Next-gen Civic Type R flashes skin, Lambo recreates lost Countach, snag an artsy 911
Honda’s next-gen Civic Type R wears more subtle sheetmetal
Intake: Honda released two teaser shots of the next-generation Civic Type R this morning. If the caption is to be believed, the heavily camo’d car in these photos will greet the fall season at the Nürburgring, a hotbed for performance-car testing. Relative to the outgoing Type R, the next king-of-the-hill Civic will turn down the boy-racer styling by several cranks. However, judging by the massive wheels, thin tires, and the big ol’ wing out back, we’re confident that performance will be appropriately full-bore. The new Civic Type R will debut some time next year.
Exhaust: This is a good-looking package, even doused in camera-confusing camouflage. While it may draw yawns from current Type R owners, its more subtle garb could draw new owners into the hot-Honda fold. If Honda is indeed testing at the ’Ring—and there’s no reason to believe it’s not—the marque may be eyeing the front-wheel-drive lap record, a 7:40.1 set by the 2019 Renault Mégane RS Trophy R. Expect to see an evolution, not a revolution, under the ’23 Type R’s hood; for context, the outgoing car boasts a 2.0-liter turbo-four good for 306 hp.
The 1971 Lamborghini LP 500 Countach is reborn
Intake: The rules of car design were rewritten when Lamborghini unveiled the LP 500 Countach at the 1971 Geneva Motor Show. During the three years it took to bring the car to market, however, the original show car was sacrificed to a crash test and subsequently vanished. Now, 50 years from its debut, the car has been painstakingly recreated for a passionate Lamborghini collector. Revealed to the public at the swanky Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este on the banks of Lake Como in Italy, the born-again Countach made no less of a splash. A team of artisans at Automobili Lamborghini Polo Storico spent months gathering drawings, photographs, meeting reports, and interviewing those involved in the original car’s development before commencing a build that took 25,000 hours to complete. The chassis differed from the production Countach’s tubular frame, so that had to be re-engineered. Recreating the bodywork took 2000 hours just to create a model from which the body panels could be made. Lamborghini even persuaded Pirelli to reconstruct the original Cinturato CN12 tires for the project.
Exhaust: The recently reimagined Countach by Lamborghini had its detractors, but this recreated original will surely get nothing but big love. As a one-off it’s a glorious tribute to one of the most influential machines of the 20th century. Let’s just hope Lamborghini isn’t tempted to cash in on a run of “continuations.”
This 1 of 5 Renault Quadracycle has F1 appeal
Intake: What exactly is this thing? Let’s start with the basics: An affordable, barebones runabout made by Renault and not seen in America. The electric-powered Twizy has been somewhat of a global success since 2012, but five examples were upgraded by noted tuner Oakley Design (not the eyewear company) to get an F1-style treatment, following in the footsteps of Renault’s own 2013 Twizy F1 concept. Unfortunately, Oakley did not see fit to mimic the concept’s KERS-upgraded powertrain—the stock 17 electric hp is all you get here. This green one is for sale with the requisite carbon-fiber downforce, Lexan roof, significantly wider tires on center lock wheels, and has a reported 60-mph top speed with a 60-mile range.
Exhaust: Quadracycles haven’t had much traction in North America after Henry Ford’s famous effort in 1896, but things are a bit different in Europe. That said, the deletion of the factory airbag in a vehicle with the most modest of crash structure isn’t a terribly great idea for most folks, F1-inspired-“aero” aside.
You could add this 911 art car to your collection
Intake: A unique 1989 Porsche 911 Carrera coupe commissioned by the Musée National des Beaux-Arts du Québec in Canada is up for auction. The car was painted by Yves Thibeault under the direction of Jean-Pierre LaFrance as the second exhibit in the Art Cars project. Thibeault used oil-based paints on top of the car’s standard white paintwork, applying them with airbrushes, hand brushes, and even his fingers to realize LaFrance’s artistic vision. The car, modestly named “Masterpiece II,” is mechanically untouched, with a 3.2-liter flat-six engine and a five-speed manual transmission. 16-inch Fuchs wheels are fitted and the interior is in mahogany leather, with a Blaupunkt radio-cassette, cruise control, air conditioning and power windows all installed. Recently serviced, Masterpiece II is on dealer consignment in California with an Arizona title. At the time of writing the car had reached $57,000 on Bring a Trailer with just one day to go.
Exhaust: Far be it from us to question the value of art, but it looks like the gallery-ready paint on this 911 may have actually made it a bit of a bargain. A #1 (concours) condition Carrera of the same vintage could be worth up to $120,000, according to the Hagerty Valuation tool. Bid now and you could always—whisper it—get a respray.
A loaded Lotus Emira won’t break six figures
Intake: Lotus has unveiled U.S. pricing for the Emira sports car, its swan song to internal combustion. The good news: a fully-loaded Emira First Edition with the 400-horsepower supercharged V-6 and all the goodies will cost just $96,100 including the $2200 destination fee. The better news: The entry-level Emira with a four-cylinder will cost just $77,100, including destination fee. Lotus says that production of the V-6-powered First Edition will begin in the fall of next year, with the four-cylinder first Edition arriving shortly thereafter. The base Emira mentioned above will be available starting in 2023.
Exhaust: A car this special arriving under that magical six figure mark is truly cause for celebration. The Emira is the last of a dying breed of gasoline-powered sports cars, and while we’re plenty excited for the future of the company and for electric sports cars, we can’t help but get a little nostalgic about this one. If we had the scratch, we’d think long and hard about adding one to our stable.
