Cars

BMW unveiled a special edition of the already special M3 sedan at last week’s 24 Hours of Nurburgring race, dubbed the BMW M3 CRT; CRT stands for Carbon Racing Technologies.  The M3 CRT takes the technology from the GTS coupe and applies it to the M3 Sedan.  The M3 CRT is a showcase of the new carbon fiber technology BMW will be using in its future cars.

As the name would suggest, the M3 CRT sees quite a bit of carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP); the front chin spoiler, rear spoiler, the hood, and the two front seats are made out of CFRP.  Other light weight items such as titanium mufflers, lightweight 19” wheels and less sound-deadening material make the M3 CRT weigh 99.2 pounds (45 kg) less than the standard M3 sedan, weighing in at 3,483 pounds (1580 kg).

The Maserati GranTurismo is one of the most beautiful GT cars currently being produced; the regular version of the car is a bit on the “softer” side, so Maserati introduced a more hardcore version last year called the MC Stradale.  However, the MC Stradale only had 10 more horsepower than the GranTurismo S, so German car tuning firm Novitec stepped up to the plate to take care of the MC Stradale with quite a few added ponies.

The Novitec Maserati GranTurismo MC Stradale pumps out 646 horsepower and 460 pound-feet (624 Nm) of torque from the 4.7 liter V8 engine.  The power increase comes courtesy of an ECU tune, a supercharger, custom injectors, and larger manifolds.  0 to 62 mph (100 km/h) is reached in 3.9 seconds and 124 mph (200 km/h) is reached in 14.0 seconds.

Just three months after officially unveiling the 2012 911 Carrera, Porsche brings us the gorgeous 2012 911 Carrera Cabriolet and makes me wish I was a richer man.

I’m already a big fan of the new (991) body styling and I absolutely love the 2012 Porsche 911 Carrera Cabriolet.  Unlike most of its competitors, the 911 Cabriolet doesn’t make use of a folding hard-top; instead it goes the traditional route.  However, Porsche used fancy materials like high-strength steel and magnesium canvas to make the roof lighter than the previous generation.  The soft-top roof also, for the first time, keeps the same sleek profile as the coupe.  The roof can be opened and closed in 13 seconds and this function can be performed while the vehicle is moving at speeds of up to 32 mph.

The Ferrari 599 GTB Fiarano’s successor has been announced and it’s one hell of a car.  The car is called Ferrari F12 Berlinetta and is the most powerful and fastest Ferrari ever produced.  The all-new F12 Berlinetta will be unveiled at the upcoming Geneva Motor Show.

The Ferrari F12 Berlinetta is powered by a naturally aspirated V12 engine mounted in front of the driver.  The V12 engine produces a massive

How do you make an Italian supercar faster? Hand it over to the Germans obviously. German tuner, Novitec Rosso, has a performance kit for the Ferrari 458 Italia Spider that consists of changes to the exhaust system, a software upgrade, and a carbon-fiber air box with improved air routing.

With these modifications and a lighter exhaust system (46 pounds lighter), the Novitec Rosso 458 Italia puts down 601hp compared to the stock 570hp the 4.5-liter V8 produces. The car also produces a maximum of 420 lb-ft of torque at 5,400 rpm while top speed is now 202mph.

Formula 1 fans know the cars used in the sport are some of the most technologically advanced pieces of machinery in the world; the cars are extremely small, light, powerful, and super-fast.  I had always known that every part in the car has been made as small and light as possible but never realized how small everything was until I saw the video below by team Sauber.

The video features a Sauber F1 car cut in half length-wise, exposing the half-cut engine, fuel tank, driver’s compartment, and various other components.