The Goodwood Festival of Speed takes place from 26 to 29 June. BTCC legend Tim Harvey chooses his top ten super cars that will be running up the Goodwood Hill.
It's not often (ever) I copy/paste a press release but this one is worth reproducing as it's not just a load of old marketing codswallop. Tim Harvey, BTCC driver extraordinaire (you can see him in action in this brilliant video from the Silverstone, 1992 ) chooses his top ten super cars to see at Goodwood.
I'll be at Goodwood and will take plenty of photos and notes of all the action.
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"1 - Koenigsegg Agera One:1 - the world’s first Mega-car, One:1 has 1345bhp, and weighs 1345kg – the ‘dream’ power to weight ratio! 0-248mph takes just 20 seconds thanks to the aluminium 5.0litre V8 and new Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres. The car has already been fully pre-sold, so take a look while you still can!
2 - Porsche 918 Spyder - Porsche’s Hybrid Supercar - the 918 Spyder is the German firm’s mid-engined plug-in hybrid-and Nurburgring record lap holder. A 4.6litre V8 producing 608 horsepower is coupled with two electric motors delivering 279 horsepower - totalling a staggering 887bhp! The Porsche 918 also runs on new Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres. See the breath-taking Nurburgring film here.
3 - McLaren P1 - McLaren's 3.8-litre twin-turbo V8 produces 727bhp and 531lb ft in the P1 – combined with an in-house developed electric motor producing 176 bhp and 192 lb ft, the total power output for this plug-in hybrid supercar is a remarkable 890bhp. 0-62mph takes 2.8sec, 0-124mph 6.8sec and 0-186mph 16.5sec, making it a full 5.5sec faster than the legendary McLaren F1 and serious independent UK challenger to the European powerhouses.
4 - Ferrari 458 Speciale – Powered by a 597bhp 4.5-litre V8, the £208,000 Speciale is capable of 208mph and sprints from 0-62mph in just 3.0sec. Everything from the racing bucket seats to the rear screen glass has been preened to shave kilograms with 90kg taken off the standard 458's overall weight, bringing the Speciale down to 1395kg. There have been several other upgrades, including the braking system (lifted almost unchanged from the LaFerrari), the gearbox (20 percent quicker upshifts and an incredible 44 per cent quicker downshifts), the tyres (Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2s) and suspension.
5 - Mercedes Benz SLS AMG Black Series – The latest Mercedes to wear the Black Series badge, SLS AMG Coupé Black Series accelerates to 62mph in 3.6 seconds. The top speed stands at 196mph thanks to the AMG 6.3-liter V8 engine generating a power output of 622bhp. Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres help put down the power to the rear wheels made possible by Michelin’s bi-compound technology.
6 - Nissan GT-R Nismo – Originally making its debut in March 2009 in the UK, the Nissan GT-R has always been on the supercar radar. Now, under the hood, the 3.8-litre V6 engine benefits from the know-how that Nismo has gained from participating in such events as the world-renowned Nürburgring 24 hour race. Engine power is increased and is now rated at 600PS and 481 lb ft of torque making it the most powerful GT-R yet. 100kg lighter than the standard GT-R means it’ll sprint from 0-62 in an estimated 2.0sec and carry on going to 195mph.
7 - Noble M600 – 8.9sec is all it takes for this 650bhp 4.4litre V8 to get to 120mph. The Noble M600 is hand-built in Leicestershire and costs £300,000. The M600 has twin Garrett turbochargers with variable boost, allowing you to choose between 450bhp for the road, 550bhp for the track and the full 600bhp for race mode, all by the flick of a switch.
8 - Pagani Huayra – Succeeding the Zonda, this Italian mid-engined super car is a snip at £849,000! With its twin-turbo AMG Mercedes V12 engine, the Huayra uses all its 720bhp to get to 231mph covering 0-62mph in just 3.2sec. Using Active Aeodynamics, the Huayra is capable of changing the front ground clearance and independently operating four flaps placed at the rear and front to maximise aerodynamic performance at speed.
9 - Bentley Continental GT V8S – Priced at £139,000, some £16,000 more than the regular V8, which places it above the regular 567bhp W12 but below the range-topping, 616bhp W12 Speed on the price scale. 21 more bhp take the twin-turbo V8's output to 521bhp and cut the 0-60 time to 4.3 seconds, the same as the regular W12 – a bargain first-class rocket from Crewe!
10 - Honda NSX – it’s back, and better than ever. The ground-breaking new NSX supercar, with its innovative three-motor Sport Hybrid Super Handling All-Wheel Drive system, makes its world debut at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. The NSX combines torque vectoring all-wheel drive with advanced hybrid efficiency through the use of three electric motors – one motor integrated with the V6 driving the rear wheels, and two motors driving the front wheels, which make for a remarkable package – see it for the first time, and only at the Michelin Supercar Paddock at FoS."