a poll added to the thread

 

[SlipZtrEm]

^^^so, are you voting viper? Also, to th OP, I think there should be a poll added to the thread

Figured it was clear, but edited that last paragraph to fix that 👍

 

[gamerdog6482]

(clip)...and unlike the Vette, doesn't start around Boxster prices in a lower-powered base form.

I agree with this 100%. And for me, that is what put the Viper miles ahead of the Corvette.
The 'base' model Viper is WAY beyond the base model of the 'Vette, and if you go one model up (using a couple years ago as an example) you are pitting an ACR against a Z06...

 

[niky]

Heat kind of power is in that thing? How could that win pikes peak?!?!

A tiny 260 hp V8. naturally aspirated, to boot. Production versions will ship with either a straight 'Busa motor, the Hartley Hayabusa V8 or its 300-400 hp three liter big brother.

 

[Froudeybrand]

If I had that budget, I would put some money into my current car to make it compete with super cars

 

[ITCC_Andrew]

Why all the talk of frankenstein'd econocars in comparison to supercars (see: Evo)? Yes, a used car and/or a car with 100k of modifications will most likely destroy the cars in the OP in one or more categories, but it's sort of missing the point. If I'm asked "what do you want for dinner tonight, burgers or tacos?" I'm not going to respond with "pasta".

OP didn't specify his "understanding" of the definition of "supercar," which is clearly a grey area. This just irritates me, though, for one word... Why would you ever call an Evo an econocar? In spirited driving, it's about as thirsty as a Ford GT... Well, okay, sort of.


Regardless, if we're really going to talk about supercars for under $150,000, I might get an older, MR, Japanese car (Tommy Kaira/Garaiya/NSX/TK ZZII.)


Or... nothing from Europe, not the GT-R... they're all too heavy for my tastes... Ummmm, Lotus Exige cars are quite fast in Autocross... does that count as a supercar? Again, a grey area.

 

[SlipZtrEm]

OP didn't specify his "understanding" of the definition of "supercar," which is clearly a grey area. This just irritates me, though, for one word... Why would you ever call an Evo an econocar? In spirited driving, it's about as thirsty as a Ford GT... Well, okay, sort of.

Note the "frankenstein'd" bit: I'm looking at the Evo's original starting point.

Regardless, if we're really going to talk about supercars for under $150,000, I might get an older, MR, Japanese car (Tommy Kaira/Garaiya/NSX/TK ZZII.)

Seeing as how the ZZII never really existed, at least past running prototype stages before TK sold it off to Autobacs, good luck

Or... nothing from Europe, not the GT-R... they're all too heavy for my tastes... Ummmm, Lotus Exige cars are quite fast in Autocross... does that count as a supercar? Again, a grey area.

I love the Elise, but I don't think I'd count it as a supercar either. Maybe it's too small? Too cheap? The lineage of the engines in the Exige could count against it too: Corolla/Celica for the old four-cylinder, and a Camry engine for the new V6 model.

 

[Tornado]

And not even the 2.2 at that.

 

[Eric.]

And not even the 2.2 at that.

Oh, god.



Of those choices, either an R8 or Viper I think. I don't think you can buy more sexy for $150k than the R8. Viper's got the looks too, but I think the R8 looks more "supercar."

 

[ussr]

Ill buy GT-R don't care about Viper and 911 and Corvette and Aston and any other car in that price range

 

[Cano]

And not even the 2.2 at that.

haha, gold

 

[KinLM]

Regardless, if we're really going to talk about supercars for under $150,000, I might get an older, MR, Japanese car (Tommy Kaira/Garaiya/NSX/TK ZZII.)

I realize that this was probably mentioned but.. The ZZII never really existed I believe (quite a shame too) and if it did, I doubt it would've costed less than $150,000. Just because its a bargain in GT5, doesn't make it a bargain in the real world.

 

[ITCC_Andrew]

I realize that this was probably mentioned but.. The ZZII never really existed I believe (quite a shame too) and if it did, I doubt it would've costed less than $150,000. Just because its a bargain in GT5, doesn't make it a bargain in the real world.

Yeah, Slip mentioned it. The point remains, though... I'm not very mainstream, in terms of my tastes in cars. Ferraris... Lamborghinis... Audi R8s... GT-R... They're all so heavy. If I wanted a super car, I'd want a multi-purpose, lightweight supercar, that has more than just one trick. I'm a racer at heart. I want to be able to autocross the car, time trial, and maybe put it on track with other cars, too. I want the car to help me to sharpen my skills. So, I guess I just don't like the supercar mantra of "Let's make the driver go really fast, so that the driver can feel fast." My opinion would be "let's leave the speed up to the driver's talent and ability."

 

[ussr]

Yeah, Slip mentioned it. The point remains, though... I'm not very mainstream, in terms of my tastes in cars. Ferraris... Lamborghinis... Audi R8s... GT-R... They're all so heavy. If I wanted a super car, I'd want a multi-purpose, lightweight supercar, that has more than just one trick. I'm a racer at heart. I want to be able to autocross the car, time trial, and maybe put it on track with other cars, too. I want the car to help me to sharpen my skills. So, I guess I just don't like the supercar mantra of "Let's make the driver go really fast, so that the driver can feel fast." My opinion would be "let's leave the speed up to the driver's talent and ability."

What's the problem then. GT-R is multifunction super car. You can drive it just like it is Nissan Micra, cruise on highways just like it was MP4-12C or Bentley Continental (great name by the way, Continental), race on the track just like it was GT-R.

At least for me it's only obvious choice to buy.

 

[ITCC_Andrew]

But, it wouldn't autocross nearly as well as my Hyundai... It's too heavy. Even the RX-7 my friend has, has trouble negotiating the cones. The Hyundai's so small, light, and (surprisingly) agile, it just "fits" with no complaints. It can't do everything that I want it to; no super car can.

 

[Slash]

No Shelby GT500? 👎

 

[gamerdog6482]

No Shelby GT500? 👎

Less HP than the Viper (AFAIK) and handles like crap=not really.
The price of $55,000 helps a bit, but that isn't nearly as good of a bargain as the Ariel Atom 3.

 

[sumbrownkid]

Any Mustang is forever doomed to the Pony car category no matter how much power you stuff into it unfortunately.

 

[gamerdog6482]

And as SlipZ and I said before, going back to the ZR1 vs. Viper debate, the GT500 is a Mustang with a bigger engine. The Viper is an engine with a Viper built around it.

 

[JAHHAJ]

I would take either the Viper or GT-R or R8 but if I had to choose one it would be the GT-R.

 

[sumbrownkid]

Yeah I think the GT-R strikes the perfect balance of performance, usability, and pricing.

I still can't wrap my head around the size of it though. It's big and small at the same time.

 

[Nessy]

A tiny 260 hp V8. naturally aspirated, to boot. Production versions will ship with either a straight 'Busa motor, the Hartley Hayabusa V8 or its 300-400 hp three liter big brother.

That thing's mental!, i remember seeing pics of the early DP1 and reading about it back in 2008, it kinda reminded me of the 'Honda side-by-side' from 1995 (the Honda had a 650cc V-twin, and weighed 380kg/840lbs). The 'Honda side-by-side' didn't have the trick 4WD or awesome Hartley V8 though.
I had no idea, that the Palatov won the Pikes peak unlimited class.. thanks for bringing it to my attention. 👍

 

[Cano]

No Shelby GT500? 👎

haha, even more gold.