Ultima

[stig]

Walton said:

My point is that despite all the tests and obsessive measuring and record-breaking Ultima seem to totally neglect any real-world handling testing. I've never ever seen an Ultima tested 'against' anything EVER.

I don't think it's a question of neglect, but the positioning of the Ultima seems to preclude it from inclusion in such magazine tests etc. as they don't recognise it as a production car.

Evo are about the only exception and they rate both the GTR and the Can-Am very highly. The GTR640 gets supercar status from them.

Besides, handling reviews are entirely subjective. The performance stats are not.

Edited by stig on Friday 23 June 12:43

[Walton]

stig said:

Besides, handling reviews are entirely subjective.

Lap times are a very good (if not perfect) indication of handling, and are quite objective.

[mybrainhurts]

Walton said:

Yah boo

It's been racing since day 1, old boy....go and watch it.

[hornet]

Genuine question - was that time set on a race prepared strip? Curious as to how official these sort of records can ever be, given that the runs are happening on such a variety of surfaces, from airfields to full on drag strips.

As for that Audi (and the one before it, and the Saab) and the whole rest of the Street Eliminator class...one of my favourite classes to watch, and really needs to be back on the FIA bill.

[moleamol]

hornet said:

Genuine question - was that time set on a race prepared strip? Curious as to how official these sort of records can ever be, given that the runs are happening on such a variety of surfaces, from airfields to full on drag strips.

As for that Audi (and the one before it, and the Saab) and the whole rest of the Street Eliminator class...one of my favourite classes to watch, and really needs to be back on the FIA bill.

It was Santa Pod.

Street Eliminator is so cool to watch. The Audi is amazing, especially with the huge blower hidden where the engine should be.

[hornet]

moleamol said:

Street Eliminator is so cool to watch. The Audi is amazing, especially with the huge blower hidden where the engine should be.

Saw it was Santa Pod, just wondered what "state of tune" the track surface was in, and whether that is taken into consideration, as obviously a prepped track is going to offer up shed loads of grip compared to an airfield. That's not to take anything away from the numbers though, far from it.

Back to Street Eliminator...easily one of my favourite classes to watch, and that includes the pro stuff. The first (CC)SE car I ever saw run was the Saab, so always sort of rooted for John Sleath from then on. No real logic behind that, I just liked the stealthiness of his cars. The whole class is mind blowing though, especially when you happen upon them at a fuel stop

[DHGTR]

all these points for and against the GTR are very valid .... ...but any manufacturer of a production car can attempt these 0-100-0 / 1/4 mile records but they have either chosen to not enter into the competition or they do not have a product that can challenge. from what i read the 0-100-0 test is widely regarded as 'the' performance test by manufacturers and critics. as we can see from published figures, other supercars are not as quick as the Ultima GTR720... FACT. it is an official world record. if an Atom can do it quicker let the factory or an owner arrange and break this record, it would be brilliant to see two british cars fighting for this title.
The debate about the rear wing is irrelevant as in the Ultima price list it is an optional extra, so was the wing 'added' for the photos or 'removed' for the runs? Please can we get behind the World Record Holders who happen to be british. with our car industry rapidly dissapearing should we not be shouting about our succeses to the rest of the world?

[DHGTR]

Also while i'm on the soapbox, one car can not be king of everything. the Veyron (great car), can it hurl its two tonnes around a track like an Atom - no.
Does it cost £85000 (Ultima built car) - no
can an Atom or an Ultima transport an executive down the autobahn in luxury at 200mph - no
i know ultimas do 200mph, but not exactly in luxury
does an Atom keep you dry in the rain - no
in my opinion the Ultima delivers supercar performance for a fraction of the cost is good on the track (maybe not the best) extremely fast anywhere you want to drive it. i think it will have its 'knockers' until The Stig gives it a go around the track and of course if its not the fastest we will have the 'knockers' back because there have been 3 or 4 quicker cars (at what cost). of course evrveybody thinks their car is the quickest on the road .........................
now i remember my Capri 3000GT, it was just after midnight and we ..............

[mk1fan]

Gazboy said:

mk1fan said:

donteatpeople said:

So what are the criteria for a “production car” then? How many of these high spec option cars have they sold or is it enough for it to just be on sale?

You can buy the Ultima GTR in the same spec from Ultima as a kit or you can pay them to build it for you. There are several of these cars for sale at the moment.

The Audi or Supra that are being mentioned are not available from the manufacturer in that form so are not Production cars.

The CRD Supra is a tuner special, but in the late ninties you could buy a tuned MR2 or Supra direct from Toyota- all came with TRD widebodies, but everything else was to your spec. There is atleast one 500bhp MR2 with a ToyotaTechnocraft VIN plate in existance. I think there were 30 MR2's built, not sure how many Supras.

Now that's customer service.