Proving once again that with enough determination, you can build just about anything is this twin-VR6 powered, pseudo-W12’ed, AWD VW Lupo. (It’s basically the poor man’s version of This VW Show Car, and after the LS7 Powered Matiz, I’m staring to wonder if this insane engine in a tiny car thing is going to be a trend!)
The body itself is surprisingly stock, providing few clues to what lurks within, though the GIANT brakes give you a hint, and the fact that there’s no interior and the whole thing is made up of a jungle gym of safety cage should be enough to tell you that this isn’t your everyday econo-box.
Unfortunately, it looks like this creation hails form Croatia, so there aren’t many pictures to check out, though the video alone should be enough to tell you that this thing is one bad beast:
With enough motivation (and time, money and beer), you can turn just about any car into the car of your dreams.
For Fourdin Auto Sport out of Belgium, that meant taking the 550hp, 7.0L LS7 V8 out of a Corvette Z06 and shoving it between the frame rails of a Chevy Matiz.
13 months and 1,500 man hours later, they ended up with the car you see before you, a pure-bred race car that will reach 60 mph in just 3.7 seconds on its way to a top speed of 162 mph. (For comparison, the stock Matiz takes 22 seconds to get to 60, and triple digit top speeds are out of the question without a long downhill road and a bit of a tail wind.)
Besides the engine, obvious modifications include a full roll cage, a SUPER wide-body kit, new suspension, wheels and tires, and a wing out back to keep the tail end planted on the track.
It might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but when you dare to dream, the results of that dream can often come in the strangest of packages.
Sure, it looks like KITT, and is probably shorter in person, but this 1987 Pontiac Trans Am is no movie star.
No, it’s more akin to the stuntman that shows up, gets the job done, and then goes home to the family without expecting any kind of star treatment.
That’s because this rather stock looking car (when the hood’s down at least) from Polly Motorsports of Norway is officially Europe’s fastest street-legal car, with a verified top speed of 252 mph on the Papenburg test track in Germany. Plus, according to the builders, it was just getting warmed up when they set that record, and they expect to see speeds in excess of 270 mph once they have a chance to stretch its legs back in the US.
Power comes from an 8.9L V8 that has been supercharged to produce 1407 horsepower, and the result (in addition to the top speed) is a 0-62 mph time of just 2.23 seconds.
A custom-made coilover suspension keeps things planted, a 9” Ford axle tries not to explode when the go pedal is pressed, and 14” brakes slow everything down once the fun is over. Other than the hood scoop though, the exterior looks rather civilized, and it’s only when you pop the hood of the best do you realize that it’s no ordinary Trans Am.
No need to worry if you see this car in your rear view mirror though, because it probably won’t be there for long.
