Month: December 2019

Name: Porsche 959
Debut: 1986
Engine: Twin-Turbo 2.8-Liter Inline-6
Specs: 444 Horsepower / 369 Pound-Feet
Price: $800,000+

Despite the misuse and abuse of the term supercar, some vehicles truly deserve the title. One of them is the Porsche 959, built between 1987 and 1993. Conceived and built as a World Rally Championship Group B racer, this masterpiece of 1980s technology was teased by the 1983 Porsche Gruppe B concept car shown that year in the Frankfurt Auto Show. Notwithstanding the use of the existing 911 platform and basic body, the concept was equipped with technologies that, 33 years ago, were regarded as automotive science fiction – things like adjustable height and variable all-wheel drive controlled by computer. 

1983 Porsche Gruppe B Concept

1983 Porsche Gruppe B Concept

Homologation to compete in the Group B, however, required production of 200 street legal units. This gave Porsche the perfect opportunity to create a true technological powerhouse on four wheels. 

The Porsche 959 arrived after a gruesome and long development process, but the result was well worth the wait. The car, considered the most technological advanced automobile of its day, was powered by a 2.8-liter twin-turbo six-cylinder engine that could generate 444 horsepower and 369 pound-feet of torque. Power was delivered to all four wheels through a special manual transmission with five forward speeds plus an extra all-terrain gear and of course, a reverse gear.

With an official top speed of 197 miles per hour (317 Km/h) the Porsche 959 was the fastest street legal car in the world when it arrived, excluding the U.S., where it was never approved for circulation in public roads. Its 0 to 60 mph (97 Km/h) time was 3.6 seconds, and the 959 ran the quarter mile in 11.8 seconds at 126 mph (202 Km/h). 

Porsche offered the 959 in two trim levels Sport and Komfort, being the latter the more road-oriented car while the former was the ultimate track machine of the duo. In 1988 Porsche also built 29 units of the 959 S, a version of the 959 Sport with modified turbo chargers that increased the power to 508 hp and top speed to 211 mph (339 Km/h), according to independent testing.  

Ironically, the 959 was never ready on time for Group B racing, which was cancelled for the 1986 season. But it still managed to have an illustrious motorsport career. During its development the 959 entered the Paris-Dakar Rally obtaining first, second and fifth places. Also, in 1986 the 959 entered in the 24 Hours of Le Mans winning its category and obtaining the 7th place over all. 

The road version of the 959 debuted in the Frankfurt Auto Show in 1985, and even though its production was supposed to begin in 1986, the first units didn’t emerge from the assembly line until the next year at a price of $255,000, which reportedly was about half of what Porsche spend building one of them.  At the end its run in 1988, Porsche built 337 cars, including all test units. But Porsche wasn’t done with the 959 yet, in 1993 the automaker built eight more units made of remaining inventory parts. These last 959s were sold at around $455,000 each.  

Name: New Stratos
Debut: 2010
Engine: Twin-Turbo 4.3-Liter V8
Specs: 540 Horsepower / 383 Pound-Feet
Price: $800,000+

Introduced in 1973, we all know the Lancia Stratos as one of the winningest World Rally Championship cars of all time. By taking home WRC trophies in 1974, 1975, and 1976, the Bertone-designed coupe cemented itself as one of the best cars to ever do it on dirt and an icon among enthusiasts. Production of the road-going Stratos, though, lasted just five years. And the FCA-owned Lancia brand hasn’t looked back on the project since.

But in 2010, rally fan and German billionaire Michael Stoschek helped fund a startup project known as “New Stratos.” An homage to the original, this New Stratos promised a modern, production-ready take on the iconic rally car… but not without a few roadblocks in-between.

From The Beginning

The first prototype of the New Stratos debuted in 2010. But with an F430 Scuderia as its base and a look penned by Pininfarina, Ferrari wasn’t all too keen on the idea. The Italian powerhouse brand shut down production of the New Stratos temporarily, citing intellectual property concerns.

But after nearly eight years of back and forth between the two brands, and not to mention plenty of additional engineering in the meantime, Manifattura Automobili Torino (MAT) and its backers announced a limited run of the New Stratos for production. The car officially went on sale in 2018.

The Nitty Gritty

Still using a heavily modified Ferrari F430 Scuderia as its base, the New Stratos lobs 7.9 inches (200 millimeters) off of the Ferrari’s wheelbase, as well as sheds a few hundred pounds in the process thanks to a lightweight steel frame. Underhood of the New Stratos is a modified version Ferrari’s 4.3-liter V8, here good for 540 horsepower (403 kilowatts) and 383 pound-feet (519 Newton-meters) of torque. Some customers can even get a 600-hp (447 kW) option.

But even with its base powertrain, the New Stratos sprints to 62 miles per hour (100 kilometers per hour) in just 3.3 seconds, and to 124 mph (200 kmh) in 9.7 seconds. The car’s top speed on the street is limited to 170 mph (270 kmh). All that power comes paired to a six-speed dual-clutch transmission.

Pricey Proposition

In 2017, the company New Stratos GbR gave Manifattura Automobili Torino (MAT) of Italy the rights to produce the New Stratos. That same company builds James Glickenhaus’s SCG003C supercar. But customers interested in taking home the New Stratos won’t get it for cheap. The cost of the New Stratos is $618,000… Ferrari 430 Scuderia not included.

Name: Mazda Furai
Debut: 2008 Detroit Auto Show
Engine: Three-Rotor Wankel
Specs: 450 Horsepower / 278 Pound-Feet

In the mid to late 2000s, Mazda proved it wasn’t giving up on the rotary engine yet. The company still found success in the RX-8 sports car, a sort of not-so-direct successor to the beloved RX-7. And in 2008, Mazda debuted a jaw-dropping, Wankel-powered concept at the Detroit Auto Show known as the Furai, meaning “Sound of the Wind.”

Race Ready

Mazda never intended to build a production version of the Furia. The company created it as a race car from the start, destined to compete in the American Le Mans series. The Furia wore outrageous red and silver aero work and the number “55” as a nod to the Le Mans-winning 787B. But a few issues kept the project from ever reaching the track.

The Furia used a complicated tri-rotary Wankel engine. The engine, essentially a modified version of the 20B found on previous road-going Mazdas, ran on E100 ethanol fuel. The Furai was fully functional, sure – the company tested it on various tracks, including Laguna Seca and Buttonwillow. But the car ended up acting as a rolling testbed for things like future design and aerodynamic testing, rather than racing. And then the accident happened…

Death By Furai

In 2008, soon after the debut of the Furai in Detroit, the company handed over the keys of its beloved prototype to test drivers at Top Gear. During a photo session at Bentwaters Park Air Force base in the U.K., driver Mark Ticehurst noticed smoke from the engine bay. Ticehurst escaped unscathed, thankfully, but the entirety of the Furai went up in flames in a matter of minutes before crews could extinguish it.

After learning of the incident, Mazda brought the charred remains of the concept back to its Advanced Design Studio in Irvine, California where the company created it, but never went back to the project again. In a 2013 interview with Road & Track, then senior designer, Carlos Salaff, had this to say about the accident:

“It was sad for me. I poured my heart and soul into that car. When you pour your heart and soul into something, it becomes your baby. And then I saw it destroyed like that and it really hurt. It hurt.”

Name: Kode 0
Debut: 2017
Engine: 6.5-Liter V12
Specs: 690 Horsepower / 507 pound-feet
Price: $1,500,000+

Before we talk about the car, we first have to talk about the man behind the car: Ken Okuyama. If that name sounds familiar, Okuyma is a career automotive design pro who spent much of his career at Pininfarina. He’s credited in helping create vehicles like the original Acura NSX, Ferrari 599 GTB, Ferrari Enzo, Maserati Birdcage 75th Concept, and even the fourth-generation Chevrolet Camaro. Yes, that Camaro. 

But in 2006, Ken Okuyama left Pininfarina. And after a quick stint starting his own eyewear collection (dubbed Ken Okuyama Eyes collection), he created his first self-titled concept car: the K.O 7 Spider. He debuted the slinky, open-top two-seater in Geneva in 2008, kickstarting a lineage of impressive concepts and one-offs, including the one pictured here.

Code To Success

The Kode 0 debuted at Pebble Beach in 2017. The fixed-roof successor to the equally stunning Kode57 Enji uses “dream car proportions” from classics like the the Lancia Stratos Zero in its design. Okuyama implemented a “one motion” technique to create the Kode0’s svelte profile. But aggressive details like the edgy front splitter, sharp LED headlights, triangular-shaped exhaust, and 21-inch wheels embody a stark contrast to the otherwise streamlined silhouette.

Hiding under that sleek contour is a 6.5-liter V12 good for 690 horsepower (515 kilowatts) and 507 pound-feet (690 Newton-meters) of torque. With it, the Kode0 sprints to 62 miles per hour (0-100 kilometers per hour) in just 2.9 seconds. The Kode 0 also weighs in at just 3,417 pounds (1,550 kilograms), making it much lighter than the vehicle on which it’s based (4,085 pounds / 1,852 kilograms).

One And Done

The Kode 0 was a hit at Pebble Beach. And it got even more attention visiting Jay Leno’s Garage just a few months later; the video has garnered nearly 1.2 million views on YouTube. But Okuyama never intended to produce the Kode 0 on a mass scale. The lone Pebble Beach example cost its owner $1.5 million atop the cost of a donor car (about $400,000), and surprisingly, hit the classifieds soon after in 2018 with just 1,368 miles (2,201 kilometers) on the odometer. Though its retailer never revealed the final selling price, our best guess is that it went for more well over one million dollars considering the original allocation cost. It is an Okuyama design, after all.