~Shining Path~ Have you ever heard of the Ford Shelby GR-1? It was understandable, if some of you answered 'NO.' Because maybe some of you more familiar with the Ford GT-series than this car. The Ford Shelby GR-1 is a conceptual sports car springs from a long line of Ford performance project cars and quickly establishes itself as one of the most contemporary and dramatic front-engine, two-seat, fastback supercars.
2005 Ford Shelby GR-1 Concept car. (Picture from: OtoBlitz)
It was first introduced to the public at the 2005 North American International Auto Show. The GR-1 was created with the inspiration from the Shelby brand. It was inspired by and bears resemblance to the Shelby Daytona. The Shelby GR-1 concept's name pays tribute to both a performance great and "Group Racing."
Front three-quartered view of 2005 Ford Shelby GR-1 Concept car with all-doors openned. (Picture from: OtoBlitz)
This uniquely emotional American sports car design represents Ford's continued desire to include a high-end, limited-production specialist supercar in its lineup. Initially unveiled as a design exercise at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance in August, the Ford Shelby GR-1 concept is a sports car salute to "performance art."
Left side view of 2005 Ford Shelby GR-1 Concept car. (Picture from: OtoBlitz)
Much of the GR-1 chassis and running gear is based on the Ford Shelby Cobra Concept a modern version of the 1960s original Shelby Cobra, which was presented one year earlier at the 2004 North American International Auto Show. As with the Ford Shelby Cobra Concept, the GR-1 project was led by Manfred Rumpel and developed by Ford's Advanced Product Creation group.
Since much of the GR-1’s platform and suspension parts come from the GT, it would not cost too much to build such a car. The GR-1 uses a 6.4L all-aluminum V10 engine. The GR-1 is officially rated at 605 hp (451 kW) and 501 lb·ft (679 N·m) of torque. It uses a 6-speed manual transmission.
Interior view of 2005 Ford Shelby GR-1 Concept car. (Picture from: OtoBlitz)
The Shelby GR-1 concept combines modern sculptured surfaces and a sleek muscular fastback design. All of the sophisticated mechanicals of this extraordinary coupe are wrapped in a sleek, muscular aluminum skin left bare and polished bright. The result is a forward-looking supercar with attention-grabbing Ford presence and Carroll Shelby inspiration.
The upward glide of the butterfly doors leads into the race-inspired interior that features seats with carbon shells and fixed backs. The carbon shells are connected directly to the sill and tunnel via lightweight aluminum spaceframe attachments and can be adjusted fore and aft by way of an accessible pull ring on the seat cushions’ leading edge. The seats incorporate removable Alcantara comfort inserts that are individually tailored to the occupant’s’ body type.
Rear three-quartered view of 2005 Ford Shelby GR-1 Concept car. (Picture from: OtoBlitz)
Interior cabin technology focuses on driver comfort, enjoyment and entertainment. The instrument panel sports a full complement of analog gauges, including a combination analog tachometer with floating watch-like elements and digital speedometer. The tachometer housing has integrated air registers and an additional Noise Reduction Technology output speaker.
Rear view of 2005 Ford Shelby GR-1 Concept car. (Picture from: OtoBlitz)
The centrally mounted Tire IQ display is a sophisticated driver’s aid designed to inform, warn and even entertain. The Tire IQ system provides the driver and passenger with an animation of vital tire temperature and pressure statistics (via sensors in the tire), along with other key vehicle dynamics such as cornering G forces (via an onboard accelerometer), also controls the onboard stereo.
Did you know, it turns out that in 2019 there was a good news that this GR-1 would be produced. Reportedly, Superformance, a tuning company and maker of car replicas domiciled in California, revealed that in the near future it will produce the Ford Shelby GR-1. Here is the appearance of the Ford Shelby GR-1 production version;
~ONE Off~ When Franco Sbarro presented the GT1 in 1999, he let it be understood that this model would be developed further. Very soon the idea to install a more refined motor than the V8 became a reality. Within a year he was showing the next version at the Geneva Motor Show 2000 ie the Sbarro GT12, a V12 refined metamorphosis version of the GT1.
Here's a V12 refined metamorphosis version of the GT1 by Franco Sbarro called the Sbarro GT12 unveiled for the first time at the Geneva Motor Show 2000. (Picture from: Wikipedia)
It much like its predecessor GT1, as you can see here the GT12 uses a very similar body mounted on top of the Sbarro's dual-frame as well. But for the drivetrain, the GT12 is powered by the Mercedes S-Class V12 engine, delivering 500 bhp at 3,800 rpm. Sbarro claims the GT12's 0–62 mph performance figure can be achieved in just 4.5 seconds with a top speed of 187 mph. One would expect less from such a car!
The Sbarro GT12 uses a very similar body of GT1 mounted on top with the Sbarro's dual-frame, and finished in silver-grey colors. (Picture from: CarStyling.ru)
However, from the outside there is still a slight difference between the GT1 and GT12. As we can see that the Sbarro GT12 is silver-grey in color, has another model of Antera alloy wheels, coupled with slightly boxed unique taillights (very similar to those of the S-Class), and not covered as in the GT1.
As we can see that the Sbarro GT12 is silver-grey in color, has another model of Antera alloy wheels. (Picture from: MotorLegend)
Then the rear wing of the GT12 also has a different shape and can be moved up to 15 degrees to adapt different circuit conditions. While in the cabin there are a pair of seats covered in red Alcantara leather. While the doors are the same as the GT1, hinged horizontally at the front and lifting upwards.
While in the cabin of the Sbarro GT12, there are a pair of seats covered in red Alcantara leather. (Picture from: MotorLegend)
"Its extremeness is the logical conclusion of two fundamental
directions. The first is the creation of maximum comfort for the driver,
the second is the homologation of the car for use on public roads,"
as Franco Sbarro himself explains about his GT12 car creation.
"This is not just a transplant. To increase the power and maximum torque
of the engine, I used the MoTes8 electronic control system, which
allowed me to meet the tough emission standard and maintain the supercar
temperament," says Sbarro further.
The Sbarro GT12 is powered by the Mercedes S-Class V12 engine, delivering 500 bhp at 3,800 rpm. (Picture from: MotorLegend)
Although the GT12 has been exhibited for many years at the Geneva Motor Show on the Sbarro stand (which only proves the passion and hopes of its designer). As quoted from CarStyling.ru, the first GT12 was made to order, followed by two more which are on the way. This is an impossible number to meet racing homologation requirements. As information, one of Sbarro's dreams is to bring his car to the famous 24-Hours of Le Mans racing event for the GT1 class.
Well, all-those Sbarro efforts have not yielded results as expected, and seems to be patient when he had to accept the fact that this GT12 is still not much in demand. So that Sbarro's long-standing dream of producing his own supercar (even if it is a small-scale one), as well as his Le Mans racing wishes, still has to wait even longer. Due to have you ever seen one of these cars run on the streets or a racing circuit lately? *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | SBARRO.PHCALVET.FR | CARANDDRIVER | CARSSTYLING.RU | MOTORLEGEND | CARSANDRACINGSTUFF | MOTOR.RU ]
~Super BEAST~ Some time ago there was a lot of buzz on the internet about a Ferrari Enzo FXX was managed to transform into a very fierce beast on the race track. WELL, the story begins when a yellow-black Ferrari Enzo FXX lost control and then plunged into a salt-water lake during the 2011 Goldrush Rally race, at Targa Newfoundland to be precise, and it is certain that the supercar had suffered considerable damage.
This is the one-and-only Zahir Rana's Ferrari Enzo ZXX Evolution by Edo Competition while on running test at the Nürburgring. (Picture from: CarBuzz)
It's inconceivable when a super car like the Ferrari Enzo which has such a fantastic value suffers severe damage, of course it requires a huge amount of money to be able to restore it to its original state. Maybe it will cost the same as a new Ferrari. So usually for most owners will buy a new car and let the damaged one stay that way. Economically, that is not bad decision.
The one-and-only Ferrari Enzo ZXX Evolution posed along with the owner Zahir Rana. (Picture from: Otosia)
But there are other options that can be expensive but more wise considering that the Ferrari Enzo is one of the rare supercars and too expensive to be left to rot and rust, turn out then this choice was taken by the owner Zahir Rana. In short, after undergoing repairing and refurbishment processes for approximately 12 months carried out by Edo Competition for ZR Auto, finally this supercar was successfully reborn with the name Ferrari Enzo ZXX Evolution.
The Ferrari Enzo ZXX Evolution has a new aerodynamic design coupled with a lower body plus a single air scoop on the roof. (Picture from: Otosia)
Covered in the same yellow color as before, the Ferrari ZXX Evolution has a new aerodynamic design coupled with a lower body plus a single air scoop on the roof. Of course, this reincarnation of the Ferrari Enzo FXX will produce extraordinary performance.
The Ferrari Enzo ZXX Evolution also gained a completely new, made-to-measure interior, with the newly developed Edo ZXX. (Picture from: UtilityWallet)
There is no need to doubt it, the performance of the original Enzo. How come, by using a 6.0-liter V12 engine capable of producing around 651 hp, it can push it up to 62 mph (100 kph) in 3.6 seconds and 124 mph (200 kph) in 10.3 seconds. Furthermore it conquered a quarter-mile in 11 seconds flat and offers a drag-limited top speed of 221 mph (355 kph.)
There a completely new interior was constructed to give the XX the complete look with two new lightweight black racing bucket seats adorned with typical yellow-threads stitched. (Picture from: UtilityWallet)
Now compare that to the Edo Competition upgraded version, however, and the aferomentioned figures seem almost nothing. Let's see for the ZXX's engine output is increasing up to 840 hp (some said 950 hp), which translates to a 0-62 mph time in 3.2 seconds, a 0-124 mph time in 9 seconds, and an estimated top speed of 241 mph (388 kph). This is definitely a pretty big performance jump.
The Ferrari Enzo ZXX now boasts a 6.5L Ferrari V12 motor, fully re-built by Edo Competition, and capable of producing 950 horsepower. (Picture from: GTSpirit)
It was all made possible thanks to a large number of successful efforts put into bringing about such this final performance figures. The entire engine was reworked as displacement was increased to 6.3 litres, new camshafts were added, and new titanium valve spring retainers and connecting rods were introduced. The modified cylinder head and special muffler are combined to support the exhaust flow with roaring about 142 decibels (considered too loud for the Nürburgring).
Rather than traditional side-view-mirrors, the Ferrari Enzo ZXX Evolution is outfitted with three back-up cameras with view screens inside the cabin of the car. (Picture from: Otosia)
Not only that, it turns out that the transmission shift time has been reduced to 60 milliseconds from 110 milliseconds, coupled with a fully adjustable racing suspension, that's could means a handful tame on the road, then could become a real beast on the track.
Then its aerodynamic suit package that is worn is truly unique and specifically designed to increase downforce and stability at high speeds. It includes new features such as a special ground effect, rear skirt, adjustable rear wing profile, and a retractable rear wing with a higher flap, many others.
Actually what is mentioned in here is not much, there is much more than this. But, when you spend so much money on a supercar like this. What do you expect exactly? And that brings us to an important question. How much is the Ferrari Enzo ZXX custom of Edo Competition for ZR Auto?
There's been a lot of speculation, one of them as in 2018, in which you'd have to spend a minimum of $2.4 million for a decent genuine Enzo. Add up all the upgrades and consider a substantial workforce and you're looking at another $1 million on top. So, for about $3.5 million, or the price of a new Ferrari LaFerrari, you can own this Enzo ZXX beast. Keep in mind that's an estimate for 2018, and for today maybe more than that.😉 *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | EDOCOMPETITION | GTSPIRIT | CARSCOOPS | CARBUZZ | UTILITYWALLET | WIKIPEDIA ]
~Road BEAST~ Perfectly insane, that's the only one catchphrase can be suited this British supercar of 2000s. Not only because its name adopted from one of Greek mythical creatures, Cerberus the underworld guardian's three-headed beast, but the 'Speed' also perfectly matched to attach after that, even tend to scary for some.
Not only does it have a mean and scary look, it turns out that TVR Cerbera Speed 12 is also capable of spitting out terrible power. (Picture from: Motor1)
Wow, this supercars was built by TVR a sports car manufacturer from the United Kingdom. Indeed the Peter Wheeler founded company is famous for producing iconic cars under the type of coupe or roadster, and one-and-only the iconic cars that has ever been made to this day is the TVR Cerbera Speed 12.
The Cerbera Speed 12 has hood comes off as a single panel to hide its massive V12 engine that sits behind the front axle. (Picture from: Motor1)
As quoted from Motor1, physically this racing car has the typical appearance of a GT racing car in general with a low sleek body, long front nose design, while the rear is short with a high rear wing. If the hood is opened, it will reveal its V12 engine. While, the lower diffuser makes it look like a real race car, even though the car is said to be road legal.
The Cerbera Speed 12 has a low sleek body, long front nose design, while the rear is short with a high rear wing. (Picture from: Motor1)
Inside its cabin, there are two racing style carbon fiber seats. As with racing cars in general, the Cerbera Speed 12 is equipped with a roll cage and a simple dashboard display with a two-spoke steering wheel, several control knobs and the instrument panel consisted is an analog tachometer and a digital display underneath.
The Cerbera Speed 12's cabin has a full racing interior layout withwith a roll cage coupled with two racing style carbon fiber seats, a two-spoke steering wheel and a simple dashboard display consisted of several control knobs and the instrument panels. (Picture from: TopGear)
For your info, the Cerbera model was first introduced in 1996 as a 2+2 seat sports coupe, originally powered by a V8 engine. Then, TVR began to develop the Cerbera for its highest variation, namely the Cerbera Speed 12, equipped with a 7.7-liter V12 engine that can produce nearly 1,000 hp of tremendous power (though exact measurements were never made). So at that time TVR had claimed that the Cerbera Speed 12 had a higher top speed than the McLaren F1, which was 386 kph.
This is the phenomenal drivetrain of 7.7 litre V12 engine was highly over rated and probably produced power up to more 1,000 horsepower to drive the
Cerbera Speed 12. (Picture from: TopGear)
As the result, TVR Cerbera Speed 12 never moved on from the prototype phase, although the prototype car itself is road-legal, hence its appearance on this list. That’s because 2,425 lbs weighted car with 900 horsepower was simply way too fast for the general population back in 1997. Don't know now? But I think it's still the same or are there already many other supercars that have this number of engine power bursts? What do you think?
The Cerbera Speed 12's rear has a tall wing and a bumper design that extends the vehicle's length. (Picture from: Motor1)
Furthermore, in-house 7.7 litre V12 engine was highly over rated and probably produced power up to more 1,000 horsepower. It was intended for 24 Hours of Le Mans, but never made it to France. It did, however, compete in the GT1 class of the FIA GT Championship where it was restricted to more
fashionable 660 horsepower.
As quoted from Top Gear, the British company had also intended to make a road version, but the program was cancelled. So TVR did end up building just one Speed 12 road car. Recently, an auction house from England, Silverstone Auctions, conducted an auction at TVR Cerbera Speed 12 on May 20, 2023, and amazingly the car was successfully sold for a price of £601,500 (approx. $742,611 or Rp.11.145 billions), that's a new auction record for TVRs. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | MOTOR1 | SILVERSTONE AUCTIONS | TOPGEAR | WIKIPEDIA ]
~ONE Off~ As an automotive anthusiast, what car would you buy if you had billions in your account? Is that a Bugatti made supercars, Lamborghini, Pagani or Ferrari? Indeed, the auto brands mentioned were expensive, unique in appearance, and perhaps rare, but many people already have them.
There is only one Sbarro GT1 ever made by Franco Sbarro and his students at the Espera Sbarro School of Design in Grandson, Switzerland back in the 1999. (Picture from: Autoblog)
But if you've seen this one, the premium car brands aforementioned would be eliminated, because this one hypercar combines these three components and is definitely the only one. So apart from having a beautiful body design with sharp curved lines all over its body, the one-off supercar named Sbarro GT1 is classified as a super exclusive vehicle ever made.
The Sbarro GT1 was just a supercar concept which built to tribute for the Mercedes-Benz's victory at the 24-Hours Le Mans racing. (Picture from: Sbarro.phcalvet.fr)
Indeed, in this world there is only one Sbarro GT1 ever made by Franco Sbarro and his students at the Espera Sbarro School of Design in Grandson. Originally it was just a supercar concept which built to tribute for the Mercedes-Benz's victory at the 24-Hours Le Mans racing, and was shown to the public for the first time in June 1999.
The Sbarro GT1's monocoque polyester body is attached on the dual frame concept with three rubber and metal beams, in which the engine is considered a stressed member of the frame. (Picture from: Sbarro.phcalvet.fr)
The most interesting technical aspect of the GT1 is the use of the Sbarro dual frame, which was patented in 1991. In this dual frame concept, the engine is considered a stressed member of the frame. Then the monocoque polyester body is attached to the frame with three rubber and metal beams. This dampens vibrations from the chassis making for a quieter and more comfortable ride without affecting the car's handling.
The entire interior of the Sbarro GT1 is covered in grey and red velvet, including seats, armrests, backrests, parts of the door. (Picture from: Sbarro.phcalvet.fr)
As for the legs, the Sbarro-made concept car uses 18" Anteras wheels at the front and 19" at the rear which are then wrapped respectively by Michelin 245/35 and 365/35 tires. In addition the Sbarro GT1 provided necessary braking system by using a huge 4-pot calipers to grip the vented discs each on its 4 corners.
The Sbarro GT1's seats are integrated into the cabin, which means there's nothing to adjust, vice versa the pedals and steering wheel are adjustable. (Picture from: HotCars)
Uniquely, the one-off concept car also used the unique exhaust system made by Franco himself. Despite this, the Sbarro GT1 weighs around 2,976 lbs (1,350 kg) is made only in metallic gray and is adorned with red brake calipers. Even though this was just a display car, don't ever underestimate its capabilities.
The Sbarro GT1 carries a Mercedes-Benz 7.4 liter (7,400 cc) V8 engine mounted in the middle of the rear which is capable of spewing power up to 450 hp (336 kW) and 451 ft lb (612 Nm) of torque. (Picture from: Sbarro.phcalvet.fr)
Because the concept car carries a Mercedes-Benz 7.4 liter (7,400 cc) V8 engine mounted in the middle of the rear which is capable of spewing power up to 450 hp (336 kW) and 451 ft lb (612 Nm) of torque. Power is sent to the rear wheels directly through a five-speed manual transmission so that it can run up to speeds of 323.4 kph with acceleration from rest to 100 kph in just 4.9 seconds. These performance figures are quite fantastic for a car made of the 1990s, when compared to the latest cars such as the Porsche 911 Turbo which has 402 hp or the Ferrari F50 with 513 hp.
If you were curious about its price, of course it is very expensive, which is expected to reach the seven-digit range for Dollars. As an illustration, back in 2010 this Sbarro GT1 had going to be sold with a price tag of around €1 million or (at the time's rate) the equivalent of Rp.12.4 billion. Apparently the creation of this concept car continues when Sbarro launched its second version in 2002 under the name of the Sbarro GT12 which is powered by a V12 engine. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | SBARRO.PHCALVET.FR | SUPERCARS.NET | ASPHALTFANDOM | HOTCARS | AUTOBLOG | SILODROME ]
~Do It Yourself~ As today we're living in sophisticated era, it seems that almost nothing is impossible for us to do. This also applies for those of you automotive enthusiasts who harbor a desire to own a dream supercar.
Rendering image of the Factory Five Racing F9R (track-only version) featured with a track-only nose in front as well a large rear wing. (Picture from: BlackXperience)
If in the past we had to prepare hundreds of thousands of dollars to be able to own a supercar, and now we're already possible to assembly a supercar by ourselves in our own garage at a much more affordable cost. Just take a look at the car picture above, that is not aFerrari supercar, nor a Lamborghini, or even premium ones made by another well-known brands.
Rendering image of Factory Five Racing F9 (street-legal version) with a large rear wing by Factory
Five Racing. (Picture from: JournalClassicCars)
This is the Factory Five F9R with a large rear wing available in a complete kit car package for you, thus allowing you to assemble it by yourself. So why spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on a new supercar when you can build one yourself for a fraction of the cost?
The Factory Five F9 chassis with a V12 engine at the 2019 SEMA Show in November. (Picture from: JournalClassicCars)
Its maker is a Massachusetts-based automotive company named Factory Five Racing, that has previously been known for its AC Cobra and its DIY hot rod-style kits. Why called it F9R (R for Racing) because the supercar model featured with a track-only nose in front, not only that then the F9 its street legal version would be revealed soon, but apart from that what do you think of the look? Very wild right?
The Factory Five F9 prototype built by an American custom builder named Erik Treves at his workshop in Alabama. (Picture from: FactoryFive)
The bodywork is said to be designed by Phil Frank, who was previously known as the designer of the Saleen S7, and will apparently only be made of carbon fiber. While the chassis will be able to carry a scary 9.5 liter V12 engine, and is claimed to be capable of producing around 750 bhp of power and 950 Nm of torque.
The Factory Five F9 prototype is powered by a 9.5L LS engine in a V12 configuration and has body is 100% carbon fiber over Factory Five’s trademark tube steel space-frame. (Picture from: FactoryFive)
The result is the fastest supercar ever made from private garage with weighs under 1,100 kg. If you're feeling apprehensive and fearful about those engine performance numbers, don't worry Factory Five also said that they will be provided the smaller block of V8 engines of Ford and General Motors that could be mounted there immediately.
At the time (in 2019) production was expected to start late 2020 or even early 2021, but Factory Five says it hopes to produce a ready prototype by spring or summer 2022. That's all we know so far, and for the price, it is not revealed yet. If you consider yourself to be a good mechanic, this could be a good bargain for you.😎 *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | FACTORY FIVE | JOURNAL.CLASSICCARS ]
Did you know, it turns out that in 2019 there was a good news that this GR-1 would be produced. Reportedly, Superformance, a tuning company and maker of car replicas domiciled in California, revealed that in the near future it will produce the Ford Shelby GR-1. Here is the appearance of the Ford Shelby GR-1 production version;
The company itself is known for making replicas of several Ford vehicles, such as the Shelby Cobra, Ford GT40 to the Shelby Cobra Daytona. So those of you who have long harbored a desire to own this GR-1 car can go straight to the Superperformance official site to find out more about it.. *** [EKA [31072016] | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | SUPERPERFPRMANCE | SUPERCARBLOG | SERIOUS WHEELS | SUPERCARS ]
