With changes afoot for the 2017 World Rally Championship, why is EngageSportMode’s editor failing to get excited about the prospect of a 380hp Polo? Here’s the deal. I’ve owned five different Volkswagen Polos in 14 years, including an R-Line and two different GTI versions. As such, it’s fair to say I’m something of a fan…
Category: Manufacturers
Ned Jasper – Bentley Continental GT Speed Black Edition. Something different?
Bentley has a new special edition of the Continental GT. Is this how a sporting luxury car should look? Ned Jasper gives his opinion. This is the Bentley Continental GT Speed Black Edition. It’s the fastest production Bentley ever, with 633bhp on tap and a top speed of 206MPH. It also has enough torque to move…
Friday Video – No Fooling
As the post goes live it’s April Fools’ Day, which means the press offices and PR departments of car companies have been in overdrive trying to find the wittiest way of plugging their products. Nissan – Alive (2016) from Alessandro Pacciani™ We’ve covered these efforts before on ESM but, instead, this year we’ve decided to take…
New York Auto Show – Revised 2017 Nissan GT-R now available in orange
The Nissan GT-R has been around for almost nine years now, with several minor facelifts along the way. Other than a new ESM-pleasing colour, how many changes can you spot on the 2017 Model Year GT-R? Existing as a rival for the Porsche 911 Turbo, there’s a chance Nissan’s engineers have adopted the German marque’s love of…
Friday Photo – 2017 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
What better way to bookend the week than with another stupidly-powerful V8 muscle car? If an orange Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat doesn’t quite tickle your fancy, there’s always the Chevy option… Admittedly if you go for the Camaro, you’re going to have to take a 67hp hit compared to the Hellcat. Yes, the new 6.2-litre supercharged…
Go Mango! Retro colour option for Dodge SRT Hellcat models
EngageSportMode likes cars that are painted orange. It also likes the Dodge SRT Hellcat twins. Someone, somewhere, has been listening to our prayers it would seem. Thank you! We’re not sure which sacrifice, offering or blessing it was that made this happen – we’re just pleased one of them worked. Joking aside, the option to purchase…
Friday Photo – Two 911s reimagined by Singer
Singer Vehicle Design has gained a huge cult following for the breathtaking restoration of air-cooled Porsche 911s. Two new customer-commissions continue to show why.The Singer story still sounds almost too unlikely to be true, with a small workshop in Southern California, ran by a former rock musician. But that is the genuine truth – the cousin of Iron…
New – Volkswagen Golf GTI TCR Racer
Volkswagen Motorsport doesn’t just do rallying. It also churns out touring cars like this Golf GTI TCR. VW’s dominance of the World Rally Championship may be the jewel in the crown for the German company’s motorsport arm, but it’s also quietly confident about this new tin-top racer. Let’s qualify the ‘new’ statement a little bit first, however….
Geneva 2016 – Porsche 911 R
Turbocharging, dual-clutch gearboxes; is nothing sacred in Zuffenhausen anymore? Porsche appears to have heard those collective complaints, and picked Geneva as the place to launch the enthusiast-pleasing 911 R. Ned Jasper gives you the details. Fancy a GT3 RS with less shouty bits and a manual gearbox? Step this way; it’s the 911 R. When Porsche…
Geneva 2016 – New 261 mph Bugatti Chiron
The Bugatti Veyron was hugely impressive when it came to big numbers, but with its replacement the French brand has gone even further in the pursuit of insane figures. Say hello to the mind-bendingly fast Bugatti Chiron. Let’s get the raw numbers out-of-the-way first because, as dramatic as the Chiron may be to look at, let’s not kid…
Friday Photo – Configuring the new Acura (Honda) NSX
If you’re in the USA you can order your brand-new 2017 Acura NSX right this very second, with the help of a rather cool online configurator. For those of us not Stateside, it’s the chance to play around with your dream NSX specification at least.In the UK we’re still waiting on full details of how much…
New – McLaren 570GT joins Sports Series
After an emphasis on outright performance, McLaren turns to the idea of luxury and refinement with the latest addition to the Sports Series of cars. Joining the 570S and 540C Coupe, the third model in the entry-level Sports Series makes a number of detailed changes to increase everyday usability. Whilst the concept of a 562 bhp supercar being practical and…
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