Luxury Car Nameplates We Want Brought Back To Life

Like the BMW 8 Series, we'd like to see these models get revived.

Just like Hollywood, modern automakers can't help but dive into the well of the past to pull out the greatest hits. Why struggle to invent something new when you can dust off Snow White for the thousandth time and tell the story yet again? The industry is about to experience an influx of revived nameplates including the BMW 8 Series, Alfa Romeo GTV, and Toyota Supra. We are happy to see these models make a return, but we wondered what other luxury nameplates deserve to be revived. Here are our eight contenders.

Porsche 928

The Porsche 928 is one of several models rumored to be reintroduced to the Porsche lineup. The original car was a RWD V8 Grand Tourer, which would easily slot above the 911 as a more luxurious option for buyers. We'd love to see Porsche base a new 928 on the Panamera platform, along with its twin-turbo V8 hybrid drivetrain producing 680 horsepower.

Acura RSX

The Acura RSX, also known as the Integra, was one of our favorite cars that Honda ever built. By the end of its life, it offered a 2.4-liter VTEC four-cylinder producing 201 hp in the RSX Type S. The RSX/Integra was sporty to drive, but also packed some of the practicality of a hot hatchback. With the popularity of SUVs and crossovers, it seems unlikely that Acura will bring back a sporty hatchback.

Buick Regal GS

The Buick Regal GS is a nice, comfortable sports sedan, but it doesn't live up to the brand's most badass model: the Grand National. The original Grand National was based on a Regal, but Buick seems reluctant to revive its legendary nameplate. We think a twin-turbo, 400 hp Regal Grand National could pick up where its predecessor left off, for around the $50,000 price range.

Cadillac Eldorado

One of the things that annoys us about Cadillac right now is the company's lack of creativity in the naming department. CT6 sounds like a graphing calculator, and the ATS, CTS, and XTS scheme never made that much sense. We miss names like Eldorado and Coupe DeVille, and wish Cadillac would reincorporate these names back into the lineup. We have seen Cadillac build gorgeous concept cars like the Ciel, all that's left is to build one and give it a name from the company's past.

Lamborghini Espada

Lamborghini is best known for its mid-engine V12 flagships: the Miura, Countach, Diablo, Murcielago, and Aventador. However, the company does have some lesser known models that we'd like to see today. The Espada was a large, front-engine V12 GT car, which could go toe-to-toe with models such as the Aston Martin DB11 and Bentley Continental. Since Volkswagen owns both Bentley and Lamborghini, the German automaker likely doesn't want too much competition between its own brands.

Alfa Romeo Spider

Alfa Romeo currently uses the Spider name on the convertible version of the 4C sport car, but it used to be one of the prettiest and affordable two-seat convertible cars on the market. When Mazda and FCA announced a partnership to build a two-seat roadster based on the Miata, we thought it would be the return of the Alfa Romeo Spider. Instead, we got the slightly disappointing Fiat 124.

Bugatti Atlantic

Bugatti is one of the most fabled brands in the automotive industry, so it seems almost cruel to leave so much of the company's past within the pages of history. We'd love to see the legendary Bugatti Atlantic come back as an ultra-luxurious four-door sedan, based on the Galibier concept from several years ago. Of course, power would come from the Chiron's quad-turbo W16 engine.

Ferrari Daytona

The Ferrari 365 GTB/4, also known as the Daytona, was built from 1968 to 1973. Like most Ferrari models, the Daytona had an official numerical name, but became well-known by its media-given name after the car finished 1-2-3 at the 1967 24 Hours of Daytona. We'd like to see Ferrari bring back nameplates such as Daytona when it builds special one-off models for wealthy customers.

View the original article here

Porsche Brought This Stunning 959 And More Icons To Paris

Including the 959's amazing successors.

Porsche showed off a new 911 Speedster concept, this time painted red, at this year’s Paris Motor Show. Don’t get us wrong, the concept is ridiculously cool, and as only 1,948 examples are planned for the production version, it's also going to be highly desirable. It’s a proper way to end the lifecycle of the highly successful and acclaimed 991 generation.

However, there were some other Porsches on display that activated our salivary glands. Coming straight from the official Porsche Museum in Stuttgart are these icons: 959, 911 GT1, Carrera GT, and 918 Spyder.

The 959 was the first all-wheel drive Porsche that launched back in 1986 and at the time was the world’s fastest street-legal production car with a top speed of 197 mph. It was also one of the most technologically advanced cars of its time. Its all-wheel drive tech was later applied to the 911, spawning the 911 Carrera 4.

It remains one of this writer’s favorite cars of all time. The 911 GT1 was the street-legal version of the GT1 class racing car. Although it was called ‘911’ it really didn’t have much in common with the regular 911 at the time, the 993. However, both shared a frontal chassis. The 911 GT1’s water-cooled, twin-turbo 3.2-liter flat-six came from the 962. Oh, this 911 in name only was also mid-engined.

The race going 911 GT1 was a huge racing success, winning its class at Le Mans. Only 25 examples of the street-legal version were made in 1997, all of which produced 536 hp and 443 lb-ft of torque.

Its successor was the Carrera GT, which didn’t arrive until 2003. Powered by a 5.7-liter naturally aspirated V10 rated at 603 hp and 435 lb-ft of torque, the sole transmission choice was a six-speed manual. It’s not a car for beginners, to say the least. Mid-engined and rear-wheel-drive, the Carrera GT has its roots in LMP1 endurance race cars, but never itself raced. A total of 1,270 units were made by the time production ended in 2007.

Lastly is the 918 Spyder, built from 2013 to 2015. Instead of the V10 it has a 4.6-liter V8 that’s also naturally aspirated but connected to a plug-in hybrid system. Not surprisingly, it sold out about a year after production began.

All of these iconic Porsches have one major thing in common: they were technological testbeds for their respective eras. What will come next? An all-electric high-performance supercar that builds on the Taycan sedan is a pretty good guess.

View the original article here