And finally, the moment you all been waiting for!
Time to reveal the winners! A bit more text this time, I tried to keep it short, but there are so many cool facts about these cars
Links to previous threads first:
Voting
1 points, 76th place
2 points, 69th place
3 points, 63rd place
4 points, 59th place
7-10 points, 40th-31st places
11-36 points, 30th-11th places
38-80 points, 10th-4th places
And now... ready?
3rd place, with 119 points
Ferrari 250 GTO
http://img235.imageshack.**/img235/733/gtopi7.jpg
The Ferrari 250 GTO was made from 1962 to 1964. There were 39 produced and they were only available as coupes (hardtops).
The design of the GTO was instantly and universally admired. Its appeal has withstood the test of time, and it is considered to be one of the best looking sports cars of all time.
"GTO" stood for Grand Turismo Omologato, or Grand Touring Homologated. This naming is widely considered to be a very effective ruse, by which Ferrari convinced the FIA that this car was a version of Ferrari's mass produced 250 GT. In reality, this car differed significantly from the standard GT, both mechanically and cosmetically. If labeled as a different model (which it was), one hundred examples would have been required for homologation in GT class. Some say that Ferrari's clout was such that it was better for the sport to allow the team to compete instead of dealing with a petulant (and crowd-depressingly absent) Scuderia Ferrari.
The 250 GTO was an exceptionally capable racing car. In the best Ferrari tradition, it made normal drivers look excellent and gave great drivers an unsurpassable advantage. Years of development for its significant components, and traditional Ferrari robustness, also guaranteed that the car would last until the end of the race. In the end, the GTO won the World Manufacturer's Championship three years in a row: 1962, 1963, and 1964.
36 cars produced from 1962 to 1964 have survived and are accounted for, and most remarkably the history of every example is well documented. Up until the early 1970s, the GTO was regarded as an obsolete racing car. Since then prices have steeply risen to 10 digits in Pounds, Dollars and Yen. With today?s value it?s hard to imagine one was once used by a student driver and another used for auto mechanics practice at Victoria High School in Texas. Fortunately many owners still take their GTOs out with serious passion to participate in historic events around the world; for them and the spectators to enjoy.
In 2004, Sports Car International named the 250 GTO number eight on the list of Top Sports Cars of the 1960s. Similarly, Motor Trend Classic named the 250 GTO as number one in their list of the "Greatest Ferraris of all time".
2nd place, with 140 points
Lamborghini Miura
http://img46.imageshack.**/img46/7449/miuraxk7.jpg
The Lamborghini Miura is a sports car built in Italy by Lamborghini between 1966 and 1973. It was a trendsetter, the one that made the mid-engined layout "de rigueur" among two-seater high performance supercars. It is named after the Spanish ranch Miura, whose bulls have a proverbial attack instinct.
Inspired by the Ford GT40, the Miura astonished showgoers at the 1965 Turin Motor Show where only the chassis was shown, with multiple orders being placed despite the lack of an actual body. Later, Marcello Gandini from Bertone, who would later go on to design many of Lamborghini's cars, was chosen to design the body. Both body and chassis were launched five months later at the 1966 Geneva Motor Show. It was a sensation, with its flamboyant bodywork and unusual engine and clam-shell opening hoods on both the front and rear of the car. There was a small trunk located in the very rear of the tail behind the engine.
Technically, it was very advanced: the mid-engined layout was sweeping motor racing, and like the 350GT and 400GT before it, the Miura had all-independent suspension in an era when some Ferraris still sported rigid rear axles. Bizzarrini?s 3.9-litre four-cam V12, developing a claimed 350bhp, was fitted in a unit with its transmission, the engine and gearbox sharing a common oil system.
Early Miuras were notorious for being a fire hazard. The problem was caused by Lamborghini's decision to use Weber 40 IDL 3C1 carburetors which were designed exclusively for racing applications and weren't suitable for road use. The problem occurred when the car sat idling (e.g. at a stoplight), the area above the throttles filled with fuel which often ignited when the car accelerated away from the stop. One of Lamborghini's engineers devised a modification for the carburetors which created a fuel-return. Ferrari, who used these same carburetors in one of their cars, and suffered the same problems, were able to use Lamborghini's modification to solve it.
Some other interesting details: the position of the fuel tank is at the front causing the vehicle to have less weight at the front as the fuel tank gets lighter (closer to empty), thus making the car more difficult to handle at 150+ MPH. Another detail is that the doors resemble a bull's horns when it is opened wide (Lamborghini's logo itself depicts a raging bull).
The Miura is also technically the first Supercar ever in the world. Since the word "Supercar", which is coined by L.J.K. Setright, a distinguished automobile journalist, was used for the first time for the Miura on L.J.K's own review of the car.
In 2004, Sports Car International named this car number four on both the list of Top Sports Cars of the 1960s and Top Sports Cars of the 1970s. The car was ranked number four on the list of the Top Sports Car of All Time.
AND THE WINNER, with 149 points is:
Jaguar E-type Series I
http://img230.imageshack.**/img230/1659/etypeml1.jpg
The Jaguar E-type or XK-E is an automobile manufactured by Jaguar Cars between 1961 and 1974. The E-type revolutionised sports car design, with performance, handling and looks ahead of its time. It was priced well below competing models, helping it to high sales for a high performance car. In excess of 70,000 E-types were sold over 14 years.
The E-type was initially designed and shown to the public as a grand tourer in two seater coup? form (FHC or Fixed Head Coupe) and as convertible (OTS or Open Two Seater). The 2+2 version with a lengthened wheelbase was released several years later.
The model was made in 3 distinct versions generally referred to as "Series 1", "Series 2" and "Series 3". A transitional series between Series 1 and Series 2 is known unofficially as "Series 1?". In addition, several limited-edition variants were produced.
The Series 1 was introduced in March 1961, using the triple SU carburetted 3.8 litre 6-cylinder Jaguar XK6 engine from the XK150S. The first 500 cars built had flat floors and external hood latches. These cars are rare and more valuable. After that, the floors were dished to provide more leg room and the twin hood latches moved inside the car. The 3.8 litre engine was increased to 4.2 litres in late 1964.
All E-Types feature a fully-independent suspension for improved ride and handling, and power-assisted disc brakes on all four wheels, features that were uncommon for cars from that era.
The Jaguar E-type was very successful in SCCA Production sports car racing with Group44 and Bob Tullius taking the B-Production championship with a Series-3 V12 racer in 1975. A few years later, Gran-Turismo Jaguar from Clevland Ohio campaigned a 4.2L 6 cylinder FHC racer in SCCA production series and in 1980, won the National Championship in the SCCA C-Production Class defeating a fully funded factory Nissan Z-car team with Paul Newman.
In 2004, Sports Car International named this car number one on the list of Top Sports Cars of the 1960s.
Phew... that's it
Had all 3 cars in my personal top 3 too, but I placed Miura 1st. It was close though, just 6 points separating it from E-type...
Time to reveal the winners! A bit more text this time, I tried to keep it short, but there are so many cool facts about these cars
Links to previous threads first:
Voting
1 points, 76th place
2 points, 69th place
3 points, 63rd place
4 points, 59th place
7-10 points, 40th-31st places
11-36 points, 30th-11th places
38-80 points, 10th-4th places
And now... ready?
3rd place, with 119 points
Ferrari 250 GTO
http://img235.imageshack.**/img235/733/gtopi7.jpg
The Ferrari 250 GTO was made from 1962 to 1964. There were 39 produced and they were only available as coupes (hardtops).
The design of the GTO was instantly and universally admired. Its appeal has withstood the test of time, and it is considered to be one of the best looking sports cars of all time.
"GTO" stood for Grand Turismo Omologato, or Grand Touring Homologated. This naming is widely considered to be a very effective ruse, by which Ferrari convinced the FIA that this car was a version of Ferrari's mass produced 250 GT. In reality, this car differed significantly from the standard GT, both mechanically and cosmetically. If labeled as a different model (which it was), one hundred examples would have been required for homologation in GT class. Some say that Ferrari's clout was such that it was better for the sport to allow the team to compete instead of dealing with a petulant (and crowd-depressingly absent) Scuderia Ferrari.
The 250 GTO was an exceptionally capable racing car. In the best Ferrari tradition, it made normal drivers look excellent and gave great drivers an unsurpassable advantage. Years of development for its significant components, and traditional Ferrari robustness, also guaranteed that the car would last until the end of the race. In the end, the GTO won the World Manufacturer's Championship three years in a row: 1962, 1963, and 1964.
36 cars produced from 1962 to 1964 have survived and are accounted for, and most remarkably the history of every example is well documented. Up until the early 1970s, the GTO was regarded as an obsolete racing car. Since then prices have steeply risen to 10 digits in Pounds, Dollars and Yen. With today?s value it?s hard to imagine one was once used by a student driver and another used for auto mechanics practice at Victoria High School in Texas. Fortunately many owners still take their GTOs out with serious passion to participate in historic events around the world; for them and the spectators to enjoy.
In 2004, Sports Car International named the 250 GTO number eight on the list of Top Sports Cars of the 1960s. Similarly, Motor Trend Classic named the 250 GTO as number one in their list of the "Greatest Ferraris of all time".
2nd place, with 140 points
Lamborghini Miura
http://img46.imageshack.**/img46/7449/miuraxk7.jpg
The Lamborghini Miura is a sports car built in Italy by Lamborghini between 1966 and 1973. It was a trendsetter, the one that made the mid-engined layout "de rigueur" among two-seater high performance supercars. It is named after the Spanish ranch Miura, whose bulls have a proverbial attack instinct.
Inspired by the Ford GT40, the Miura astonished showgoers at the 1965 Turin Motor Show where only the chassis was shown, with multiple orders being placed despite the lack of an actual body. Later, Marcello Gandini from Bertone, who would later go on to design many of Lamborghini's cars, was chosen to design the body. Both body and chassis were launched five months later at the 1966 Geneva Motor Show. It was a sensation, with its flamboyant bodywork and unusual engine and clam-shell opening hoods on both the front and rear of the car. There was a small trunk located in the very rear of the tail behind the engine.
Technically, it was very advanced: the mid-engined layout was sweeping motor racing, and like the 350GT and 400GT before it, the Miura had all-independent suspension in an era when some Ferraris still sported rigid rear axles. Bizzarrini?s 3.9-litre four-cam V12, developing a claimed 350bhp, was fitted in a unit with its transmission, the engine and gearbox sharing a common oil system.
Early Miuras were notorious for being a fire hazard. The problem was caused by Lamborghini's decision to use Weber 40 IDL 3C1 carburetors which were designed exclusively for racing applications and weren't suitable for road use. The problem occurred when the car sat idling (e.g. at a stoplight), the area above the throttles filled with fuel which often ignited when the car accelerated away from the stop. One of Lamborghini's engineers devised a modification for the carburetors which created a fuel-return. Ferrari, who used these same carburetors in one of their cars, and suffered the same problems, were able to use Lamborghini's modification to solve it.
Some other interesting details: the position of the fuel tank is at the front causing the vehicle to have less weight at the front as the fuel tank gets lighter (closer to empty), thus making the car more difficult to handle at 150+ MPH. Another detail is that the doors resemble a bull's horns when it is opened wide (Lamborghini's logo itself depicts a raging bull).
The Miura is also technically the first Supercar ever in the world. Since the word "Supercar", which is coined by L.J.K. Setright, a distinguished automobile journalist, was used for the first time for the Miura on L.J.K's own review of the car.
In 2004, Sports Car International named this car number four on both the list of Top Sports Cars of the 1960s and Top Sports Cars of the 1970s. The car was ranked number four on the list of the Top Sports Car of All Time.
AND THE WINNER, with 149 points is:
Jaguar E-type Series I
http://img230.imageshack.**/img230/1659/etypeml1.jpg
The Jaguar E-type or XK-E is an automobile manufactured by Jaguar Cars between 1961 and 1974. The E-type revolutionised sports car design, with performance, handling and looks ahead of its time. It was priced well below competing models, helping it to high sales for a high performance car. In excess of 70,000 E-types were sold over 14 years.
The E-type was initially designed and shown to the public as a grand tourer in two seater coup? form (FHC or Fixed Head Coupe) and as convertible (OTS or Open Two Seater). The 2+2 version with a lengthened wheelbase was released several years later.
The model was made in 3 distinct versions generally referred to as "Series 1", "Series 2" and "Series 3". A transitional series between Series 1 and Series 2 is known unofficially as "Series 1?". In addition, several limited-edition variants were produced.
The Series 1 was introduced in March 1961, using the triple SU carburetted 3.8 litre 6-cylinder Jaguar XK6 engine from the XK150S. The first 500 cars built had flat floors and external hood latches. These cars are rare and more valuable. After that, the floors were dished to provide more leg room and the twin hood latches moved inside the car. The 3.8 litre engine was increased to 4.2 litres in late 1964.
All E-Types feature a fully-independent suspension for improved ride and handling, and power-assisted disc brakes on all four wheels, features that were uncommon for cars from that era.
The Jaguar E-type was very successful in SCCA Production sports car racing with Group44 and Bob Tullius taking the B-Production championship with a Series-3 V12 racer in 1975. A few years later, Gran-Turismo Jaguar from Clevland Ohio campaigned a 4.2L 6 cylinder FHC racer in SCCA production series and in 1980, won the National Championship in the SCCA C-Production Class defeating a fully funded factory Nissan Z-car team with Paul Newman.
In 2004, Sports Car International named this car number one on the list of Top Sports Cars of the 1960s.
Phew... that's it
Had all 3 cars in my personal top 3 too, but I placed Miura 1st. It was close though, just 6 points separating it from E-type...
