Ron? Is that an official picture? The turn indicators seem to be located in the air intakes (weird)??? Otherwise, looks a mini Murci, not bad, but I prefer the curvy lines of Ferrari to the edgy lines of new Lambos. Thanks for the pic. Fanch.
Well, I still really like it, it's just that I'm not a big fan of edge design (Ford, new BMWs, Lambo) I really prefer clean curvy lines (MB, Porsche, Ferari, etc.) The Murci roadster looks weird :confused To me, the 360 spider is still the most beautiful roadster in the world (modern cars) but wait for the Carrera GT and SLR roadster (if they make it) Fanch. PS: Actually,. forgot the new SL, not sporty, but very beautiful.
On pictures, the Murcielago doesn't look that spectacular anymore. But in reality...
I wonder why people treat the Murcielago like an "outlaw" exotic? It is a very fast car, not only on the street but also on the track (outruns the GT2 in Hockenheim) and it looks like a classic sportscar. The SL and the SLR look more like GTs to me and even the 996 Turbo isn't what I call a "design masterpiece". The Gallardo will harm Murcielago sales, no doubt about it but mostly, it will probably harm Ferrari sales. I bet this is what Audi/Lamborghini had in mind with the Gallardo. People buying a 996 won't opt for a Lamborghini, I don't think that the Gallardo will be much competition to Porsche's model line. Maybe on a long run?!
Acording to another car forum, "Autocar" magazine recently managed to push the Murcielago to an astonishing '7.43.2' time at the Nurburgring. This is incredible if true! I have not been able to verify, but this makes it 2nd place for road cars. I still do not quite believe it.
Can anybody confirm this Ring time? Christian, did you hear about this also?Seems a bit too fast, for a stock Murci. What was the Zonda's time?
The Gallardo will cannibalise some of the Murci sales,although not that many imo. Ferrari will be the most affected, although I think this will only make waiting times on the 360 shorter (I don't see 360 sales getting a bigger hit than that). 996 sales won't be affected, but some of the Turbo potential customers might be tempted... ;)
It could be a very interesting car if the rumored 1400kg weight is achieved, and if they're able to give it good handling dynamics: this is a difficult part where Porsche and Ferrari really distinguish themselves.
I am also a bit spectical about that time. The Zonda would surely beat the Murci, and we have the Top Gear video to prove it. Autocar has published some very strange times in the past. They posted a 4.6 0-60 time and a 13.0 1/4 mile time for my C32. Some of the other numbers they have published have been equally strange.
In my personal opinion, the 3.2 AMG supercharged V6 engines vary in power. I read several SLK 32/ C 32 tests and the differences were substantial. My wife's SLK 32 AMG is almost "spectacular": I outran my neighbours 2000 996 C2 with Techart engine kit (25+ HP), a friend's GT3 (stock) can't pass me up to 220 kph and a 996 Turbo with Tiptronic has a completely identical head-to-head acceleration up to around 180-200 kph. Unbelievable. But as far as I heard, there are some SLK 32/C 32 out there (apparently especially early model years) who have huge differences in power output. I'm happy my wife got a "good" one. And for all people out there who are looking for a nice and powerful everyday car: the SLK 32 is great.
Interesting. The thing I find most comical about my situation is that I live in California, probably one of the largest markets for Ferraris and Lamborghinis. However, our government allows only a maximum of 91 octane gas. I wonder how the car would perform if the ECU could be remapped to take 95 octane. The reason I bring this up is that C32 owners seem to be consistantly faster in Europe than they are in California. The same is even true for California vs. other states in America.
No doubt though, the SLK32 is hot stuff. Torquey engine, it simply flies. The C32 is substantially more heavy.
My C32 also surpise many sport car drivers. Especially with the badges removed. I love to see the reaction on their face. The car accelerate so fast that I almost hit a Boxster S from behind, I even have to slam on my brakes and he was driving at around 120mph full throttle.
The strong point of the car is from 140km/h all the way to 250, basically it hit the speedlimiter so fast that you don't even notice it. It is so comfortable and effortless.
I wonder if my car have the more powerful engine? How can I tell RC?
How to tell if you have a more powerful engine? Well, by experience only I guess. From what I heard, the MY 2003 engines are pretty good in shape and the speedshift auto tranny got a new software which allows even better performance. But these are rumors, don't have any confirmation for it.
BTW: I drive 99-100 octane (96-97 US) instead of the 95 (92 US) octane recommended by Mercedes, maybe this has something to do with the excellent performance figures. I don't know how much the engine control software can adapt to the upper level.