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| Ferrari 458 2011 |
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| Ferrari 458 2011 |
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| Ferrari 458 2011 |
In this class, raw performance hangs just one rung below the mighty Bugatti Veyron. But mere speed is not enough to reach the Promised Land, nor is prodigious grip; high horsepower and sticky tires can be found in the lower realms. The perfect car will offer a combination of ?highly evolved engineering solutions, rare and fine materials, and the most critical element of all: bandwidth. The perfect car will force lesser machines to the side of the road, both through sheer presence and force of will, and also handle the everyday commute and the long-distance haul. After all, what good is the ultimate car if you can’t drive it anywhere, at any time?
Nothing less than the arrival of the McLaren MP4-12C led us to this question and, consequently, this three-supercar comparison test. The 12C is built around a central carbon-fiber tub, heretofore unheard of at this price and production volume. It also comes with a 593-hp, twin-turbo V-8; a trick adaptive suspension that routes damping fluid to all four corners; and a rear wing that pops up to help high-speed braking. Performance options above the $233,500 base price are limited to a sport exhaust ($5430), lightweight or super-lightweight forged wheels ($5140 for the latter, plus $1430 for the “stealth” finish), and $13,130 carbon-ceramic brakes. Throw in extra-cost paint and some optional trim items, and you get to our $303,690 as-tested figure.
The McLaren’s natural enemy, thanks to a 45-year history of ?Formula 1 battles, is Ferrari’s 458 Italia. With sensuous curves and 562 horsepower screaming from its 9000-rpm V-8, the 458 is four-wheeled amphetamine. The only thing that kept the 458 from winning our November 2010 comparison test was a $270,790 as-tested price, high enough to lose major points in our results calculation. This time, the Ferrari is an eye-popping $332,032, which includes $28,000 of paint and $52,683 in carbon-fiber trim alone. (And dare we say that the paint is worth it?) Higher-priced competition this time around makes cost less of a factor. Judging by the long waiting list for a 458 (the full production run is essentially sold out), potential owners don’t seem to mind Ferrari’s pricing.
Porsche, whose 911 Turbo S took top honors in our last supercar comparison test, is represented here by the GT2 RS. In reductive terms, the GT2 equals a Turbo engine plus a GT3 chassis. RS trim brings 90 extra horsepower and an aggressive weight-saving program that includes a carbon-fiber hood and numerous aluminum suspension pieces. It is a 620-hp, rear-engine, rear-wheel-drive terror. A back wing resembling a pair of horns and a soul full of menace earned the GT2 the affectionate nickname “Beast.” Production is limited to 500, and the price tag is $245,950. Add in black paint for $3140 and delete the radio and air conditioning (both at no charge), and the total comes to $249,090. Our quest for perfection took us to Northern Wales, itself a sort of driving utopia with plenty of desolate winding roads. There we discovered which supercar represents the current state of the art.
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