At xBhp we normally do not have anything to do with cars. Except in the rare instances when the cars are prefixed with the word ‘super’! The Auto Expo 2016 was of course a perfect setting for people to visit and ogle at the gorgeous motorcycles on display, but some cars were sufficiently beautiful to grab our interest. So here are a bunch of ‘superb’cars which we captured through our lenses and we hope you will appreciate these vehicles as much as we did! Hopefully we would get a chance to jump behind the wheel for another iteration of Driver vs. Rider.
Honda Project 2&4
Now most readers of xBhp are not used to the shock of seeing cars on this forum, so we will ease you into this different world by first presenting a motorcycle, er car. Err, the Honda Project 2&4. Where the Japanese company has beautifully amalgamated the adrenalin pumping nature of two-wheelers with that of four. It houses a litre engine derived for MotoGP in it and can easily be switched for the driver to be able to sit either on the left or right. This was the end result of an in-house competition that Honda conducted. Read more about the Honda Project 2&4.
Audi R8 V10 Plus
The Audi R8 V10 Plus was launched during the Auto Expo 2016 for Rs 2.47 crore (Ex-showroom Delhi). The car was first showcased at the 2015 Geneva Motor Show. Under the hood you find a 5.2 litre V10 engine belting out 610bhp. Phew! The century comes up in 3.2 seconds while top whack is claimed to be 330 kmph.The car has permanent Quattro All Wheel Drive (AWD) and weighs in at just 1454kg.
Audi RS7 Performance
Compared to the R8 V10 Plus, this seems a tad bit slow. Relatively of course! A V8 4 litre mill produces 605bhp of power and 750Nm of torque. 100kmph comes up in 3.6 (see we told you it was slower!) while top speed is 305kmph (point proved!). This Audi uses something called the Cylinder on Demand (COD), no you guessed wrong. This is not a new Government of India initiative for your gas cylinder, nor does this Audi run on CNG! This means that if you are not interested in going full retard, the car will just put a tiny grin on your face with just half the cylinders firing. Nice for those interested in extracting maximum ‘Kitna deti hai’!
Audi TT 2.0TFSI
The forever loved Audi TT is still going strong, both in the market and the hearts of fans of this rather iconic car. This is what Audi had to say about the TT – The all new Audi TT Coupé- Redesigned, Re-engineered and Reborn: Audi introduces the latest generation of the Audi TT Coupé. The compact sports car enthralls with dramatic design, pronounced dynamics and groundbreaking technology. Taut and muscular, athletic and poised to pounce. With the all new Audi TT Coupé, the Audi designers have delivered a modern interpretation of the unmistakable lines of the original Audi TT from 1998 enriched with numerous dynamic facets.
BMW i8
We recently drove this futuristic (both in looks and technology) machine in Europe over 1200km. Now whether you like or dislike hybrid technology, you surely can’t ignore it. And with a car as gorgeous as this, you wouldn’t dream of ignoring it in any case! A short excerpt from our drive in Europe –
The i8 is the flagship vehicle of BMW’s hybrid machines. It promises to give you the thrills of the exotic with the fuel efficiency of a commuter hatchback! The i8 features something that is called the LIfeDrive, a drive module which includes the combustion engine, electric motor and the battery pack! This is amazingly engineered module allows the car to have a perfect 50/50 weight distribution.
The ‘conventional’ engine belts out 231 HP from its 1.5 litre three cylinder engine which powers the rear wheel through a six speed transmission. While the 131HP electric motor powers the front wheels through a two-stage automatic gearbox. Working in perfect unity, together the two power the car with 362 HP and 420 lb-ft of torque. This propels the machine to 100 kays in just 4.4 seconds.
The i8 is so designed that even if you operate on electricity alone, it can take me a whopping 40 km, a boon as I realised at one point! Charging this battery can take anywhere between 1.5 to 3.5 hours depending on the charger, whether it is a 110v or a 220v stage 2 charger. This beauty has similar dimensions as the Audi R8, though it is a bit longer.
It is big on the outside and the same continues within as well. The 8.8inch infotainment LED screen allows the driver to control the car’s navigation, entertainment, connectivity and climate control functions. Safety is also what you would expect from a car of this league, it ensures the driver always feels safe!
BMW M4 Coupe
The BMW M4 Coupe is based on the 3-series platform of the German company. It is powered by a 3.0 litre engine with 431 bhp of power and 550Nm of torque. In India this is sold for Rs 1.2 crore.
BMW M6 Gran Coupe
The BMW M6 Gran Coupe gets performance parts to make the standard version even faster and more desirable. This performance Gran Coupe has a 4400cc engine which produces a whopping 560bhp of power and 680Nm of torque. 100kmph comes up in 4.2 seconds while top speed is a claimed 305kmph.
BMW Z4
Oh we have a soft corner for the BMW Z4 after we drove it in a series of Driver vs Rider. You can read about it here. A short excerpt from it –
The driver this once had what is arguably one of the best looking convertible roadsters around. The BMW Z4. Ah! What a machine. More so because we drove the top of the line Z4 sDrive35is with its lusty 306 bhp twin-turbo 3 litre In-line 6, peak torque 400 Nm (flat between 1300-5000 rpm) and the 7- speed dual clutch automatic gearbox. It is a lovely car, no doubt about that. The classic long bonnet with that visually compact two seat cabin and the short boot. Takes you back almost to the 30’s when drivers sat almost on the rear axle of their roadracers! Fit and finish is top notch and the car seems poised for high speed action even when parked by the road. The LED DRL’s make for a distinctive profile in the RVM’s of cars ahead. The Z4’s body is a study in aerodynamics as much as it is about aesthetic beauty. The lip spoiler in the boot lid, a similar looking protrusion up front again adds to downforce and blends perfectly with the design. This is one rare convertible which manages to look equally stunning, with or without the hard top in place.
The inside is spacious, luxurious and functional. The Z4 is probably the roomiest of all two seat roadsters, comparing it to its contemporaries like the Porsche Boxster, the Mercedes SLK and even the Audi TT Coupe. The long bonnet does not obstruct forward vision, allowing even its far side to be seen by the driver. The A-pillar too, the usual suspect in giving nightmarish blind spots to these low-slung sports car drivers is not obstructive and sightlines from the pilot seat are pretty clean. The seats in the version we drove had good side support and was 10-way adjustable to boot. I guess my 5 decade old body has lesser scope for adjustment. Features are a long list with auto stop/ start, adjustable throttle and steering response, adaptive xenon headlamps, cruise control, rain sensors, ABS, front and side airbags for both driver and passenger, Cornering Brake Control, Dynamic Stability Control and Dynamic Traction Control, roll-over protection, run flat tyres etc.
Chevrolet Camaro
The 6th generation Chevrolet Camaro was showcased at the 2016 Auto Expo. The new generation car gets three engine variants. A 2 litre four cylinder 275bhp, 3.6 litre V6 335bhp and a 6.2 litre V8 which produces a massive 455bhp. This new version is also said to be 90kg lighter than the previous iteration.
Chevrolet Corvette
The Chevrolet Corvette uses the same mill as the top of the line Camaro. The 6.2 litre V8 engine propels the car from 0-60mph in 4 seconds. To make this fast car even faster, a healthy dose of carbon bodywork can be found everywhere!
Mercedes G500 4×4
Unfortunately information technology restricts us from writing the full name of the vehicle which is 4×4 squared, which actually tells you what’s so special about the engineering technology used in this machine! This vehicle made even the commercial trucks at the Auto Expo look small and insignificant. If you enjoy seeing just pure size, power and muscle, then this would have had you camp in front of the Mercedes pavilion and ogle at it for the entire day ignoring everything else that was on offer!
The G500 comes with a 4litre twin turbo V8, which makes a pleasant 453bhp of power! Nothing alarming about that now is there? For road use the German manufacturer gives you ‘just’ 450mm of ground clearance. But if you are really feeling adventurous then you can fit on 37inch tyres (I told you trucks are smaller!) and get a ground clearance of 1000mm or using a better scale of measurement a metre. A full metre! Digested that nugget of information, rather unlikely that was a metre high nugget! You have to see it to believe it, these pictures surely don’t do justice!
Mercedes AMG GT S
This coupe employs a 4 litre bi-turbo V8 engine which belts out 510bhp and 650Nm. This is one of the few cars that has been developed by Mercedes’ performance division – AMG. This beauty can be yours in India for a princely sum of Rs 2.4 crores.
Nissan GT-R
The Nissan GT-R was unveiled in India at the Auto Expo 2016 and is expected to be launched sometime around September this year. This poor man’s supercar costs Rs 2 crore only! The 3.8 litre V6 engine produces 554bhp of power and 632Nm of torque. 100kmph comes up in just 2.7 seconds, bringing it at par with the Italian exotics and the precision of German engineering. Top speed for the car is 310kmph. There is an even more mental version of the car the Nissan GT-R NISMO which is retuned to make 591bhp! Unfortunately that wasn’t showcased at the Auto Expo, not that we would have noticed with it stationary!
Renault Sport R.S. 01
This is what Renault had to say about the R.S. 01 Concept which they showcased at the Auto Expo 2016 –
A car to thrill at first glance, Renault Sport R.S. 01 sets out to be one of the world’s most efficient GT racers. With every stroke of the design pen, in the body lines and in the detail, the aim was twofold: to make Renault Sport R.S. 01 an iconic Renault vehicle, and to contribute to track performance through a constant quest for aerodynamic efficiency. Some of the highlights of the Renault Sport R.S. 01 are:
· An emblematic front end, reflecting Renault’s sporting genes
· A low-slung, sculpted profile
· Power and strong identity at the rear
· The aerodynamic performance of a single-seater
· More than 500 horsepower
· Seven-speed sequential gearbox
Jeep Wrangler
If you like Jeeps, then you will like Jeep! Of course the ones launched and that will be sold are different, but well those were, err, nice. This one was fabulous! So we clicked pictures of this and ignored the ones which had unnecessary bits of metal, aka, doors! Who needs a practical four wheeler in any case.
Ford Mustang GT
The Ford Mustang GT was in many ways the biggest attraction in the 4 wheeler segment at the Auto Expo 2016. Wherever you would go, you would over hear people talking about the Ford Mustang GT and how they saw it being unveiled in India. Good marketing by Ford in India or just simply a legendary car. And thus we end this car’logue’ with this iconic machine.
The Ford Mustang GT is supposed to go on sale in India later this year, but the interesting bits about it is that it has an engine. Okay, it has a 5 litre engine. Wait, what! 420 bhp (something fishy about that number eh!) from the V8 makes it truly American muscle. What with the classic styling, you cannot help but talk about it long after you have seen it!
