A biweekly roundup of automotive news, good, bad and just plain weird:
Aston Martin reveals Vulcan hypercar
With the Geneva International Motor Show coming up, luxury carmaker Aston Martin is hard at work figuring out new and interesting ways to part the wealthy from their cash. They're a bit like SPECTRE in that way, one supposes. Certainly, only the kind of mind that spent four years attending Evil Medical School could come up with this latest beast, the wildly styled green Vulcan. Under slashed and curving carbon fibre bodywork lurks a massy 7.0-litre V-12 engine, said to put out more than 800 horsepower. The rest of the car is part spaceship, part flung stiletto. Huge scoops at the front exit over the hood, giving this supposedly a frisson of Dodge Viper, and there's a rear wing in the back big enough to qualify for honorary RAF status.
Just 24 Vulcans will be sold, and none of them are road legal. Instead, pick one up and you'll have the opportunity to be coached around some of the best racetracks in the world by LeMans-winning Aston racer Darren Turner.
Neat, although turns out they regrettably don't take Canadian Tire money, so I'm out of the running. For the rest of us, the interesting tidbit of the press release might be the inclusion of Canadian racing team and manufacturer Multimatic, who will be providing much of the carbon fibre bodywork.
Multimatic will also be building the new Ford GT, which joins the Dodge Hellcat twins and high performance versions of the Camaro in being made-in-Canada rocket sleds. Looks like the spirit of the Avro Arrow never quite left us.
Volvo doubles Polestar production
Having had an opportunity to test out Volvo's excellent little Polestar V60 wagon, I can tell you that it's quite the høøt. With 345 h.p. from a turbo'd straight-six, big Brembo brakes, and a set of Öhlins dampers to iron out the bumps, the V60 is as charming as it is blue. Which is to say: very. Polestar is in charge of Volvo's racing efforts, and also provides some engine tuning expertise - if you're considering a normal Volvo with a turbocharged engine, there's a dealer option to have Polestar's programming installed (you also get a little blue square badge out back) for a bump in boost and horsepower. The V60 and S60 Polestar are more fully engineered by the team, featuring a properly tuned suspension and reworked gearbox programming as well. I'd love to see a six-speed manual offered as well as a little more rear legroom for a proper descendant of the V70R, but that's just me.
However, there was almost no point in recommending one to anybody, Volvo fan or no, because they already sold out. Canada received something like a dozen of the 750 cars built for worldwide production, and they were all snapped up almost immediately.
Happily, Volvo has now seen fit to increase production with a second run of their Polestar-engineered cars, although this time they're expanding the number of countries the cars will be exported to, so numbers will probably remain scarce. If you missed out last time, give your dealer another call quick.
Audi reveals all-new R8
When details first leaked on Audi's re-engineered version of their range-topping R8 supercar, there was much complaining. The chief issue was the styling, which was hardly changed at all. The new car looks a bit like a larger TT, which is what the old one looked like.
But so what? With the R8, Audi created a genuine rival to the Porsche 911; yes, it's a car with ferocious performance, but it's also relatively comfortable and capable of everyday use. It isn't supposed to be as wild as a Lamborghini or Ferrari — this is perhaps the more reserved choice.
Well, that's if you can call a midship-mounted 610 h.p. V-10 engine "reserved." The new car offers two V-10 choices (540 h.p. and 610 h.p.), is relatively light at just 1,450 kilograms, and comes with all the increases to track-width and downforce you might expect.
There'll also be a GT3 racing version eventually, which should make for some interesting head-to-head comparisons with Porsche, but it's the rumoured twin-turbo V-6 that piques the curiosity. The V-8 equipped R8 had more than enough power for the street, so perhaps a lightweight version for around the same price as a 911 Carrera S will hit that same sweet spot?
Wanted: Royal Chauffeur
Looks like the British Monarchy is advertising for a driver — based out of Buckingham palace, an online advertisement is seeking someone to be "tasked with driving members of the Royal Family, Household officials, guests, and official visitors." Having seen exactly one episode of Downton Abbey, I shall now fetch my passport and prepare to effect an unconvincing Irish accent. I'll be pawning the Koh-i-noor on that Aston Martin in no time.
Watch this space for all the week's best and worst of automotive news, or submit your own auto oddities to [email protected].
