The Best of the Best
The world’s most expensive, most prestigious new cars descended on Geneva this week in a swirl of carbon fiber rims, cashmere carpeting, and electrified powertrains.
The Geneva Motor Show, is also the biggest tease: Many of the concepts and automated drivers on show here are not available—whether through wait-list times or limited production runs—if they hit production at all.
Let’s take a look at our top 10 favorites.
The Lightweight
Ferrari’s new 488 Pista is the lightened and tightened version of its excellent 488 Coupe. It has 710 horsepower on a twin-turbo V8 engine and weighs just around 3,000 pounds, which means it’s exceptionally fast, on par with the Ferrari 812 Superfast and a full 1.5 seconds faster than the regular 488. Much of the weight savings comes from—you guessed it—carbon fiber components.
The Track Icon
Along with a carbon-fiber Senna, McLaren showed the limited edition Senna GTR at the Geneva Motor Show. The 814-horsepower GTR comes with increased downforce and additional spoilers, front splitters, and wings, all to increase airflow and speed—it is the fastest McLaren outside Formula 1. The Senna (named after the famous Brazilian racer Ayrton Senna) has already sold out of all of its 500 units; only 75 of the track-only GTR version will be made. Both will start production later this year. Pricing on the GTR (shown) starts around $1.3 million.
The Spyder
Automobili Lamborghini SpA showed its new Huracan Performante Spyder, the open-top version of its super-fast Huracan Performante line. The 640hp convertible is 35 kilograms (75 pounds) lighter than its predecessor, thanks to the addition of carbon fiber components throughout its body. It will compete against such stars as the Ferrari NV's 488 Pista and the McLaren 675 LT.
The Track Star
Porsche AG showed its new 991 GT3 RS, one of the fastest Porsches ever built. It has 520 horsepower and can get to 60mph in just 3.2 seconds. Top speed is 194mph. The seven-speed PDK paddle-shifting gearbox and lightweight 21-inch wheels promise to make it as thrilling to drive on the track as on the road. Pricing starts around $190,000.
The Hybrid
Aston Marin debuted the 1,100-horsepower Valkyrie AMR this week at the Geneva Motor Show. The million-dollar track car has a hybrid V12 engine and can compete against the likes of the Ferrari FXX K. Top speed is more than 220mph. Aston Martin unveiled it along with the Lagonda Vision Concept sedan, which is all-electric and heralds the relaunch of Aston’s luxury brand.
The Big Hybrid
This year, Bentley Motors Ltd. announced it will produce a hybrid version of its Bentayga SUV, with a power dock by French designer Philippe Starck. It uses two power sources, a 3.0-liter V6 combustion engine and an electric motor, and was introduced alongside Bentley’s new V8 Bentayga variant.
Luxury Wagon
Dieter Zetsche, chief executive officer of Daimler AG, stands in front of the Mercedes-AMG GT 4-Door Coupe after its unveiling on Tuesday. The four-seat, four-door coupe is the latest in the brand’s high-performance AMG line. This is the first four-door coupe made by AMG.
The Grand Vision
BMW's M8 Gran Coupe is a concept automobile the brand launched to display its vision for the forthcoming 8-Series lineup. The four-seat, four-door car with golden headlights will be at dealerships by 2020. Its price will probably surpass $100,000.
The Foreigner
We definitely didn't get the almost-ready-for-production Supra of our dreams, but a racing prototype version called the GR Racing Concept is a decent consolation prize. This beauty is pretty close aesthetically to the FT-1 concept we saw awhile ago, which is a good thing. Being a racing concept, it's got all kinds of aero trickery and lightweight materials inside and out.
The Icon
One month after showing the next-generation G-Class in Detroit, Mercedes-Benz unveiled the AMG G 63 version in Geneva. The AMG version uses the same 4.0-liter biturbo-charged V8 engine as the standard G550 but has more power, at 577 horsepower and 627 pound-feet of torque.
