Cars

2010 Dodge Viper ACR rebuildable

Dodge's Viper has always been a crude car. Some say its the evolution of the American Muscle car, a two-seater V10-powered American built supercar. That being the case, the Viper ACR is the ultimate Viper, evolution and revolution. American Club Racing's nearly homologization model focuses on maximizing performance for the weekend track members of road racing and auto-crossing environments, though the Viper ACR is still street legal. Horsepower from the V10 engine is increased over the regular street model to 600 All-American-HP and its 80 lbs. lighter when the "Hardcore Package" option is ticked.

Today's eBay find is a 2009 Dodge Viper ACR with a slightly damaged front-end classified as "rebuildable." Items needed to be replaced include both front fenders, the hood, both headlight buckets, most of the cooling system, left tail light (front end damage?) and some simple frame repairs. This green Viper ACR "lot drives" (but not for long with no cooling!) quite quickly with 600HP on tap and no headlights. For a Buy-It-Now price of $53,900 this Viper ACR from New York City and a claimed replacement value of over $100,000 this salvage-titled green monster sounds like a steal!

Dodge : Durango SLT Salvage Repairable Rebuildable Damaged Dodge Durango

US $5,000.00 (14 Bids) End Date: Thursday Sep-09-2010 18:30:00 PDT Bid now | Add to watch list

Dodge : Challenger R/T 09 DODGE CHALLENGER R/T SUPERCHARGED 500+ HP, SALVAGE

US $15,000.00 (18 Bids) End Date: Sunday Sep-12-2010 14:36:19 PDT Bid now | Add to watch list

Dodge : Avenger SXT Repairable Project Flood 10 Avenger Not Salvage

US $5,476.05 (14 Bids) End Date: Monday Sep-13-2010 18:15:00 PDT Bid now | Add to watch list

Dodge : Durango 2004 DODGE DURANGO NO RESERVE SALVAGE

US $6,950.00 (0 Bid) End Date: Monday Sep-13-2010 19:45:25 PDT Bid now | Add to watch list

2010 Aston Martin Rapide

Aston Martin's Rapide is everything to everybody. A four-door coupe: check. A V12-powered sports car: check. The best-looking sedan, ever produced: check-check. But then again how long has it been since Aston Martin hasn't produced an absolutely stunning product out of sheet metal? Quite some time, for sure.

Built to compete with the likes of Porsche's Panamera, Mercedes's CLS the upcoming Audi A7 and Lamborghini's Estoque concept the Aston Martin Rapide had much leeway to create a "beautiful 4-place sports car" after the Panamera's grilling by the press for its styling and the CLS's redesign. Under the hood of the Rapide lays the naturally-aspirated 6L V12 found in the DB9 (essentially a carry-over) but pushing out 470HP through a standard 6-speed slushbox with electronic paddles making mere suggestions to the Touchtronic. Performance figures aren't impressive (see the HP figure) and they'll continue to disappoint those who shop-by-numbers; 0-60MPH takes just over five seconds (the same as a 2011 V6 Ford Mustang) and on to a top speed of 184MPH (less than all competitors lest electronic nannies).

But none of that's important right now because the Aston Martin Rapide is a DB9 with two more doors and that's just flat-out impressive. Today's eBay find is the first Rapide available on eBay and is finished in Tungsten Silver (a carry-over corporate color for the Ford-era) with black leather and over 600 miles on the clock already. Located in Miami and listed for a smidge under 200K at $199,000 this fine piece of British engineering, er... an elongated DB9 built in Austia... can be in your driveway to proudly claim your position as the first one on the block.

2010 Ferrari 458 Italia

Modern supercars are often badgered as being pointless specifically because you can't use the speed in modern day traffic. The argument is a moot point even when discussing the most basic transportation on the market including Toyota Prius drivers being charged with speeding over 100MPH, trying to defend a Ferrari's power or maximum velocity is rough. The Ferrari 458 Italia (see Review Roundup) specifically, Ferrari's latest entry-level mid-engined supercar, has a top speed of over 200MPH while still achieving a respectable 17.6MPG in some tests. There's a dealership in New York that wants to help you dream the dream before purchasing your next Ferrari.

Today's eBay find is one of the first Ferrari 458's on Ebay available in America for sale is listed for $354,995 and is available in downtown Chicago, IL. But the most interesting thing about this Ferrari 458 is the incriminating (or flattering) trip computer showing that even a supercar from Chicago can achieve over 100MPH even in the first 80 miles of ownership (the car is listed in "used" condition). It's capable, yes, and without restriction and can be propelled on to another 100 after your bid of $355K.

2010 Porsche Panamera Turbo

A German sedan with 500 horsepower is nothing new; nor is a twin turbo or controversial Porsche new to the automotive landscape. But what happens when all those traits combine? You get the Porsche Panamera Turbo, a 500 horsepower twin-turbo V8, 4-door Porsche controversy not-withstanding. Porsche purists cried and moaned when the car was released hoping Porsche wouldn't follow the same route they took with the Cayenne. Well, after releasing an SUV some say a sedan was the next logical step to compete with Porsche's other German rivals from Mercedes, BMW and Audi.

And compete they will with the quickest 4-door production sedan accelerating from 0-60MPH in 3.4 seconds. That's quicker than any AMG Mercedes sedan, BMW M sedan, and even the venerable Cadillac CTS-V sedan, the quickest American-made 4-door sedan, which is powered by the supercharged V8 from the Corvette ZR1.

Reviewers all found something to complain about with the Porsche Panamera Turbo but no one claimed it was underpowered. U.K.'s CAR Magazine claims Porsche missed an opportunity by claiming the car's design focus oriented it too much towards comfort and not enough on lightness. Road & Track magazine attempts to explain the styling  as the "elephant in the room" referring to the "ungainly roof and awkward slope of its hatch," neglecting to mention the Panamera's "elongated 911" appearance the Porsche styling designers were aiming for. Overall, however, the reviews were generally positive complementing the speed and the cocooning interior most of all. Check out the reviews, videos and gallery below and decide for yourself before you buy!

Reviews:

Autoweek (an AutoWeek Drivers Log)
Car and Driver (Review)
Popular Mechanics (Test Drive)
Road & Track (Road Test)
Motor Trend (First Drive)
Edmunds.com (Road Test)
National Post (Canada, Road Test)
Times Online (UK, Jeremy Clarkson Drive)
AutoBlog (blog, First Drive)
AutoGuide (First Drive)

Video Reviews:

iMotorMag (UK, YouTube)
Fifth Gear (UK, YouTube)
AutoCar (UK, YouTube)
Drive Time (Review, YouTube)