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And now for something completely different . . . a specialty DVD.
In my review of Super Speedway, I didn't hint at my passion for performance cars. I've driven two-place roadsters or GTs since I was eighteen. Every time I buy a new car my wife complains that she can't drive it - she can't seem to master a manual transmission. British, Italian, German, Japanese . . . I'm an equal opportunity sports car owner. And resembling Pavlov's dogs, I salivate whenever I see a true exotic, a machine that performs beyond any rational man's needs (particularly in the States, where Autobahn-like roads are non-existent), and costs far beyond any normal man's means. Ferrari, Lamborghini, Aston Martin . . . I can dream, can't I?
So when I was offered the opportunity to review the ultimate comparison test in the form of Martin Brundle's Super Cars, an automotive voyeur's dream, I couldn't resist. Brundle is no stranger to high performance vehicles. He began racing in 1973 as a twelve-year-old and he continued to race for decades. He's raced in Formula 3, Formula 1, USA IMSA, and World Sportscar Group C. He won the 24 hours at Le Mans in 1990 co-driving a Jaguar. In '92 he was teamed with Michael Schumacher and had a very good Formula 1 season. He eventually became a Formula 1 commentator on Britain's ITV, but continued to race for a while, most notably returning to Le Mans where mechanical problems plagued his efforts. So who better to thrash millions of dollars worth of exotic super cars around town, through the countryside, and on a race circuit?
His selection criteria for the test? Exclusivity, the car's potential usefulness in daily driving, and the car's ability to reach speeds in excess of 200 MPH (for when you're feeling really peckish and you must rush down to the market for a bag of crisps in one great hurry). The cars he's assembled to evaluate include the Ferrari F40, the Lamborghini Diablo GT, the Lamborghini Murcielago, the TVR T440R, the Pagani Zonda C12 S, Koenigsegg CC8S, the Jaguar XJ220, the Ferrari Enzo, the Bugatti EB110, and the McLaren F1. Don't feel bad if you're not familiar with most of these machines; I previously hadn't heard of seven of them, and for good reason. These ten world-class super cars are together worth over $5.6 million; each is beyond my wildest dreams of avarice.
I sit down in my theater and buckle up; for the next hour, Brundle evaluates these amazing beasts on the roads of Britain and on the track, and I'm along for the ride. There are outside shots galore to capture the dynamics of these mechanical wonders. And within each car has been mounted a small camera (a lipstick camera based on the quality of the interior images) to focus on the driver as he puts each car through its paces. Brundle does this with authority and wit, sprinkling his observations with anecdotes related to his extensive automotive experiences.
I was particularly amused by the first chapter, a critique of a bright red Ferrari F40. As capable and sexy as this car may be, the public road section quickly exposes a few deficiencies in practicality. Simple things, like clearing speed bumps and moving the car onto the street from a driveway, are impeded by a very low ground clearance, particularly the front spoiler. As he traverses narrow streets and gated entryways, it becomes clear that the wide F40 doesn't seem to have been built for many of England's constricted thoroughfares. And don't expect much charity from envious drivers. Few yielded to allow him to enter traffic on a busy street. And yet the rewards may far outweigh the inconveniences. On the track, Brundle pushes the car to its limits, revealing both strengths and the subtle flaws that must exist in any device devised by man.
The exterior shots of the static cars are visual caresses. Before each test begins, Brundle describes the next car as a camera on a boom slowly flies around it, providing views from every possible angle and a look at the design details. I was reminded of the leisurely shuttle flyby of the Enterprise in Star Trek: The Motion Picture , as Scotty provides Admiral Kirk with a feast for his eyes.
Brundle works his way through the ten cars, providing a running commentary as thrashes the cars about. As the closing credits approach, he ranks the cars, explains his reasoning, and declares a winner. It's a delightful, vicarious experience for any car enthusiast. And educational, too. I didn't know that Audi had bought Lamborghini. (The site is consuming so much of my time, I'm simply not keeping up.) Videotaped in '03, my only disappointment with this test is that it excludes America's true exotic, the Saleen S7. As you can see from the table culled from Saleen's website, the S7 would have been an interesting contender (and it's a bargain, too). Perhaps it will find its way into Brundle's next super car test.
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1/4 Mile Seconds/MPH
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0-60 MPH in Seconds |
0-100 MPH in Seconds |
0-100-0 MPH in Seconds |
Slalom in MPH |
Skidpad in G's |
Market Value |
Saleen S7 |
10.8@131.0 |
2.9 |
6.5 |
11.2 |
72.0 |
1.02 |
$430,000 |
Ferrari Enzo |
11.1@133.0 |
3.3 |
6.6 |
11.7 |
71.0 |
1.01 |
$652,830 |
Ferrari F50 |
12.1@124.5 |
3.6 |
8.0 |
NA |
65.7 |
NA |
$480,000 |
Lamborghini Murcielago |
12.0@121.0 |
3.6 |
8.7 |
14.2 |
65.7 |
0.90 |
$273,000 |
Maserati MC12 |
11.4@129 |
3.7 |
6.8 |
12.1 |
69.6 |
0.98 |
$840,000 |
McLaren F1 |
11.6@125.0 |
3.4 |
7.7 |
NA |
64.5 |
0.86 |
$1,131,120 |
Porsche Carrera GT |
11.2@130.0 |
3.4 |
7.3 |
NA |
71.0 |
NA |
$440,000 |
Come to think of it, there was another disappointment. As I drooled over these fantastic machines, I was reminded over and over again that my pockets are insufficiently deep.
The Video: How Does The Disc Look?
The 1.78:1 video is presented anamorphically, but the images are derived from a PAL recording made in Britain. The conversion is far more successful here than I've seen in other British television brought to the States, but it remains noticeably flawed. Significant halos are visible; most likely, this isn't a product of the standards conversion so much as it is due to the cameras and recording techniques. Motion artifacts on horizontal edges may be observed during vertical pans, but they are modest. The exterior shots are reasonably detailed; the shots within the cars are soft and mushy. Exterior color is splendid. The red Ferraris and the bright yellow Lamborghini Murcielago are vivid; their colors are very well saturated without a hint of chroma noise or smearing. Shadow detail is not an issue; this is a well-lit production. Small object detail remains quite reasonable, as do fine-grained textures.
The Audio: How Does The Disc Sound?
The stereo track is okay; it's all upfront. The background music is reasonably well conveyed with a broad soundstage. I expected a more dynamic sound from the engines, but the exhaust notes are rather anemic. Brundle's dialog is distortion-free throughout. This can be characterized as typical television quality audio.
There are no alternate languages or subtitles or Closed Captions.
Supplements: What Goodies Are There?
There are two supplements on this disc. One is Inside McLaren (2:41), where we learn about a cooperative venture with Mercedes Benz. This conversion suffers from periodic hesitation as frames are duplicated to convert PAL's 25 frames per second to NTSC's 30 frames per second.
The other extra is Flying Lap at Oulton Park (2:32). Brundle is in the Lamborghini Murcielago once again. The object is to describe the track and the driving techniques required to lap the circuit in minimal time.
The 61-minute show is organized into ten chapters, one for each car. I should mention that you could safely skip the repetitious sequence that links one car test to another by using the next chapter button.
Exclusive DVD-ROM Features: What happens when you pop the disc into your PC?
There are no DVD-ROM features on this DVD.
Final Thoughts
This is a sports car enthusiast's voyeuristic dream. Seen on a large screen, it's a satisfyingly intimate look at exotic automobiles that very few of us will ever see, much less drive or own. The presentation is slightly flawed, but for the appropriate audience, this is a kick. Note that the DVD seems to be available only at Imagine Racing Productions.
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