GOOD CAR CRAVINGS

The technology that allows you to read The Good Car Guy's view on every piece of automobilia that comes through his mind is the same piece of tech that sits at the computer repair shop. Anybody understands the reinstalling of TCP/IP protocols - please email.

For those of you who care not one whit about such things but care very much about the most beautiful, expensive, and powerful cars in the world, GCBC is supplying a taste. The Good Car Mother offered up a spiffy laptop to satisfy the yearnings of The Good Car Nation. Thanks be unto her.

Volkswagen owns the somewhat infamous, always famous Bugatti. Bugatti, after years of showing outrageous supercars with outrageous cylinder counts, actually produced an outrageous automobile. Four turbos aid an already immense 16-cylinder engine (configured in a W formation, if you care), which then feeds the power through a a 7-speed Direct Shift Gearbox and on to all four wheels. A car - if you can call it that - like this Bugatti will forever be considered an immense waste of time and energy, but it will also continue to pose as an engineering feat unlike any other. 1000 horsepower, a hefty $1million+, and as much luxury as performance.



On the other hand, drop horsepower by a few... hundred, and shed a few pounds, and the still amazing driving experience can come to you by way of Porsche, Ferrari, and Pagani.

The Pagani Zonda, in all its permutations, is an ultra-exclusive supercar for the artistically-inclined rich. Horacio Pagani may equip his car with a simple Mercedes-Benz engine (ha!) but creates an interior which warrants as much attention as the wild exterior. A truly feelsome supercar.

Something that perhaps can't be said of Ferrari's Enzo. A paragon of performance; an aerodynamic tour-de-force, but perfect to the extent that the driver isn't as deeply entrenched in the experience as s/he would be with the Porsche or Pagani. The Enzo, named for the founder of the company, can hardly be considered a stylized option. Everything on this car contributes to ultimate lap-times. Strictly speaking, its ugliness has never hindered commercial success. Of the 399 or so Ferrari Enzo's which were sold, many of those which haven't been crashed are trading substantially above list price.

Porsche's entry into this class, the Carrera GT, is such a beauty. Just look at her, especially with the top off. Proportions... perfect. Engine noise... sublime. Interior simplicity and ergonomics... untouched by criticism. Clutch takeup? Horrible. However, once the Carrera GT gets moving, who cares about the clutch? Not I, my friend, not I. Over 600 horsepower out of the Porsche and Ferrari. And Pagani's slightly lower figured matter little, considering its light weight.



Videos via Youtube from evo, the best car magazines you can buy.