Watching Super Cars - as I lay feeling crummy

Status: Still feeling somewhat puny
Song: More Human Than Human - White Zombie (one can hope--right?)

As I lay feeling grumpy and out of sorts with the world--being put upon by the capricious spirits that rule my life--I watched a lot of TV. One of the shows I watched--the only one I really remember (sort of)--was on SpeedTV.

I can't quite recall the name of the show. I've tried. I even went to the official web page of SpeedTV to find it, but it doesn't show past episodes, so I'm stumped. The only thing I know for sure is that it was in Las Vegas and Jay Leno was in it.

Oh... and cars. I'm pretty sure there were cars. Really yummy super cars.

I love to watch anything about super cars. BBC has a show called Top Gear, link, that has me laughing every weekend, because of the strange things they do with cars. But they also test super cars against each other and that is really fun to watch.

So this show on SpeedTV caught my attention, foggy as it was. Some dude--I didn't catch his name--was test driving several cars in the Las Vegas area.

First on the list, and oh so gorgeous was the SSC Ultimate Aero. I dragged myself out of bed to look it up.

The official website, link, said the SSC Ultimate Aero sets the benchmark for super cars today. Achieving tremendous power via its twin turbo V-8 engine, it produces 1,183 horsepower and 1094 ft.-lbs. of torque making the Ultimate Aero the world’s most powerful production car. Combining this proprietary power plant with a lightweight, aerodynamic body and the best handling systems available SSC delivers a vehicle that not only eclipses all other cars but stands OFFICIALLY as the "World’s Fastest Production Car".

(If that made sense to you, then I'm really impressed. We're kindred spirits.)

SSC Ultimate Aero

Very Pretty!

Next on the list... was the Lotus-Exige.

The official website, link, says, for their engine size, the Exige S 240 and 260 are two of the most powerful production cars in the world. The Exige is not just a track day enthusiasts’ car, but a sublime sports car that’s equally at home on the backroads, motorways and autobahns as it is on city streets and race tracks.

From pure racing heritage to cutting edge technology and world-leading ride and handling, Lotus's Exige models are in a league of their own. Lotus Exige models are instruments of pure driving bliss.

Interesting how this website says pretty much the same thing the other website said about the Ultimate Aero.

Lotus Exige

This car can reach 180+ mph in nothing flat. How would you like to look in the mirror and see one of these coming at you?

There's no out running this one!

In the show a Ferrari F430, link, was road tested against a Porsche 997 Turbo, link, on a road stretch near Las Vegas. These websites were pretty much carbon copies of the previous, so I won't put them here. The only differences are the prices and how to get one of these babies.

And... Oh Baby!!!!

Ferrari F430

Porsche 997 Turbo

I honestly can't remember which one did the best in the SpeedTV show, but I've seen other shows, (Top Gear on BBC for instance) where the Ferrari and Porsche were tested against each other and the Porsche out did the Ferarri every time. But yummmm, the Ferarri is pretty. So is the Porsche.

By far the most interesting Super car on the show was the Tesla Roadster, link. This car is unique among other cars of its kind. Not only is it a super car that can top out at 132 mph, (which is a major feat, considering), it's an electric car.

What Tesla, an American company, has done is find a way to enjoy a sports cars and be green at the same time. They came up with an electric version of the British Lotus Elise, link, which is a little different than the Lotus Exige.

Lotus Elise

This is smaller than the Exige, but it's still cute.

Back to the Tesla Roadster.

The problem with electric cars up to this point is what some have called the veggie burger syndrome. When they came out with the veggie burger they made it look like a hamburger, which was disappointing because it doesn’t taste anything like a hamburger. It had been the same with electric cars.

Tesla is quite smart in that if you like sports cars and you want to be green, this is the only way to go. The Tesla is a car that you can live with, drive and enjoy as a sports car. It looked like on the SpeedTV show that the Tesla was actually fun to drive. The major draw back for me was it didn't have that roar of a super car, but started with a quiet click and hummed along like a lawnmower.

Tesla Roadster

Plugged in. Nice, but I really like a car to roar.

Some of the new Super cars are starting to show up with the universal big V nose, (see the white Lotus Exige above). I like the look of the sleek arrow lance shaped car streaking along the highway. To me a flat nose doesn't look fast, nor do I understand how such cars can fight against the air wall they would be pushing. I guess someone's figured it out.