zoomvroom Car Culture, Random

The Best Supercars of the 1990s!

The 1990s was the time when performance cars really started to get that oomph back. The supercars of that era still have jaw-dropping performance, and their designs are some of the most beautiful to ever howl and thunder their way down our roads.

They had no environmental restrictions, and they were the pure intent of the designer and engineers. These are the ones I view as the best.

  • 1993 Bugatti EB110 Super Sport: The predecessor to the legendary Bugatti Veyron, the EB110 Super Sport was capable of 216 mph, which is still a blistering speed. Yet, it had a comfortable and luxurious interior. Oh, and it had a quad-turbo V12.
  • 1998 Dodge Viper: Dodge’s Viper was a formidable car to begin with. However, it didn’t really compete with any of the European supercars. That changed pretty quickly when Dodge shoehorned a massive 8.0-liter V10 under the hood. It made 450 horsepower and topped out at 180 mph. It wasn’t as fast as the EB110 Super Sport, but it was much faster on a race track or winding road.
  • 1995 Ferrari F50: The F50 was slower than the legendary F40. It was the successor to the F40 and the predecessor to the Enzo. However, it was still incredibly fast and rare, with only 349 built.
  • 1990 Jaguar XJR-15: This was the world’s first completely carbon-fiber car. Jaguar only built 53 examples of this car. It had a 450 horsepower V12.
  • 1992 Jaguar XJ220: This Jaguar was one wild child. It had a 540 horsepower twin-turbo V6. It was the fastest car in the world in 1992, topping out at 212 mph. The McLaren F1 beat it in 1993.
  • 1993 Lamborghini Diablo VT: The Diablo VT could reach speeds over 200 mph. It was the first AWD halo Lamborghini. It’s also a car that many people have as their screen savers!
  • 1996 Lotus Esprit V8: The Esprit V8 was in that weird space between high-end sports car and supercar. It had a twin-turbo V8 that made 350 horsepower. It put the power to the ground via a five-speed manual. It was also the first all-aluminum Lotus design. Oh, and you can look like James Bond (providing the car runs)!
  • 1999 Mercedes-Benz CLK GTR: This was more race car than street car. It made 604 horsepower out of a V12. Does it look expensive to you? It should. The Guinness Book of World Records pegged it as the most expensive car in the world in 1999, at a cool $1,547,620.
  • 1993 McLaren F1: The world’s only three seat supercar, the McLaren F1. It made 627 horsepower out of a BMW V12. It was the fastest car in the world from 1993-2005. It’s top speed is a crazy 240.1 mph. The car that beat it was the Bugatti Veyron, which just so happened to beat it’s own record a few years ago.
  • 1997 Porsche 911 GT1 Strassenversion: “Strassenversion” means “street version” in German. This Porsche made 537 horsepower from a 3.2-liter twin turbo flat six cylinder engine. There are about 25 that exist worldwide. Do the math. You’ll likely never see one. You’ve also probably never heard of it.

Well, those are what I think are the best supercars of the 1990s. Tell me what you think!

I’m having technical difficulties with WordPress and photos. I will resolve the problem as soon as I can, but you are going to be without pictures until then.

zoomvroom Car Culture, Movie Cars, World News

Want to Own a Star Car From Two Very Famous Movies?

For those car aficionados among you, and/or movie fans, you know that some cars that made appearances in movies, have an almost cult-like status nowadays.  For example, the Audi S8 from Ronin, the Jeep or Ford Explorer from Jurassic Park, the Aston Martin DB5 from Thunderball and Goldfinger, the #46 City Chevrolet Lumina from Days of Thunder, the 2003 Mini Coopers from The Italian Job, the 2008 Audi R8 from Iron Man, the 1970 Porsche 911S from Le Mans, the 1970 Dodge Challenger from Vanishing Point.  The list could go on for a few paragraphs, but, okay, I’ll stop now and get to the point.  All of the cars mentioned above have people who literally kiss the ground these cars drove over.  I’m not kidding.  But, two very iconic cars are going up for sale.

The submersible Lotus Esprit from The Spy Who Loved Me went up for sale, and was bought for $966,560 at an RM Auctions auction block.  Here’s the interesting history of the car after the movie:  After the movie was over, the filming company put the car under wraps, and shoved into a storage unit in Long Island for about 10 years.  When the storage contract expired, the filming company decided to put it up for “blind sale.”  At a public auction, a local couple paid a small fee for the car, not knowing that they would soon own one of the most iconic cars in history.  The couple ran the VIN of the car, hired a private automotive detective, and positively identified the car.  It was occasionally shown, but it was mostly kept under wraps.  The couple had the car restored by the same company that originally built it, and it can still function as a submarine.

The replica Ferrari 250 GT Spyder from Ferris Bueller’s Day Off also went up for auction.  It sold for a steep price of $230,000.  Three cars were built for the movie, but one was wrecked (no spoiler alert here), and the other knocked off about half of the engine block in the joyride scene with the valets.  Its last owner was Neil Glassmoyer, one of the men who built the car.  It is powered by a Ford 427 V8 that makes somewhere around 500 horsepower, and it is probably a hoot to drive, as it only weighs 2,650 pounds.  While it’s not an actual Ferrari, it is faster than any Ferrari of the 1980s, and more iconic than any.  It was lovingly restored in 1997 by Glassmoyer and his son to Concours-levels of restoration.

Here are some pictures of a stock Esprit and the movie car:  

Here are some pictures of the Ferrari replica from Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, and a stock Ferrari 250 GT:

I’ve also been kind enough to include the iconic movie cars mentioned in the first paragraph.

Ronin Audi S8:

Jurassic Park Jeep and Ford Explorer:

Thunderball and Goldfinger Aston Martin DB5:

Days of Thunder #46 City Chevrolet Lumina:

The Italian Job 2003 Mini Coopers:

Iron Man 2008 Audi R8:

Le Mans 1970 Porsche 911S:

Vanishing Point 1970 Dodge Challenger:

And, just for the heck of it, the 1970 Porsche 917 from Le Mans, which is now owned by Jerry Seinfeld:

Note to my faithful, car-obsessed readers:  I will do a post soon on famous movie cars, complete with a brief description of each car, and pictures of them.  Stay tuned.