There have been a fair number of tuners that have made the trek to the Nardo test track in Italy to see if their modified rides could break an illustrious top speed. The MTM Bimoto TT comes to mind, as does AC Schnitzer's GP3.10 3-series, Edo Competition's Lamborghini LP640 and 9ff's insane GT9. Another contender has been added to the list and it's just as impressive as the rest.
Top Secret has been making the show rounds with its twin-turbo'd V12 Supra for the past year, but it's finally putting its money where its mouth is and going for a top speed of 400 km/h (248 mph) later this year in Italy. Breaching 200 km/h hasn't been an issue since the boosted 6.0-liter V12 is supposedly pushing out over 1,000 hp.
You can read up on Kazuhiko "Smoky" Nagata's golden boy here and check a Japanese-language video of the Supra after the jump.
[Source: Kulitivate, Photo by Bulletproof Automotive]
Toyota did so well for so long with its sports cars and sporty cars that it's a wonder they gave up the market. Now it seems they're asking themselves the same question. Kazuo Okamoto, executive VP of R&D, said the company wants to try sports cars again, citing the need to build "more appealing products" with a dash more "fun to drive" factored in.
Now that the MR2 is officially retired, it is difficult to believe that Toyota will leave its sports car cred (and cash) on the table for Lexus to mop up. While not admitting any concrete plans to build such a car, Toyota's been teasing folks with the FT-HS since it was revealed at Detroit earlier this year. If they actually do turn it into a Supra -- and a hybrid one at that -- we, for one, would be delighted to see something slow down the Camry-ization of Toyota's lineup.
TMZ, and every other celeb-obsessive site on the web, is reporting that Nick Hogan, son of former WWE superstar Hulk Hogan, is in serious condition after crashing his yellow Toyota Supra in Clearwater, Florida.
The crash occurred a little after 7:30 PM tonight, local time, where witnesses say that Nick and his friend were bombing down Court Street when he lost control and slammed into a Jersey barrier. The car spun around, hit a palm tree and was summarily ripped apart.
Both of the occupants were flown in a helicopter to a hospital in St. Petersburg where Nick and his friend are listed in serious and critical condition, respectively.
UPDATE: New high-res shots of race action added to gallery below click above image to view high-res pics of the hybrid on race day
Toyota Team SARD's specially-prepared Supra HV-R hybrid GT racer has won the Tokachi 24-hour endurance race in Japan. The converted Super GT-spec racing car did so convincingly, too. As the only GT-class car in the field, the Denso SARD Supra HV-R maintained a steady lead of several laps throughout the course of the race, and in the later hours, it essentially dialed things up a notch and ran away from the rest of the field. After starting from the pole position, the Supra completed 616 laps in the ensuing 24 hours -- 19 more than the second-place finisher. The victory marks the first of its type for a hybrid-powered vehicle. The Supra HV-R began life as a retired 480-horsepower Super GT racing car, which then had regenerative braking technology and a trio of hybrid motors added to it for this event. What bearing, if any, the success of the Supra HV-R has on Toyota's plans for production sports hybrid vehicles is unknown. With reports that the FT-HS concept is on its way to production, however, we'll likely be seeing how well a production-spec hybrid sports car fares soon enough.
Click the photo for the NAIAS gallery of the Toyota FT-HS
There have now been two sets of spy photos that have turned up showing a development mule wearing a hacked up Nissan 350Z body. At first everyone assumed it was a Nissan vehicle. However, in the background of the most recent batch of spy photos, a mystery car has been identified by our readers as one of the Lexus LF-A prototypes.
Since the photos were taken on public roads, it seems highly improbable that the LF-A would just happen to be in the same location as Nissan's latest mule. Taking a look at the Z mule in profile shows proportions pretty close to the FT-HS concept that turned up at the Detroit Auto Show. So this truncated Z is more likely a test platform for a production version of the FT-HS/Supra/whatever you want to call it that's been cleverly disguised in the clothes of another brand.
Last year, Toyota Team SARD fielded a race-prepped Lexus GS450h in the Tokachi 24-hour enduro. The Lexus went the distance, finishing 4th in its class and 17th overall. The 2007 edition of the contest is set for July 15th, and SARD will be back with another hybrid-powered machine. This year, however, it's going to be decidedly racier -- a Supra, to be exact. It would appear that the SARD folks are looking to possibly win it this time around. The newly-announced Denso SARD Supra HV-R began its life as a Supra GT racing car and will be powered by a hybridized Super GT-spec 3UZ-FE V8 displacing 4,480cc that dishes out 480 horsepower and 376 lb-ft of torque.
The hybrid system for the car will incorporate regenerative braking, a pair of 10kW in-wheel motors up front and a 150kW motor at the rear. It'll weigh in at a little over 2300 pounds. The provisional race livery was revealed in the artwork shown above, and we'll have more whenever SARD rolls out the finished car. Not a bad way to make use of a retired racer, eh? SARD currently runs the Denso Lexus SC430 in Japan's Super GT series, too.
If such a thing is possible, Volvo 240s have an even mustier image in Australia than they do in the United States. That's good for those of us who know that they're anvil tough and respond well to modifications. Being front engine, rear wheel drive and European, the ingredients for a stormer are there, if you care to do some work. Additionally, 240s are super easy to work on, and there's a decent enthusiast base, especially now with the interweb tubes in full swing.
Engine swaps into RWD Volvos are nothing new, Converse Engineering and Jags That Run have been selling kits to provide your "Brick" with a small-block heart transplant for years. A particularly determined Aussie has swapped in a twin-turbo Toyota Supra engine good for 284 horsepower. Sure, the V8s will bump out that pony count all day, but they won't have that inline-six wail. Of course, there's something equally alluring about the rhythm of a V8 doing its work, too. Decisions, decisions. Guess we'd just have to get a few and go swap-crazy. Good thing old Volvos are cheap!
UPDATE: Ed Hellwig from the Straighline Blog totally disagrees. click above image for high-res gallery of Toyota's FT-HS Concept
Toyota's next-generation Supra is veiled in mystery, but we tend to take seriously any news coming from Winding Road's Peter Nunn because, well, he actually lives in Japan and hears the hometown gossip. According to Nunn, rumor has it that the next-gen Supra's design will be inspired by the FT-HS Concept, which we kinda sort of already knew, and be powered by either a hybrid drivetrain or an all-gas V6.
The last issue of Automobile Magazineclaimed that the FT-HS Concept would go into production as Toyota's Supra successor, but made no mention of another all-gas version. WR's Nunn, however, speculates that the car will be offered with either an updated version of the 3.5L V6 from the Lexus IS350 producing around 330bhp and a V6 hybrid drivetrain likely scooped from the Lexus GS450h and producing 400bhp.
The all-gas Supra would obviously be less expensive than the hybrid version, and thus would likely be the volume seller of the two. Looks like we're expecting both to arrive sometime in the latter half of 2008, though any details having to do with Toyota's plans for the Supra are obviously about as firm as Jell-o.
Between our periodic bouts of rage and disappointment for not making it to this year's One Lap, we've been able to keep tabs on the event by checking in with our friends at Winding Road and also with the power-obsessed folks at GSC Motorsports. They've been making consistent posts on their blog, while campaigning a 580 WHP Mk. IV Supra in the event.
Most of the posts are your typical sleep-deprived, stream of consciousness blatherings that provide an authentic insight into the stages, the travel, the antics and the competitors that make up this great event. What's even better, their Supra has been consistently running with some of the heavy hitters of past events, including the Davias 996 Turbo, the Hennessy Viper and an assortment of other high-powered, high-maintenance iron.
In addition to their progress, the site also gives readers a glimpse into what technical hurdles await competitors, be it removing the sway bars and softening the shocks to make things stick on the skid pad, or watching a competing team's engine eat itself mid-stage. It's entertaining and educational. Plus, they've got pretty pictures too.
Part of the trick to attending the Tokyo Auto Salon (or SEMA, for that matter) is having the ability to wade through the automotive detritus and find the good stuff. Thankfully, when Car and Driver decided to send someone over the Pacific to cover the show, they employed one Mr. Jared Holstein, whose knowledge of JDM goodness has been tested through and through.
Below, we've assembled links to what we believe are the best cars we've seen come out of this year's TAS, including a twin-turbo V12 Supra, an 871-hp carbon fiber S2000 and a few other vehicles that caught our attention and spurred our imagination. Enjoy!
New KITT Attack Mode revealed at Comic Con
London 2008: Honda OSM concept roadster says, "Cheerio!"
London 2008: Lotus unveils the Evora
2010 Chevy Camaro - Official Details and Images
2010 Chevy Camaro - LIVE from the reveal
In the Autoblog Garage: Aprilia RSV 1000 R
First Drive: Maserati Quattroporte S in Europe
First Drive: 2008 MINI Cooper S JCW
In the Autoblog Garage:2009 Nissan GT-R
North American Exclusive First Drive: Alfa MiTo
