Porsche Carrera GT

Introduction

The Porsche Carrera GT refines the undiluted character of a racing car to provide an unprecedented driving experience of a unique kind. Indeed, the car's performance figures provide a clear picture of what to expect right from the start, the Carrera GT requiring a mere 9.9 seconds to accelerate from 0 – 200 km/h or 124 mph. The Carrera GT has a pure racing engine. Its 10-cylinder powerplant with dry-sump lubrication is based on Porsche's 5.5-liter V10 naturally aspirated engine developed especially for racing. For production, technicians at the Development Center in Weissach, Germany, have increased the displacement to 5.7 liters. And this top-flight athlete offers new records and achievements never seen before in many other areas. Porsche's philosophy to concentrate on the essential comes out particularly in the Carrera GT through the use of consistent lightweight technology in every respect. Measuring 4.61 metres or 181.5" in length, 1.92 metres or 75.6" in width, 1.16 metres or 45.7" in height, and with wheelbase of 2.73 metres or 107.5", the Carrera GT weighs in at an ideal unladen weight of 1380 kilos or 3043 lb.

Porsche Carrera GT Data

Base Price 440,000 USD
Power 605 hp
Zero to 60 mph 3.6 s
Zero to 100 mph N/A
Top speed 205 mph / 330 km/h

History

Porsche began developing the car in 2000 as a successor to the 911GT1 car they had discontinued in late 1998 , but the project was abandoned. Porsche started a production run of Carrera GTs in 2004, shipping the units with an MSRP of 440,000 USD. Originally, a production run of 1,500 cars was slated, But Porsche announced in August, 2005 that it would not continue production of the Carrera GT into 2006, reducing the total production estimate to 1,250 units. 340 Carrera GTs were sold in the United States in 2005.

Beautiful Design and Engineering

The Porsche Carrera GT, which was introduced as a 2004 model, is a low, sleek, lightweight roadster that is as beautiful to the engineer as it is to the eye. Foul weather protection is also available in the form of two removable panels that can be stored in the front trunk.

Among the car’s unique features are its 5.7-liter, 605-horsepower V10 engine, its monocoque chassis with Porsche-patented engine and transmission mounts made of carbon-reinforced plastic and the first use of a ceramic composite clutch in a production car. The Carrera GT’s aerodynamic and race-bred suspension package provides safe and stable travel at speeds of up to 205 mph (330 km/h). The Carrera GT features the extensive use of lightweight materials, such as magnesium for the car’s substantial wheels and the frames of its special sport seats.

The result of such artistic and athletic equipment is a car that accelerates from a standing start to 62 mph (100 km/h) in only 3.9 seconds, reaches 100 mph (160 km/h) in less than seven seconds, 125 mph (200 km/h) in less than 10 seconds, and can achieve a top test-track speed of 205 mph (330 km/h).

Purebred Racing Engine

Porsche’s development center in Weissach, Germany, built a 5.5-liter, normally aspirated V10 engine for racing, and that engine’s bores have been enlarged to displace 5.7 liters in the Carrera GT. Maximum output is rated at 605 horsepower at 8,000 rpm, with peak torque of 435 lb-ft. The engine has a very low center of gravity, a 68-degree V angle and four valves-per-cylinder heads. The engine block serves as a load-bearing part of the chassis structure, yet is so strong that there is no distortion to the cylinder bores. Using dry-sump lubrication reduces the number of engine components and seals and also helps optimize weight and reliability.

The engine has a closed-deck configuration, a principle carried over from motorsports. This closeddesk architecture enables the cylinders to be cooled by internal water chambers that directly surround the cylinders. Three front-mounted radiators and cross flow cooling ensure optimum heat transfer even under high engine loads.

The engine weighs only 472 pounds (214 kg). The block, crankshaft and camshafts are all made of light alloys. The crankshaft is designed to operate at speeds of up to 8,400 rpm and is both forged and designed for minimum mass inertia and thus offers maximum torsional stiffness.

Race-winning Suspension Design

The chassis and suspension of the Porsche Carrera GT are based on the architecture of the Porsche GT1, the car that won the 24 Hours of Le Mans race in 1998. For example, as on the GT1, the rear track control arms of the Carrera GT are made of aerodynamically designed steel tubes. However, Porsche engineers did not forget the need for driving comfort on the street when they adapted such racing-bred systems for the road-going supercar.

Like a racecar, the Carrera GT uses pushrod suspension with double-track control arms at all four corners to give the Carrera GT its refined response and behavior, feeding forces smoothly and efficiently into the car’s chassis. Where many cars use MacPherson spring struts, the Carrera GT’s spring and damper elements are operated by stainless steel pushrods and pivot levers, which separate the guidance function from the spring action.

Functional Ambience is Interior Theme

Even with its racing-quality performance, the Porsche Carrera GT has a cockpit characterized by functional ambience and the extensive use of high-tech materials. Carbon, magnesium and leather dominate interior materials, with composite components either in their natural state or painted to match the magnesium pieces.

The car’s center console is made of composite materials covered in galvanized magnesium and features the chassis number imprinted on the surface. The shift lever is positioned about halfway up the console directly next to the steering wheel.

The seats are finished in smooth leather and have manual adjustment (fore, aft and height) because power motors would add unnecessary weight. The seats are made of a composite carbon shell. Each seat weighs only 23.6 pounds (10.7 kg.), compared to 44.1 pounds (20 kg.) for the seats in a typical Porsche 911.

Air conditioning is optimized for weight and the car comes with a standard air filter system. A glass screen is mounted between the supplemental safety bars to help reduce wind buffeting. Even though the Carrera GT is a serious performance car, it can be equipped with many comfort features, including a navigation system and Bose audio. A battery trickle-charger is included as standard equipment.

Aston Martin Vanquish S

Introduction
In 1914, the founders of Aston Martin, Lionel Martin and Robert Bamford, began building handcrafted, high-performance sports cars. They believed sports cars should have a distinctive and individual character, be built to the highest standards and be exhilarating to drive and own. More than 90 years later these values remain true today. Aston Martin has earned a reputation for another speciality: building lifelong one-to-one relationships with each of its cars and with every owner. This is due to meticulous records and archives, plus personal attention from experts at the factory.The Vanquish S effortlessly combines 21st Century technology and 200 mph (321 km/h) performance, with understated elegance and craftsmanship. To build such an extraordinary car, the company has used British expertise in aerospace and race-car engineering. Conventional automotive industry materials and manufacturing techniques were not good enough for the fastest road car in Aston Martin’s history.

Aston Martin Vanquish S Data

Base Price 255,000 USD
Power 520 hp
Zero to 60 mph 3.8 s
Zero to 100 mph N/A
Top speed 200 mph (322 km/h)

Styling
The lightweight aluminium and carbon fibre structure of Vanquish S is unique to Aston Martin. It is this special combination of materials that gives the Vanquish S such enormous strength and torsional rigidity for superior handling, safety and durability. This technology has become the Aston Martin signature of today; just as hand-formed aluminium panels were in the past. (The aluminium body panels are still hand finished. It is the best way to achieve a superb finish.) As Aston Martin spearheads developments of its innovative construction techniques, so it also leads with its sophisticated engine and Formula One-style transmission. The Vanquish S uses the most powerful version ever of Aston Martin’s highly acclaimed 6.0-litre V12.

The six-speed manual transmission is operated by F1-style paddles mounted on the steering wheel column. It can change gear in approximately 250 milliseconds – or the blink of an eye.
The Vanquish S is unmistakably an Aston Martin. It is elegant, powerful and dynamic. But there is also a hint of menace in this classic Aston Martin design, with a dynamic tension in its shape accentuated by the rear flanks and their almost animal-like ‘muscularity’. The Vanquish S offers traditional Aston Martin style and a real depth of time-honoured British craftsmanship. But these skills are combined with modern ingenuity. The result is the Vanquish S – a car unlike any other.

Performance
Aston Martin’s hand-built 6.0-litre V12 is renowned as one of the finest engines in the world: enormously powerful, smooth and beautiful. It can also lay claim to being the world’s best-sounding high performance car engine. In the Vanquish S, it reaches its zenith. Maximum power is 520 bhp (388 kW) at 7000 rpm, with maximum torque of 425 lb ft (577 Nm) at 5800 rpm. Such power delivers sterling performance. Indeed, this is the fastest-ever road going Aston Martin. Top speed is more than 200 mph (321 km/h), the 0-62 mph (100 km/h) dash is accomplished in only 4.8 seconds while 0-100 mph (160 km/h) takes just 9.8 seconds. But it is the mid-range acceleration that is truly sensational; 50-70 mph (80-112 km/h) takes only 6.5 seconds in sixth gear. Overtaking is effortless.

A key factor in the engine’s efficiency is its high-speed multiplex communications system, called PTEC (Power Train Electronic Control), which is capable of transmitting information in four one-thousandths of a second. There are two PTECs, one for each bank of cylinders, linked by a high-speed system that controls the fuel injection and spark timing. Engine changes in the Vanquish S include new cylinder head castings with revised inlet ports and combustion chambers with revised profiles to improve airflow. A remapped engine management system, together with new fuel injectors and spark plugs takes advantage of this improved airflow. Finally, new hot forged connecting rods have been designed to handle the increased cylinder pressure.

There is no mechanical link between the Vanquish S throttle pedal and engine. Instead the movement of the throttle is electronically measured to gauge how fast the driver wishes to go. This information is then fed to the engine management system which makes the engine respond accordingly. The PTEC system links constantly to the six-speed manual transmission, which is operated by an electro-hydraulic gearshift. Unlike some systems, the Vanquish S allows the driver to ‘skip’ down changes from say, sixth to fourth or fifth to second with a pull on the paddle for each gear change. A failsafe system ensures the engine will not over-rev and will automatically opt for the next highest ratio.

Intelligent Engineering
The Vanquish S is full of technological innovation, designed to improve strength and safety. The advanced aluminium and carbon fibre body is replete with world firsts. One example is the specially developed braided carbon-fibre used for the ‘A’ posts and the engine bay cross brace. Engineers from Aston Martin invented a novel braiding process that encases a polyurethane foam core with triaxial carbon fibre. The result is an immensely strong yet light structure capable of withstanding the force of a crash or rollover. Passive safety is only part of the equation. Equally vital in any car, and especially one with the performance of this Aston Martin, is dynamic safety. The Vanquish S epitomises this with superbly responsive handling, giving the driver every chance to avoid any dangerous obstacle or situation.

The brakes provide enormous stopping power. The huge 378 mm ventilated front discs are gripped by new six piston calipers. The rear discs are thicker to help heat dissipation and give better fade resistance. Both front and rear discs are mounted on a patented floating mechanism designed to maintain consistent pedal feel under sustained heavy braking. The brake pads use competition friction material tuned to the disc and caliper to provide enhanced performance and stability. The Antilock Brake System (ABS) incorporates Electronic Brakeforce Distribution (EBD) which re-balances front and rear braking forces under different loads. This helps optimise the braking performance of the car, cutting stopping distances in an emergency.

Traction control monitors wheel spin and adjusts engine power accordingly. When engaged, the Wheel Slip Protection (WSP) mode operates the clutch and gearbox, auto-shifting at 3200 rpm in low-grip conditions to prevent sliding. But it is not just the mechanicals that make a car safer. The design team spent many hours in the wind tunnel honing the car’s profile to ensure stability throughout its speed range and adequate airflow for power and cooling. A Formula One-style venturi and flat underbody increase aerodynamic efficiency while also increasing the car’s balance and stability at high speed, essential in a 200 mph supercar. At the rear, an aerodynamically profiled boot lid reduces lift. Even the classic grille plays its part – on the Vanquish S, its rounder, more open appearance does more than enhance cooling. It is complemented by an aerodynamic ‘splitter’ at the front, which improves high-speed stability.