The 2011 Chevrolet Mi-ray Roadster Concept lives up to the definition of its Korean name. The car is undoubtedly ultramodern in terms of design and capabilities.

The car looks like it could be used in futuristic movies. With this car it’s all about the exterior qualities. The body is made of carbon fiber-reinforced plastic, and the side has an angled character line with lighting underneath. This feature creates a streak of light when the car is moving.

To keep up with this Chevrolet’s inclination to modernism, Le Mans racer-style scissor doors have been installed. The 20-inch front and 21-inch rear wheels are made of aluminum-carbon fiber.

The Chevrolet Mi-Ray takes inspiration from fighter jets and it sticks with this theme from the exterior to interior design. It is dressed in natural leather, liquid metal surfaces and brushed aluminum. The center touch screen controls other features such as GPS and retractable cameras.

The car is a hybrid. It was exactly meant for speed, but for fuel-efficiency. The Roadster comes with the innovative mid-electric propulsion system. The car itself is powered by two 15-kW electric motors that reduce emissions in urban settings. The engines absorb energy from 1.6-kWh lithium-ion battery that makes use of regenerative breaking energy to recharge.

Word about the 2011 Chevrolet Mi-ray Roadster Concept’s price and date of release has not been announced. The Roadster was created in commemoration of Chevrolet’s 100 years of exquisite design and beyond par performance in automobiles.

There is nothing compared to hearing the roar of a Muscle Car zooming down a straightaway. These American made cars are high performance vehicles that were introduced as mid-sized two door coupes with engines having a lot of horsepower during the 1960s. They had been designed for “straight-line” speed.

Classic American muscle cars listed here were available from the 1960s through the 1970s, these were some of the fastest during their time.

1. 1966 Shelby 427 Cobra – 12.2 seconds on a quarter mile at 118 mph. 427 V8 engine with 425 horsepower. In 2007, a 1966 Shelby Cobra was sold in auction for a whopping $5.5 million dollars, of course it had an eight hundred horsepower engine.

1966 Shelby 427 Cobra Convertible
Photo by: ffg, Creative Commons

2. 1966 Corvette 427 – 12.8 seconds over a ¼ mile at 112 mph. L72 V8 engine with 425 horsepower. Corvettes have been driven by men who are well known in the racing circuit. Recognizable names such as A.J.Foyt, Roger Penske, Dick Guldstrand, and Jim Hall just to name a few.

3. 1969 Plymouth Road Runner – 12.9 seconds on a quarter mile at 12.9 seconds. 440-6 engine with 390 horsepower. Plymouth negotiated with Warner Brothers the right to use the Road Runner character in naming this muscle car. The negotiation included the use of the “beep, beep” horn.

4. 1970 Plymouth Hemi Barracuda – 13.1 seconds on a ¼ mile track at 107 miles per hour. 426 Hemi engine powered with 425hp using a 4 speed transmission. The Barracuda participated in factory sponsored races, one of which was the 1970 Trans-Am Series. The ‘Cuda was not successful; however, they garnered several pole positions during qualifying.

1970 Hemi Cuda
Photo by: Dominic’s pics, Creative Commons

5. 1970 Chevelle SS454 – 13.12 seconds running on a quarter mile at 107 mph. 454 V8 big block engine with 450hp. Chevrolet came up with the Chevelle in order to compete with the Ford Fairlane.

1970 Chevy Chevelle
Photo by: Rex Gray, Creative Commons

6. 1969 Camaro – 13.16 seconds in ¼ mile stretch at 110 miles per hour. The 427 ZL1 with 430hp engine was initially intended for drag racing purposes. Each ZL1 engine took sixteen hours to build in a sanitized environment. These engines were used for both the Camaro and the Corvette.

1969 Camaro
Photo by: RussBowling, Creative Commons

7. 1968 Chevrolet Corvette. 13.3 seconds on ¼ mile straightaway at 108 miles per hour. Engine was a 427 V6 engine with 435 horsepower using a four speed transmission. Corvettes are given, or shall we say branded, with many names like LT-1, ZR-1, Stingray, ZL-1, and even the Collector Edition moniker.

1968 Corvette Stingray
Photo by: Phillip Pessar, Creative Commons

8. 1970 Plymouth Road Runner. 13.34 seconds on a quarter mile run at 107.5 mph. Engine was a Chrysler 426 Hemi, 425 horsepower. Plymouth had also offered options for the color of the Roadrunner a customer might want. They were designated as “high impact” colors with such names as Vitamin-C (orange), In-Violet (purple), and Moulin Rouge.

9. 1970 Buick Grand Sport Stage 1. 13.38 seconds on a ¼ mile straightaway at 105.5 miles per hour. Buick introduced the 455 cu in V8 engine with 360 horsepower. This vehicle caused an uproar in the 80s when reports said that this GS 455 Stage 1 of 1970 was faster than any Hemi car produced by Chrysler.

Rare 1970 Buick GS Stage 1
Photo by: Rex Gray, Creative Commons

10. 1968 Chevrolet Corvette. 13.41 seconds in a ¼ mile at 109.5 miles per hour. A 427 cu in, 425 horsepower engine used, less horsepower than previous model mentioned above. Body color of Corvettes varied, ten different colors if you wanted to get a Corvette, the least produced color was black with 708 produced and British green with 4,779 produced.

Ferdinand Porsche has established for himself an indomitable name in the arena where speed, luxury, style and efficiency are given high regard. His company, the Austrian automobile giant, Porsche SE has presented the world with the most sought-after cars that exude everything a driver would want in a motored best friend.

Porsche 911 Turbo’s stellar speed and petite frame has served New Moon vampires well. With the introduction of the 2011 Porsche 911 Turbo S Edition 918 Spyder, the vampires might have something new to sink their teeth in. The Edition 918 Spyder is still geared to deliver fast and furious at its finest. The 3.8 liter flat-6 provides the vehicle an impressive 530 horsepower a maximum torque of 516 lb.-ft. In a short span of 3.1 seconds the car can accelerate to 195mph.

The Edition 918 Spyder’s body will reflect that of Porsche Turbo S. It will exhibit the same Dynamic Bending Lights and 19-inch wheels with central locking nut. Other features of the Turbo S model will be retained. The design will feature distinct acid green accents on the car logo, seems, door entry guard and others. The interior is lined with fine leather alongside carbon fiber finishing.

The production of the 2011 Porsche 911 Turbo S Edition 918 Spyder is limited to 918. Coupe and Cabrio models will be released soon.

From the realm of sports cars we turn our eyes to Porsche’s executive class offerings.

The 2011 Porsche Panamera Turbo S the seventh model in the Panamera department. With the upgraded 4.8 liter twin-turbo V8 engine, the 2011 Porsche Panamera Turbo S is the fastest in the entire line-up with a horsepower of 550. The improvement in horsepower is partly due to the use improved turbochargers with titanium-aluminum alloy.

The engine enables the “Sport” and “Sport plus” mode which takes your peak torque to 590 lb-ft. The car doesn’t automatically shift its horsepower and torque to the rear end, but waits for instructions from the driver via these options. The engine is enough to produce great acceleration speed. In 3.6 seconds the car reaches a speed of 60mph. The Panamera’s maximum speed is is 190 mph.

Compared to most sports, the Porsche Panamera has more room than usual. The leather seats are in colors of black and cream. The vehicle will come important features such as Porsche Torque Vectoring Plus, stabilization system, Seryotronic and Porsche Dynamic Chassis Control. With these additions, Porsche shows of its extensive concern for driving dynamics.

The 2011 Porsche Panamera Turbo S will make its grand entrance in the market at the New York Auto Show on April.

Saab Motors recently celebrated their first year as an independent company by launching the 2011 Saab 9-3 Convertible Independence Edition. The latter is among the company’s 366 convertible vehicles available in the market today.

Formally released in the company’s main assembly plant in Trollhattan, The Independence Edition car is inspired by “Griffin Aero”, a specification feature made from Amber orange metallic paint finishes. The Griffin Aero is thoroughly etched in the car’s side window frames. The Independence Edition’s overall design is distinguished by the following:

• Orange-colored steering wheel made from stitched leather finishes.
• An 18-inch, five-spoke alloy wheels covered with black satin chrome.
• A computerized “Welcome” message and unique turbo gauging capabilities.
• Orange-colored glove box and leather seats made from trimmed beiges.
• The door handles, gearshifts, handbrakes and leather finishes made from carbon and fiber components.

The Independence Edition has a “Powertrain” feature which is a combination of 2.0 liters of gasoline, 220 horsepower, 1.9 liters of turbo diesel and additional 180 horsepower. The “Biopower” feature allows valve timing and direct injection using combined E85 engine fuels or gasoline. Aside from the Independence Edition, Biopowers are also found in many manual and six-speed automatic transmission vehicles.