Sports/GT

To say we’re longtime fans of Mercedes-Benz’s fullsize hardtop coupes is a gross understatement. While we’re most partial to the achingly pretty W126 2-door (probably because we own one of its similarly-handsome sedan siblings), we can certainly appreciate all generations of Stuttgart’s big coupes, be it the baroque swagger of the W112, the just-this-side-of-overengineered W140, or the two generations that have been built during this century. Now the storied marque is giving the current generation CL-class (codenamed C216) a mid-cycle refresh, and that includes tweaking the high-po AMG lineup as well.

The big news on this front (other than the tweaked front and rear styling) is the fact that the CL63 AMG ditches its normally-aspirated 6.2L V8 in favor of AMG’s all new 5.5L twin-turbo V8. Yes, we’re puzzled by the decision to not revive the CL55 AMG moniker too. What we’re not puzzled by is why the atmo mill was sent packing: Looming clampdowns on fuel economy and emissions by governments in many of the markets where Mercedes-Benz does business.

It’s hard to believe the Acura NSX (known to the rest of the world as a Honda) has been out of production for five years. It seems like only yesterday that the aluminum intensive, VTEC V6-propelled rocket burst onto the scene and proceeded to make life miserable for Ferrari, who at that time was peddling the slower, heavier, cruder, less reliable and, oh yeah, significantly pricier 328. The NSX (and, to a somewhat lesser extent, the Lexus LS400) had signaled that the Japanese auto industry had well and truly arrived.

What’s more, the NSX neatly encapsulated Honda’s corporate M.O. (which, not coincidentally, mirrored that of founder Soichiro Honda) of dreaming big, asking “Why not?” instead of “Why?”, and baking at least a pinch of fun into everything it makes in a world-beating, four-wheeled package. Lately, however, we and countless others have to wonder what happened to the Honda and, by extension, Acura that gave birth to vehicles like the NSX.

Gearheads who were around during NASA’s heyday – roughly the mid-1960s to the early-1970s – no doubt remember that one of the perks of being an astronaut at that time was receiving a new Chevrolet Corvette in which to get around while on earth. It was a match made in marketing heaven: The Right Stuff-types loved tooling around in their sexy, powerful and all-American sports cars. And Chevrolet loved the copious amounts of publicity.

No surprise, then, that Chevy made the Corvettes/rockets connection in the very slick ad that debuted during this week’s MLB All-Star Game broadcast. While it doesn’t mention the astronauts, it does play up how the Vette and the early American space program were kindred spirits of sorts: both were out to prove that American creativity and determination could take on and beat the competition from abroad. Still not getting the red, white and blue hued warm and fuzzies? Watch the ad after the jump.

Many of today's high-dollar, high-performance cars feature handbuilt engines put together by one person, and that one person usually winds up signing the finished product. This provides the buyers of vehicles so equipped with peace-of-mind that the engine in their car was carefully and lovingly assembled by another human being, not to mention being able to show it off to your friends. Does it even matter that some engine builders have John Hancock's illegible enough to make many doctors' chickenscratch look typewritten? No. No it does not. Nothing can top that for sheer coolness, right?

Chevrolet reckons there is one very good way to top that, actually, and that involves letting customers put together their car's engine themselves. That's right, people ordering a new Corvette Z06 or ZR1 will be able to check the box for "Engine Build Experience" on the option sheet that will let them visit GM's Performance Build Center in Wixom, Michigan and - with start-to-finish guidance from some of the plant's pros of course - assemble the LS7 or LS9 V8 destined for their new Vette. Sounds great, huh?

For most mainstream automakers, “entry-level model” is a euphemism for “thrifty, tiny and cheap.” Aston Martin is, of course, not a mainstream automaker, which is why the baby of its model family (at least until the surely-we’re-being-punk’d Toyota-based Cygnet city car drops in Europe and other markets), the V8 Vantage, is best described as “speedy, sexy and cheap-by-our-standards.”

However, for some folks, the 380hp of the pre-facelift V8 Vantage was just not enough, and many of these same folks would have preferred a bit less weight as well. For these people, Aston Martin offered the limited edition 2007 V8 Vantage N400, based on the V8 Vantage N24, a lightly-modified variant which schooled a whole host of more specialized racing machinery in the 2006 Nürburgring 24 Hour race. The British GT builder had no trouble selling every N400 it built, so why not do a sequel?

Remember the awesomely-sinister (Or is that sinisterly-awesome?) concept coupe from Maybach, the Exelero, from a few years ago? Remember being smitten with its handsome fastback lines, Punisher-esque maw and, oh yeah, a stonking twin-turbo V12? Well, given the reanimated brand’s perpetually shaky future, it should be no surprise that parent company Daimler doesn’t seem to have any intent of putting the thing into production. Bummer, man.

But some of you really, really want one. You’re outta luck, right? Not if a recent JamesList posting is to be believed you aren’t. Well, you sorta are. To quote an obscure coach for a little-known Great Lakes area football franchise, “What the hell is going on out here?!”

Cobra Technology and Lifestyle may not be a familiar aftermarket tuner, but this German shop has a host of performance parts for the Nissan 370Z Roadster in the form of their N+ Sports Kit. Aerodynamic bits include a revised front spoiler and rear diffuser with some additional flair coming by way of carbon-fiber-look covers for the rearview mirrors. A 19-inch wheel and tire combo, lowering springs, sport suspension and convention sports exhaust system also are included.

The offering is pretty ho-hum except for the optional special exhaust system that features a remote-controlled butterfly valve. And here's where things get interesting... The beauty of this upgrade is that the driver can control the exhaust note to give the car a bit of split personality. By adding a special flap to a set of round 120-mm pipes, the company can deliver "discrete sportiness to pure racing sound sound at the push of the button on the radio remote."

When you think of well-known performance models, pair those up with car companies and put together a list; any way you cut it, Hyundai ends up somewhere between last and second to last. After all, this Korean powerhouse is best known for making cheap daily drivers with warranties that smack every other automaker across the face. So, it was a big risk they took going after a market dominated by the likes of Mustang, Camaro, 370Z and G37. Not only did they have to deliver a compelling sports car but they had to keep within the brand's design aesthetic and maintain their value proposition (yes, I went to business school). At this point in the story, we all know they succeeded. Whether you are talking the Four P's or the Three C's, these guys executed flawlessly. 

We've all heard the tremendous hype as well as the unflattering barbs directed at this vehicle but, like most things, the truth falls somewhere in the middle. A few weeks ago, we had the opportunity to road test the Hyundai Genesis Coupe 2.0T Track edition and walked away extremely impressed though not totally blown-away (due to some minor quirks). So, we were really looking forward to seeing how the supposed Mustang slayer, the Genesis Coupe 3.8, performed in the wild with its bigger engine and beefier guts. And so the journey begins...