08:04PM - 07.02.'15
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News Source: autoblog.com
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Monday was Groundhog Day. Tuesday, apparently, was Sports Car Day. The Ferrari 488 GTB, the Ford Focus RS and the Porsche Cayman GT4 all debuted within hours of each other ahead of their rollouts at the Geneva Motor Show. Three sporty machines, three vastly different approaches – and a lot of implications for enthusiasts. That's a day worth repeating. It also illustrates the opportunities automakers see in the performance market, which is expected to grow in the coming years. Ford estimates the segment has expanded 14 percent in Europe and surged 70 percent in North America since 2009. The Detroit Auto Show was evidence of this, and performance cars of every stripe debuted, including the Acura NSX, Ford GT, Alfa Romeo 4C Spider and several others. This isn't a fad. Performance cars aren't going away. The question is why? Stricter CAFE standards are looming in the United States, as are tighter emissions regulations in Europe. And no one expects gas prices to remain low in America. None of this matters for sports cars, and automakers are increasingly using them to elevate their images. That's why Dodge rolled out two 707-horsepower Hellcats last year. It's why Ford has decided to resurrect the GT for road and track. It's why in the depths of bankruptcy, General Motors continued work on the Chevrolet Corvette Stingray, not to mention the Z06. "Great brands are made one car at a time," Ford of Europe president Jim Farley said at the reveal of the Focus RS. Still, companies make those cars for different reasons. Mainstream brands like Ford and Dodge want to build cars that get people talking, excite their bases and drive more potential customers into the showroom. They probably don't buy a Focus RS or a Hellcat, but suddenly the regular Focus hatch looks a bit hotter, and that V6 Charger seems to be just a touch more muscular. The halo of performance is alive and well in the eyes of automakers and their customers. "It's one of the most effective catalysts for ingenuity and innovation," said Joe Bakaj, vice president of product development for Ford of Europe. That also leads to a trickle-down effect. Some of the technologies inevitably make their way to other products. It's hard to think the new all-wheel-drive system in the Focus RS that distributes torque front to rear and side to side won't be used in other vehicles. It's different for Ferrari and Porsche. They don't need to be elevated, but they do have passionate fan bases that demand more and better products. There's also a financial reality: When all you make are performance cars, you better make money off it. Enter the Porsche Cayman GT4, which is more powerful and expensive than the GTS, the previous top-of-the-line Cayman. The GT4 uses the 3.8-liter six-cylinder from the 911 Carrera S and other enhancements from Porsche's bin of go-fast parts. It also costs $84,600, which is $9,400 more than the GTS. But Porsche is quick to point out this isn't a trim level. It is a serious driver's car, and that notion is fortified by extensive testing on the Nürburgring, where the GT4 can clock a time of 7 minutes, 40 seconds. Then there's Ferrari, a company that seemingly prints money. Anytime a new Ferrari is revealed it's big news in the car world, but the 488 GTB is also significant for its use of a turbocharged engine. Put simply: Ferrari doesn't do that often with its road cars. Hardly ever, in fact. But Ferrari is changing with the times, and that means more of its cars are getting turbo powerplants, something that kicked-off last year with the redesigned California T. The 488 replaces the 458 Italia and is one of Ferrari's signature models. Its use of a turbo V8 underscores this evolution. With all of this hot new metal, it's an understatement to say that Tuesday was eventful. It was definitely better than Monday. The Groundhog saw his shadow, so we're in for six more weeks of winter. At least we have thoughts of three more performance cars to keep us warm. |
