The 918
02-07-2012, 10:27 AM
#1
The 918
From reading this forum I can say that most of you are very opposed to hybrid technology in a sports/supercar. The 918 is not breaking news but I stumbled upon a nice little video I thought some would enjoy.
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQ_BTVEAOy0&feature=related[/media]
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQ_BTVEAOy0&feature=related[/media]
02-07-2012, 11:56 AM
#3
...it's no NSX. 
In all seriousness, pretty amazing overall. Just under 3300 lbs with 500+ hp on engine + 200+ hp out of electric motors. Combined power will probably be roughly 625 hp for the combined peak with some pretty amazing torque values down low.
That puts some doubt into a few assumptions/guesses that some of us (myself included) have made about the NSX. If this $750K supercar is 3300 lbs, the NSX will probably have a hard time being that light, especially since this car is (at best) the same size as an NSX and probably a bit smaller. Potentially offsetting that idea is that the 918 is open-topped, hence requiring some additional structural modifications (ie, added weight) compared to a fixed roof coupe (new NSX), which may allow the NSX to be closer in weight. Fixed roof cars tend to weigh 100-200 lbs less than their open topped versions, which may mean that an NSX with similar chassis development just MIGHT be in that 3300 lb class, give or take a few pounds.
In all seriousness, pretty amazing overall. Just under 3300 lbs with 500+ hp on engine + 200+ hp out of electric motors. Combined power will probably be roughly 625 hp for the combined peak with some pretty amazing torque values down low.
That puts some doubt into a few assumptions/guesses that some of us (myself included) have made about the NSX. If this $750K supercar is 3300 lbs, the NSX will probably have a hard time being that light, especially since this car is (at best) the same size as an NSX and probably a bit smaller. Potentially offsetting that idea is that the 918 is open-topped, hence requiring some additional structural modifications (ie, added weight) compared to a fixed roof coupe (new NSX), which may allow the NSX to be closer in weight. Fixed roof cars tend to weigh 100-200 lbs less than their open topped versions, which may mean that an NSX with similar chassis development just MIGHT be in that 3300 lb class, give or take a few pounds.
02-07-2012, 12:27 PM
#4
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It is an engineering marvel. Amazing. Stupendous. Genius. but...
I think I would prefer all these manufacturers to make their cars 100% bulletproof before making them hybrid supercars or carbon fiber or ... How about make a 911 or an M5 that won't ever break (like a Honda Civic ). Spend the money on that engineering, gimme cheap speed, not million dollar speed, I bet without sending this thing back to the Fatherland every six months so men in white lab coats can study it in a decade or two that thing will be a very large paperweight. Wouldn't it be nice to buy an $80K car that just worked and didn't need to be fixed or if it did it would be cheap to repair?
I think I would prefer all these manufacturers to make their cars 100% bulletproof before making them hybrid supercars or carbon fiber or ... How about make a 911 or an M5 that won't ever break (like a Honda Civic ). Spend the money on that engineering, gimme cheap speed, not million dollar speed, I bet without sending this thing back to the Fatherland every six months so men in white lab coats can study it in a decade or two that thing will be a very large paperweight. Wouldn't it be nice to buy an $80K car that just worked and didn't need to be fixed or if it did it would be cheap to repair?
02-07-2012, 02:15 PM
#5
It is an engineering marvel. Amazing. Stupendous. Genius. but...
I think I would prefer all these manufacturers to make their cars 100% bulletproof before making them hybrid supercars or carbon fiber or ... How about make a 911 or an M5 that won't ever break (like a Honda Civic ). Spend the money on that engineering, gimme cheap speed, not million dollar speed, I bet without sending this thing back to the Fatherland every six months so men in white lab coats can study it in a decade or two that thing will be a very large paperweight. Wouldn't it be nice to buy an $80K car that just worked and didn't need to be fixed or if it did it would be cheap to repair?
I think I would prefer all these manufacturers to make their cars 100% bulletproof before making them hybrid supercars or carbon fiber or ... How about make a 911 or an M5 that won't ever break (like a Honda Civic ). Spend the money on that engineering, gimme cheap speed, not million dollar speed, I bet without sending this thing back to the Fatherland every six months so men in white lab coats can study it in a decade or two that thing will be a very large paperweight. Wouldn't it be nice to buy an $80K car that just worked and didn't need to be fixed or if it did it would be cheap to repair?
02-07-2012, 02:44 PM
#6
Not sure why it is to believed that this car won't be reliable. Porsches have, by and large, been fairly bulletproof in the big scheme of things (RMS failure seems to be the major one for the 911).
02-08-2012, 08:41 AM
#7
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^ The only real scary part of Porsche maintenance seems to be the idea that everything requires an engine drop to be able to reach the issue. Oh and the astoundingly high cost of engine replacement should it be out of warranty. (That said, I am a huge Porsche fan, and firmly believe that at that performance level, Porsche, and cars with LSx motors are about as reliable as they get.)
While I would tend to agree, and would love to see this, the counter argument would be that they are giving you damn near race car performance in a package that when compared to a race car is bullet proof. A race car engine is designed to be rebuilt a minimum of once a year/season. The fact that they can get almost the same performance numbers out of an engine that lasts 50k-100k+ miles is amazing.
I think I would prefer all these manufacturers to make their cars 100% bulletproof before making them hybrid supercars or carbon fiber or ... How about make a 911 or an M5 that won't ever break
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02-08-2012, 11:09 AM
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^ The only real scary part of Porsche maintenance seems to be the idea that everything requires an engine drop to be able to reach the issue. Oh and the astoundingly high cost of engine replacement should it be out of warranty. (That said, I am a huge Porsche fan, and firmly believe that at that performance level, Porsche, and cars with LSx motors are about as reliable as they get.)
While I would tend to agree, and would love to see this, the counter argument would be that they are giving you damn near race car performance in a package that when compared to a race car is bullet proof. A race car engine is designed to be rebuilt a minimum of once a year/season. The fact that they can get almost the same performance numbers out of an engine that lasts 50k-100k+ miles is amazing.
I think I would prefer all these manufacturers to make their cars 100% bulletproof before making them hybrid supercars or carbon fiber or ... How about make a 911 or an M5 that won't ever break
02-08-2012, 09:38 PM
#9
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the shite that breaks usually isn't drivetrain nowadays, either...seems like electrical sensors & other electric items are the bulk of the work. You do get drivetrain failures and you always will, but there are a lot of drivetrains that are high performance and as reliable as anything...
The only thing that I could think to point to for why high end cars seem to have more electrical issues is that they have more electrical systems, or for performance cars, the stiffer suspension has a more jarring effect on connections and solders???
02-09-2012, 10:15 AM
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I agree they are good solid cars, but what I want is Honda Civic reliability, the kind where you just drive the thing for 150,000 THEN change the oil. I know that is an exaggeration on my part, but I just would like to know I can spend my $100 grand once and really not have to worry about anything breaking for a decade or so not even a power window or cruise control sensor. I want them reliable in the small sceme too. My last GF had a MB S500, every other week it was at the shop for warrenty work on stuff like leaking valve stems or sunroof motor or a sensor... it was non-stop. It was a beautiful car, less than a year old, but really just junk if you define a car as reliable transportation.