[Tyler360]

Originally Posted by DGthe3

I think there has to be something like 30 cars for something to be considered 'production' (which still seems absurdly low to me). Venom is supposedly limited to only 29 units. If the cross the 30 car mark, they'd probably have to deal with a lot more safety & emissions regulations.

Why was there only one run ... I'm not sure. I've heard that NASA only gave them a small window to use their runway & in that time only a single pass could be made. I don't know if they had a head, tail, or cross wind. They couldn't just turn around & go again right away because the top speed isn't measured directly. The car is timed as it passes between two lines a set distance apart. That speed trap would ideally be in the middle of your testing space (in this case, a runway) but they only had about 3 miles to work with, and it takes over 2 miles for the car to reach its top speed, and nearly another mile to get slowed back down. If they could have gotten onto one of the Airforce's runways in the deserts of the south-west (I think one of them is over 7 miles long) or a giant oval or circular test track it would have been much easier to do a quick pair of runs.

This article does a good job explaining all that:
http://blog.caranddriver.com/it-aint...-world-record/

[Number 3]

First super car has generally meant more than just performance. The Z06 WILL have super car performance. Just not super price or super car exclusivity.

On a related note Koeniggsegg announce the first Mega Car today. 1st car with HP to Weight ratio at 1 to 1. 1300 HP and 1300 Kg. Top speed 273 mph.

[trademaster]

Originally Posted by Sp00ner

I see more Ferraris around town here than I see ZR1s...

You are comparing an entire brand to one distinct trim level of one model. How many Corvettes do you see? Better yet, how many Chevrolets do you see?

[King T]

Originally Posted by Number 3

First super car has generally meant more than just performance. The Z06 WILL have super car performance. Just not super price or super car exclusivity.

On a related note Koeniggsegg announce the first Mega Car today. 1st car with HP to Weight ratio at 1 to 1. 1300 HP and 1300 Kg. Top speed 273 mph.

Yes the Koenigsegg One:1 has been dubbed the first "Mega Car". So now with "Mega Cars" arriving "Supercars" are now down the ladder 2 rungs (Supercars, Hypercars, Megacars).

That 273 mph top speed is the "simulated" top speed. It will be interesting to see if it will actuall hit it. Even if it does, like the Venom GT, it will not be able to hold claim to the fastest production car in the world (officially)

Koenigsegg is celebrating its 20th birthday this year, and for the occasion, the Swedish specialists are taking the hypercar to the next level with its new Agera One:1 at the 2014 Geneva Motor Show. In fact, it claims that, because it is the first production car with a one megawatt of power (1,341 horsepower), and a power-to-weight ratio of one-to-one (kilogram to horsepower), it goes beyond super or hyper and is actually the "world's first megacar."

Koenigsegg Agera One:1 This road-bound rocketship is powered by twin-turbocharged, 5.0-liter V8 with the previously mentioned 1,341 hp and 1,011 pound-feet of torque. A seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox and electronically-controled differential makes sure all that grunt gets to the wheels. It is equipped with seemingly science-fiction features like variable geometry turbos in custom, 3D-printed housings and a 3D-printed titanium exhaust. While Koenigsegg claims top speed was not a factor when creating the One:1, it says that it has a simulated top speed of around 440 kilometers per hour (273 miles per hour), which would make it the world's fastest production vehicle. However, the One:1 can never hold the Guinness world record for top speed because only six will be built, all of which it says are already spoken for.


• Worlds first 1:1 (One:1) power to curb weight ratio homologated production car (kg/hp)
• World’s first Megacar - 1 Megawatt of power homologated production car
• 2 G cornering capability on road legal production cup tires
• 610 kg down force at 260 km/h (160 mph) utilizing advanced active under and over body aerodynamics
• Chassis with active ride height and shock absorbers including variable stiffness spring ratios
• Fully active aero with independent left and right front flaps under front splitter and hydraulically actuated top mounted dual plane rear wing
• 3G and GPS controlled Predictive Active Chassis and Aero Track Mode
• 3G connection for telemetry, performance, lap times and software upgrades, including owners iPhone app
• 20% lighter carbon chassis and body due to implementation of M46J & M55J high modulus fibers
• 3D-VGT - Koenigsegg patented 3D printed variable turbo housing – gives improved response and bottom end torque
• Koenigsegg developed carbon fiber ventilated memory foam racing seats
• 3D printed titanium exhaust end piece saves 400 grams compared to Aluminum counterpart
• Active noise canceling seat option

[LostPony]

Chevrolet delivers supercar level performance in the Z06, but alas it is no supercar. Until you have driven a true supercar, you just won't understand what it really means.

[Camaro_Corvette]

Negative

[Angrybird 12]

It's an upper middle class Supercar....

[banter]

I consider super cars by performance. You guys talking about exclusivity and such, that's what I deem an exotic. The C7 will absolutely be a super car in my book, the first corvette I will have considered one.

[Manbearpig]

Originally Posted by banter

I consider super cars by performance. You guys talking about exclusivity and such, that's what I deem an exotic. The C7 will absolutely be a super car in my book, the first corvette I will have considered one.

See, that's how I felt as well, the moniker supercar came from its performance, I see though that there are outlying criteria.

Seems flipped, there are cars out in the world that can demolish these high priced exotics, wouldn't they be considered the super car? People have brought up cars modded to beat supercars and I say yeah, these modded cars are not the norm whether the car is common or not. I would assume they would be "super" by definition. The Venom GT is a example of outlying reasons. In a perfect world, that car would have shattered the current record, however, the team was not able to access VW's track to run it, they had to go with NASA, who for whatever reason declined a return run. Because of production values (There are only 29 being sold) the car cannot be considered a production vehicle. Hell there are people I'm sure who do not consider the Venom GT a car at all, instead they consider it a heavily modified Lotus Elise which the car was based on.

Reading this, other forums, various periodicals and wiki (A conglomerate of for all we know other forums, people on this forum and people who've never seen under the hood of a car before), the definition of supercar seems arbitrary, placed based on the entirety of a brand rather then the vehicle accomplishing said feats, which is why we have "supercar performance" to compensate for cars left under the radar.

Tl;dr, I understand that supercar is more then just performance, but the definition just seems dated to me. From a time where you had to choose between luxury and performance. There are very few modern sports cars that would make you choose that now and usually it's regarding a good reason (IE the Z/28 is amazing, even then "luxury" comes down to having A/C mainly and some street tires). It's simply not marketable on a common basis. We as a consumer base have grown to expect it. One of the key features on both the Viper and Stingray was a redesigned interior which was long needed.

Anyway, appreciate the answers, just my two cents.

[CarGarage]

Originally Posted by nester7929

The Corvette is in a similar class with the GTR and the 911:

Too expensive and powerful to be mainstream, but not enough to be a supercar.

And include BMW m4, viper, certain maseratis and Astons.

Bingo
And not mid engined
And less than 100k
And everyday liveable
And not European

The definition of supercar will change soon enough