Incredible day for cars

Technically, I didn't see these first three cars in Palo Alto, but they were heading south with me on my way to work from San Francisco yesterday, so I thought I throw them in.

Ferrari 550 Maranello

It looked just like the one in the picture above, wheels and all. I could hear its growl 20 car lengths a head of me. Awesome.


Porsche 930 Turbo

Probably my all-time favorite Porsche. The one I saw was a black Targa top.


Porsche 911 Targa 4S

The first 997 Targa 4S I've seen to date. It's at the top of my non-exotic Want List (i.e. < $100K).

Vitals:
Retractable glass roof
All wheel drive
355 hp
179 MPH
MSRP $97,300
Go here and play the toggle switch on the bottom left. http://www.porsche.com/usa/models/911/911-targa-4s/indetail/roofconcept/

Back in Palo Alto proper, These two Maseratis were parked nose to nose. One new, one old.

Maserati Gransport Spyder

I see it just about every day. Black over dark tan leather, clean and shiny. Class act roadster.

Maserati Gran Turismo

I don't know if I'll ever call a car 'sexy', but this one's pretty hot. It's body is sculpted by Pininfarina, the same design house that creates Ferrari's sleek and swoopy lines and if you ask me, it's the best looking car out there right now.

Audi R8

Absolutely stunning in person. Low profile, state-of-the-art design, two tone paint, plexiglass engine cover. I've seen quite a few around town and it's always a head turner. Very well done. Very well done indeed.

Vitals:
420 hp V8
187 mph
Street Price $140,000 - $160,000

Honorable Mentions
Black Porsche 996 Turbo
Red 8 cylinder Ferrari (corner of my eye glimpse. couldn't tell if it was an F430 or 360 Modena.)
Grey Lotus Exige S
(more on these later)

Notable cars of the day

I actually saw these two last Friday. It was a beautiful sunny day and the start of the weekend. If had the dough and the car, I would probably be out there too.

Ferrari 550 Barchetta

Rounding the turn from University to Cowper was a red 550 Barchetta. A total of only 448 Barchettas were build. It was so true to its roadster roots that it didn't even come with a convertible top.

I don't know how much they cost during their production run, but right now, there's (only) one listed for sale on ebaymotors. The "By It Now" price is $215,000. A 485 hp V12 pushes this car to a top speed of 199 mph.


Lamborghini Gallardo

The Spyder I saw was black like the one in the picture. Current prices range from price is $201,595 - $263,595. Interesting to note that the Spyder costs a good 20-25k more than the hard top. Its 520 hp V10 puts power to all four wheels to achieve a presumably stable top speed of 196 mph.

Knowing me, I'd probably take the orange one....

Notable car of the day

Bentley Continental GT Speed

So, I've gotten to the point where a standard issue Continental GT is nothing to write home about. I've seen light blue ones, dark blue ones, convertables, and even a rub-it-in-you-face metallic gold one. But this one takes the cake! It's massively powerful, insanely fast, and extremely expensive. And looking at it, you'd never know it's only 1 mph slower than the GT2. I'm so extremely impressed by this car right now. Unlike the pictures though, the one I saw this morning on the way to work was black over tan and cool as hell. Anyway, here are the vitals:

602-horsepower twin-turbo W12
202-mph top speed
$206,285

0-60 mph in 4.3 seconds. Did I mention it weighs over 5,000 lbs?

Mercedes-Benz SL63 AMG

Not to be left out of the bad-ass Benz crowd, a black SL63, exactly like the one above, often sits in front of old an building that's undergoing renovation. With no disrespect intended, the 63 is the entry level AMG SL. Even still, its massive V8 engine cranks out 518 hp and has an MSRP price tag from $132,000. The thing is, nobody ever pays sticker on a car like this.


BMW ALPINA Z8

And not to be left out of the bad-ass roaster crowd, is the ALPINA Z8. I used to see one parked at Stanford every Monday night when I took classes there last winter. And I've seen a handful of other Z8's cruising around town, but the ALPINA is special because there were only 555 built and they were made only in 2003. It wasn't particularly fast or powerful (comparatively at 161 mph and 375 hp), but it was a smooth and supple touring car with special leather, suspension, enigine, wheels, and other high-end appointments. Furthermore, if you can find one, they're still selling at or above their original sticker price. In fact, there's one on ebaymotors right now at $136,100 and there's still 12 hours left to go!

Notable car of the day

Lamborghini Diablo

Just when I thought I'd leave work with nothing to write home about, down rolls a stark-raving yellow Lamboghini, just outside my window on Hamilton Ave. It looked just like the one above except it had black wheels with yellow accents. It sounded thunderous.

Notable cars of the day

Mercedes-Benz S65 AMG

Great day for cars, though I never thought a Mercedes anything short of an SLR would top the day's list. But, after doing a little homework upon returning from Whole Foods, this 4-door Benz turned out to be the most powerful and most expensive car I'd see all day. It other words (and numbers), $180,420 to $194,000 and a 604 hp bi-turbo V12. Really?

Aston Martin DB9

Throw in a few options and I suppose the DB9 could ring up somewhere between $192,475 and $213,875. Or at least that I what I was able to dig up. Powerplant = 470 hp V12

Mercedes-Benz CL63 AMG

If you don't have an extra fifty grand lying around to pony up for the 65 series AMG, the 63's will comfort you with a $139,700 bill. Still no slouch, its 6.3L V8 puts out a more-than-you-need 514 hp.


Lotus Esprit V8

The numbers here aren't nearly as impressive comparatively, but still, it's a pretty notewothy car. The one I saw today was blue.

Extreme 911's
The pictures can do all the talking, but I've seen at least one of each below, most notably, the GT2 - the insanely fast $194,000 530 hp GT2.
Also extremely noteworthy is that I've seen 3 of the four RS special editions. The Acrtic Silver has to be around here somewhere...

Porsche 911 Slant Nose

I've seen two of these around town. One is red and the other is black. I saw the black one on the way to work this morning, a 930 Turbo Cabriolet, and this one below (which I took with my camera phone) a few weeks back, a 911 Carrera Targa Top.

Speaking of BMWs and the horsepower race, the current M series has taken the luxury coupe/sedan to a whole new level. I've seen a handful of each around town, but I've seen a lot more M5s than the others.

M3414 hp V8
$56,500 (though I saw one in the dealership was just over $69,000)


M5500 hp V10
$83,900 (just under $98,000 at the dealership)


M6 500 hp V10
$100,300 (didn't bother looking)

Notable cars of the day

BMW ALPINA B7

I was just thinking earlier today about how surprised I was that I hadn't seen a B7 rollin' around town, and yet, much to my surprise, there it was, a B7 chillin' out at the curb of Waverley Street. For the record, it stickers at $115,000 and is powered by a 500 hp V8 on top of massive 21" wheels.

Ferrari 348 Challenge

Just after seeing the B7, a yellow 348 caught my eye down the street. Probably from 1994, the Challenge series cars "included carpet cutouts for the roll cage (with mounting points already welded in and covered with leather-wrapped caps), mounting points for the five-point harnesses, aluminum pedals, and a larger heat shield." [1] Surprisingly, it was powered by a mere 300 horses. But then again, it was 1994 and the horsepower race had not yet begun.

Ferrari 575 Maranello


Unlike the one to the above, the 575 I saw was black over beige. Made from 2002 - 2006, a 2004 model would've stickered at around $246,000. That presumable excludes a massive and gratuitouss dealer mark-up. Today, an '04 model can be had for around $150,000 to $160,000.

As for performance, a 515 hp V12 pushes this GT from point A to 60 mph in just over 4 seconds. Keep the pedal firmly planted in place and you'll soon reach its terminal velocity of 203 mph.