I hear people saying that the 288GTO or the F40 was the "First Supercar" which sounds rather dumb to me What about the Countach, E type, Hemi Cuda, XKSS, 300SL, Figoni Falaschi Delahayes etc ? What other cars do you think of when you think of "Supercar"?
One conceivable definition of "supercar" is a car that is faster than any other car on the road. In that case, the first supercar was the first car!
I would say the first supercar would be the 300SL. It broke speeds that no one had even heard of and it won soo many races.
I would think in terms of post-war automobiles, I would think the 427 Cobra, mainly due to all the attention it garnered after it's launch. Wasn't it the Cobra that responsible for the infamous 0-100-0 test? For some reason, the E-type doesn't scream supercar to me, but an XKSS certainly does (especially with Mr. McQueen at the helm). In the strict terms of boyhood bedroom posters, certainly the Countach and 911 turbo were the first cars for me that I could identify as a supercar. Then I learned about Daytona's, 250 GTO's, Miura's, etc...... Cheers -Paul
Oooooo, didn't think of that one. Good choice! On a side note, anyone catch Peter Egan's story of the Dunn/Picasso 300SL in this months Road and Track? Pretty inspiring.
I always looked at the 300 SL as the very 1st supercar, alot of performance things put it there, but to me it just seems right that its condidered the first.
I would think the XK120, but I don't know when it was made. First road car to hit 120mph, hence the name.
I would think the 959. It was the first low, low, low volume car that came out with little purpose besides to kick the crap out of everyone else... well it also came out to drain your wallet.
288 GTO. The "supercar" emerged as the break-out vehicle. From 72 through 84, nearly every car developed (the Countach was developed in 71, if I recall correctly) had to conform to new draconian emissions and safety records if it was to be sold in America (arguably the biggest market at the time). Anyhoo, the 288 GTO was the first car developed and produced after 1972 that said "F U" to emissions and safety standards. Virtually nothing on the GTO was developed to keep government and import bureaucrats happy. While other cars built before the 288 GTO were nothing but race cars with road tires, the GTO was one of the first to break out of the contemporary mentality of road-going cars in the 70's and early 80's. Hence, the "supercar". Not the first of its kind on the road in the history of the automobile, but the first to revive what was a diminishing market for real, powerful, and visceral road cars.
Is the cobra a supercar when it's basically a hybrid - an ac chassis fitted with a giant ford engine? I love the cobra but one could argue that it has more in common with a hotrod than a supercar (except for extensive racing wins).
Each person probably has their own definition of what a supercar is, sort of like obscenity, we know it when we see it but it is difficult to define. I would define a car as a "supercar" if: 1) It was the highest performace model in a companies lineup 2) Used the latest technology of the time 3) Set new standards for performance or at least was comparable to the best when it was produced 4) Was street legal 5) Was probably a limited edition Obviously 100 years of automobile evolution and development means that the performace of cars have improved dramatically over the decades, so it would be difficult to compare a Jota with the Enzo, or a 300SL with a Zonda. But since we are talking about the first supercar my vote is for three: Bugatti Royale (13.5L engine 300 hp) Hispano-Suiza J12 (9.5L engine, I believe Leno has one with a 22L (520 hp?) H-S aircraft engine) Bentley 8-Liter I don't know which one was first, they all were around 1930, and they were definitely all supercars. If we only are considering post-war, I also vote for the 300SL. The XK120 may have been before it but seems more like a development of a pre-war design rather than something truly post-war.
Without a doubt! And I like your description very much It was also the first car that almost crossed the 200mph mark.
I am going to vote for the Duesenberg. It's probably the only make of car to garner a new word in out language that is still used today. "It's a duesy"
The first supercar?..... well, what about the Stanley Steamer, while everybody was going punka-punka at about 10-15 MPH, in 1898 one of their steamers was timed at the dizzying speed of 27.40 miles per hour. In 1906 Stanley recorded a speed of 126+ MPH, on the sands of what is now known as Daytona Beach with a purpose built streamliner, which to this day is the longest standing land speed record.
I was going to propose: Early Silver Ghosts; Mercer Raceabout; pre-war Bentleys; Dusenberg; Cord (supercharged); 375MM plus; 300SLR; some of the big block vettes; , then, the predictable list, following the Muira, etc.
The 190 SL is one of my favorite Benzos of all time. It came out about the same time as the 300 SL so it didn't get spoken about and still doesn't. There is a black with red exterior one sitting in my garage right now. I oculd take some pictures if u guys would like.
190sl was very underpowered. Still cheap today, for that reason. Aesthetically, though, its a beauty. Rather have a pagoda roof 280sl with a stick.
