Final Gear Top 100 - 3rd place - 12 votes

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A quick jump down to third place to reveal:


Ferrari F40

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The Ferrari F40 is an exotic supercar produced to celebrate the marque's 40th anniversary. Revealed at the 1987 Frankfurt Motor Show, the F40 was developed quickly using elements of its predecessor, the "288" GTO.

The F40 used a 2936 cc version of that car's V8 engine, with bore and stroke changed from 80 x 71 mm to 82 x 69.5 mm. The twin IHI turbochargers were retained, for 478 bhp (356 kW) with 16 lbf/in? (110 kPa) of boost. The car accelerated from 0 to 60 mph in about 3.8 seconds, 0-100km/h in 3.9 seconds, 0-100mph in 7.7 seconds and had a claimed top speed of 201 mph or 324 km/h (Road & Track got it to 196mph), which made it the fastest serial-produced sports car of 1987 and also the first road legal 201 mph (324 km/h) car; the first proper supercar, after the Porsche 959, the Ferrari F40 was the fastest production car in the world.

The suspension remained a double wishbone setup, though the unusually small ground clearance meant that later F40s included selectable ride height.

The body was an entirely new design by Pininfarina. Panels were made of Kevlar, carbon fibre, and aluminium for strength and low weight, and intense aerodynamic testing was employed. A large rear wing and numerous deep scoops also characterized the design.

Weight was kept at a minimum with a plastic windshield and windows. There were no carpets, no radio, and no door handles; a short cord could be reached to unlatch the door. Even roll-down windows were deleted at first, though later cars had them.

Although production was initially limited to 400, strong demand kept the F40 in production until 1,315 cars were built. They were listed in the late 80's for almost $500,000 and would still draw that amount easily today. The F40 is one of the quickest, fastest, and most exotic cars ever produced.


McLaren F1

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The McLaren F1 is a supercar engineered and produced by McLaren Cars, a British company subsidiary of the McLaren Group that, among others, owns the McLaren Mercedes Formula One team. The car features a 6-litre 60? V12 BMW engine and it was conceived as a "cost is no object" exercise in creating what its designers hoped would be considered the ultimate road car. Only 107 cars were manufactured, 64 of those for use on public roads and the rest for racing. Production began in 1994 and ended in 1998.

The McLaren F1 was the fastest production car ever built until 2005 when the Koenigsegg CCR recorded a speed of 388 km/h (241 mph), a record which has in turn been broken by the Bugatti Veyron, with a top speed of 407 km/h (253 mph).

Gordon Murray originally designed the car as a three-seater in order to place the driver in what he believed to be the optimum position. This created a certain amount of difficulty for the driver when entering or exiting the car, but there were few complaints. Drivers report that visibility to the front and sides is excellent and that the car is tractable for in-town driving.

By fitting the car with three seats, Murray created an unusually practical supercar. He also designed in a pair of side-mounted luggage compartments, another unusually practical feature in such an exotic car. Customized luggage to fit into these compartments was also included.

Each buyer of a new F1 received the option of a customized TAG-Heuer watch engraved with the car's chassis number and a titanium Facom tool kit in a mechanic's chest. The carbon fibre driver's seat was also moulded to fit its owner.

Murray refused to fit the car with electronic "driver's aids" like traction control or anti-lock brakes (ABS) as he believed that these did not make the car any safer but rather interfered with the ability of the skilled driver to control the vehicle. Not everyone agreed with his views on the subject but even the car's critics generally admit that it was exceptionally good to drive even without the electronic assistance. The car also lacks power-assist in both steering and braking - again, to save weight and to provide maximum connection between driver and car.

Murray insisted that the engine for this car be normally-aspirated to increase reliability and driver control. Turbochargers and superchargers increase power but they increase complexity and can decrease reliability as well as the ability of the driver to maintain maximum control of the engine. BMW's motorsport division custom-built a 6.1 L (6064 cc) 60-degree V12 engine with aluminum alloy block and head, 86 mm x 87 mm bore/stroke, quad overhead camshafts for maximum flexibility of control over the four valves/cylinder and chain drive for the camshafts for maximum reliability. The resulting engine was slightly heavier than Murray had originally specified but also considerably more powerful.
This look into the McLaren F1's engine compartment shows the mid-car placement of the engine and the gold foil used as a heat shield in the exhaust compartment.

This look into the McLaren F1's engine compartment shows the mid-car placement of the engine and the gold foil used as a heat shield in the exhaust compartment.

The carbon fiber body panels and monocoque required significant heat insulation in the engine compartment and so Murray's solution was to coat the engine bay with the most efficient heat-reflector: gold foil. Approximately 25 g (one ounce) of gold was used in each car.

The road version used a compression ratio of 11:1 to produce 627 HP at 7400 RPM. Torque output 479 ft?lbf (650 N?m) at 5600 RPM. Other, more highly tuned, incarnations of the F1 produced up to 680 HP. The engine has a redline and rev limiter at 7500 RPM.


Nissan Skyline GT-R

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The Nissan Skyline GT-R is an iconic Japanese sports coupe in the Nissan Skyline range. Dubbed "Godzilla" by Wheels magazine in Australia when released there in 1989, it was rated by many motoring magazines, including the well-respected Wheels, as providing performance and handling equal or superior to that of European icons like the Porsche 911 and the Ferrari 360 Modena, at a considerably lower price.

The Skyline name originated with the Prince automobile company which developed and sold the Skyline line of sedans before merging with Nissan-Datsun. The earliest predecessor of the GT-R, the S54 2000GT-B, came second in its first race in 1964 to the purpose-built Porsche 904GTS race car. The next development of the GT-R, the KPGC10/PGC10 2000GT-R, scored 33 victories in the one and a half years it raced and scored 50 by the time it was discontinued in 1972. The last of the original GT-Rs, the KPGC110/PGC110 2000GT-R, used an unchanged S20 160 hp (120 kW) inline-6 engine from the earlier 2000GT-R and only sold 197 units. This model was the only GT-R to never participate in a race.

The Skyline model continued through into the 90s when it became popular largely because it remained rear wheel drive, while most other manufacturers' models were front wheel drive (which had certain complexities inherent in achieving high performance in power or handling when compared to a rear-wheel drive car).

The GT-R version of the Skyline was reintroduced in 1989 after a 16 year hiatus from the Skyline GT-R of the late 1960s. However, the majority of Skylines sold were non-GT-R models, with the GT-R becoming the flagship of Nissan performance. Considering the performance of the car, and the fact that Nissan showcased many advanced technologies in the GT-R not previously seen in mass produced vehicles, the 1989- GT-Rs remained (relatively) cheap. Although unconfirmed, it is even rumoured that they were sold at a loss. Although strange today, this cavalier attitude to marketing was common among Japanese car manufacturers of the late 1980s and early 1990s.

GT-R Skylines of the 1990s progressed from the R32 (1989), through to the R34 (2000) Production of the GT-R ceased in August 2002 with the release of the V35 Skyline platform (sold as the Infiniti G35 in the United States) which includes only non-GT-R models. Before the final R34 Skyline GT-R was sold, various packages and special editions such as the V-Spec, containing additional performance-enhancing modifications, were released by Nissan and the performance division of Nissan, Nismo.

The GT-R of the 1990s included a 2.6 L straight six-cylinder twin-turbo motor producing 206 kW (276 hp). The turbo-chargers were of a hybrid steel/ceramic design allowing them to spool up faster due to the light nature of the ceramic exhaust wheel.

Power was delivered to all four wheels using an electronically-controlled all wheel drive system referred to by Nissan as the ATESSA 4wd system. The ATESSA system uses two G-Sensors mounted underneath the dashboard, which feed lateral and longtitudinal inputs to the ECU. The ECU would then control the feed of power by allowing a limited amount to be delivered to the front wheels via an electronic torque split converter. V-Spec models were equipped with (amongst other things), a faster reacting ATESSA Pro 4wd system with adjusted ECU settings, improving oversteer considerably.

The car also had computer-controlled all wheel steering system referred to as the HICAS 4ws system. The HICAS system, activated when the vehicle exceeded 80 km/h, controls steering of the rear wheels in the same direction as the front to improve turn in on entry to corners.


I will announce the runner-up shortly. Any guesses?
 
The McLaren's gone?!

Well, it's wide open.

Hope the last few are good 'uns!
 
The F40 got my vote...

Has the 911 (of any generation) been announced yet? If not, that's got to have one of the top two spots for sure...
 
Wow, 3rd place already? The F40 is a surprise, but the Skyline and F1 I could have seen coming from miles away.
 
Good choices! Love the F40 :D

That Mclaren shot is at the raceway right outside of base, I'm taking driving lessons there! :drool:
 
yep...i knew the skyline was gonna get top positions.

i remember voting for the skyline and the mclaren....wonder who's 2nd and 1st? 911 like someone said or the M5? I got a feeling that its one of those two. :)
 
My beloved skyline has fallen, I was so hoping for the top spot. Although a 'sports' car that falls on the same level as the McLaren F1 and the Ferrari F40 is a very special car indeed and it's beaten some very very special metal to get here. Once again Godzilla triumphs!
 
Oooo we're getting close to the top now - the F1 was on my list. I'm a bit suprised to see the Skyline so high, but I won't begrudge it's achievements
 
For some reason, i'm starting to get afraid of what will be in 1st place :cry:
 
C'mon and tell us how the battle between the 911 and the mysterious car ended! (Now that the Skyline is gone, there's only the 911 left from my list)
 
God damnit. I forgot about F40, should have voted for that instead of 430 :)

And McLaren F1. One of my favourite cars ever.. Didn't vote for it, what was I thinking :(
 
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