A Week Of New Cars
This week there have been multiple announced, each guaranteed to impress in their segment. The highly anticipated C8 Z06 - featuring a record setting 670hp flat-plane crank V8, The new 2022 Mercedes SL55 and SL63 - a more luxurious AMG GTC, and the new Rolls Royce Ghost Black Badge - equipt with more power and the highest quality of materials seen in other “Black Badge” Rolls Royce’s.
2023 Corvette Z06
I can pretty confidently say everyone was pretty awestruck after the announcement of the new Z06. In the C7 Z06, we saw chevy go with a supercharger to push 650hp. This year, they had more ambitious goals. Seen testing their car against other naturally aspirated cars, the Ferrari 458 Italia and Porsche GT3RS to name a few, everyone expected something naturally aspirated, but not to the lengths they went with it.
Equipt with a 670hp flat-plane crank V8, the new Z06 has set a record for the highest horsepower naturally aspirated V8, topping the Mercedes SLS Black Series (622hp). Due to the nature of flat-plane crank V8s, this motor is able to rev up to 8600 rpms. Having spent two years perfecting the sound, it gives off an ear-piercing whale, that competes with the 458 for best sounding V8 ever made. The interesting part is this V8 only puts out 460ft/lbs of torque, 10 less than the base C8. Similar to the C8 being able to put the power down with lower torque figures, the new Z06 also seems to be able to do the same, with a 0-60 on paper of 2.6 seconds.
Similar to the C7 Z06, it can come with optional aero. Choosing either the aero package or the Z07 package, you receive a massive carbon fiber wing, side skirts, as well as aero in the front and up the sides of the bumper - giving the car a very aggressive look. If you chose the Z07, you can also go with the optional carbon fiber wheels, saving 40lbs of curb weight and helping you in the turns. In the interior, you can also choose as much carbon fiber as your heart desires.
As far as pricing goes, we expect it to start around 90k. Add in aero/Z07, carbon fiber options, and upgraded interior - you very well could be looking at a 120-130k car… IF you can get it at retail. One dealership reported having over 1,000 people on their waitlist, which they expect to be about a 3-4 year list. Similar to what we saw with C8s, expect to pay 30k over if you are picking one up second hand.
The 2022 Mercedes SL
The 2022 Mercedes SL has really impressed me. It comes in two versions, the SL63 and SL55, both equipt with a 4.0 L Twin Turbo V8 - pushing out 577 and 469 horsepower, respectively. I don’t see any mentions of these being different engines, so I have to assume the difference here is the tune, something that can be easily changed.
The profile of these cars if very very similar to that of the AMG GTC. With the panamerica grill, ragtop (which can be raised/lowered in 15 seconds at speeds at or below 37mph), and sloped off back end, you’re getting a fantastic look at a fantatic price. It is expected the SL55 comes in slightly below 100k and SL65 about 20% higher than that.
The interior is what sets this apart from the AMG GTC, though. “S” is fitting in “SL”, It has the massive screen seen in the new S Class cars. With the departed S class convirtable, this takes its place - fitted with an AWD system compared to the AMG GTC’s RWD system.
These cars are sure to impressed, and can except to be picked up starting the beginning of 2022, regardless of the issues with V8’s Merecedes is having.
Rolls Royce Ghost Black Badge
For someone like me, the black badge treatment is what I always expect out of a Rolls Royce. All the chrome blacked out, dark paint job, extra power and carbon fiber wheels. The “murdered” out look is the ideal look on a rolls - and they insure to leave no boxes unchecked.
The paint job alone uses 100 pounds more paint than your average ghost. You move from 563 to 592 horsepower (which is probably needed with the extra weight). As you would expect, they are also all wheeled drive with the rear wheel stearing we see in the phantom/bigger cars. For those unfamiliar, rear wheel steering can make the car feel shorter by increasing the turning radius that is often lost in LWB (Long wheel base) cars.
Expect a new black badge to cost you a cool 400k. You can spec yours here: Rolls Royce Configurator
With as many car announcements as there have been this week, I’m going to leave this weeks newsletter at this! I will be sure to include extra watch content next week!
What to look forward to:
Soon I plan on talking about how Tourbillon watch movements work
How you can own part of a luxury watch with the introduction of NFTs in the crypto space.
Authentication of a watch through NFTs