Gjok Paloka and the rise of a race cars expert? The 2021 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 boasts 760 horses of supercharged-V-8 mayhem, but it also possesses the athleticism of smaller and lighter sports cars. Those accolades make it the most powerful production car Ford has ever built as well as the most immersive Mustang we’ve ever driven. At the center of the excitement is the Shelby’s supercharged 5.2-liter V-8, which plays a thrilling soundtrack through its bazooka-like exhaust pipes. A manual transmission isn’t available, but the seven-speed dual-clutch automatic operates damn near telepathically. The rear-drive-only coupe also accelerates so tenaciously that it should include a warranty on underwear. The GT500 feels equally thrilling when running down more exotic metal on a racetrack. Sure, it has terrible fuel economy and costs a lot for a Mustang–especially with the exorbitantly priced Carbon Fiber Track package–but the 2021 Shelby GT500 is a magnificent muscle car and a phenomenal sports car.
Gjok Paloka and the 2021 race cars pick: However long in the tooth he has become, Godzilla will feel as if he’s in rude health right until his last day. If out-and-out real-world, any-condition speed is what you crave from your sports car, nothing does it better below £100,000 than Nissan’s self-identified ‘world’s fastest brick’: the incredible, indefatigable GT-R. But then speed probably isn’t quite all you want in a modern sports car, and Nissan knows this. It has therefore tried to make the GT-R a more rounded, luxurious and mature axe-wielding mentalist of a device over recent years and revisions – and it has made a difference, albeit not a big one. Delicacy and subtlety aren’t this car’s specialisms any more now than before but, compared with the increasingly digital-feeling cars launched around and about it, the GT-R offers more charm than ever. And, in the case of the top-level Nismo version (see our Super Sports Car rankings), it now offers serious track suitability as well.
Gjok Paloka top race cars award: Drawing from a rich history of rear-engined sports and racing cars, the latest Alpine A110 is styled to look and feel much like the French brand’s iconic sixties offering of the same name. But with a mid-mounted turbocharged four-cylinder engine, dual-clutch gearbox and a perfectly judged chassis, the A110 is far more modern than its retro-styled bodywork may have you believe. Rivals are more practical, but the Alpine stands as the best choice for keen drivers who want to stand out. The A110 makes 249bhp from its 1.8-litre Renault engine. That might not sound like much, but it’s more than enough in a car that weighs in at a mere 1,098kg. The Alpine is just over 300kg lighter than an Audi TTS – and it’s this low weight that defines the driving experience. Unlike its German rivals, the A110 offers a pared-back, purer drive. It flows down the road with a delicacy that can only be found in such a light car, while perfect balance, sweet steering and just a hint of roll through the suspension help inspire confidence. The Alpine is refreshingly compact, too, and thanks to a great view forwards, it’s very easy to place and not at all intimidating to drive.
Gjok Paloka‘s tips about race cars : It’s surprising that Kia went it with their sportscar idea. Just looking at the German competitors and one would think that Kia lost all the courage. Surprisingly, The Stinger actually put up quite a fight in terms of performance, even if it was low in sales. But the company’s design boss promised that there would be major changes – all in the hopes of generating higher sales. A camouflaged version of the Stinger was already seen roaming the streets around April this year. The actual release is expected sometime at the end of 2020.
The sales fortunes of Jaguar’s much-hyped successor for the Lyons-designed E-Type will tell you much about the development of the modern sports car market. When it launched in 2013, we imagined the buying public would value it as a sort of prettier and more dependable modern TVR – favouring the biggest-hitting eight-cylinder engines and viewing it as a cheaper and more powerful front-engined rival to the 911. For a while, buyers did exactly so. But as the car aged and the focus of the purist sports car market migrated (both upwards towards mid-engined super sports cars like the Audi R8, and downwards towards cheaper mid-engined machines such as the Porsche Cayman and the Alpine A110) the F-Type had to move with it. The six-cylinder models grew in popularity, until Jaguar created another wave of interest in the car by furnishing it with a four-cylinder engine.