We’ve been waiting a long time for this one, but it was worth every minute of the delay.
If you can believe it, the Pagani’s successor to the Zonda supercar began production in 2012, meaning we’ve had to sit on our hands for five years while the Italian automaker crafted its Huayra Roadster.
Now, finally, we have a clean look at what may be the most beautiful drop-top supercar ever built. Designed from the ground-up as a convertible, rather than simply re-engineering the coupe’s roof, the Huayra Roadster has distinct styling and a re-worked powertrain.
Replacing the fixed roof is a choice of a carbon fiber or fabric top. Unlike most convertibles, the Huayra Roadster is actually 176 pounds lighter than the coupe and makes 34 more horsepower. Like the coupe, a Mercedes-AMG 6.0-liter twin-turbocharged V12 is found behind the rear seats, but it develops 754 hp, which is even more than the hardcore Huayra BC. More power and less weight (about 2,800 pounds total) mean the Roadster will be noticeably quicker than its fixed-roof counterpart.
Weight savings are due largely to a “Carbo-Titanium” and “Carbo-Triax” monocoque chassis. Pagani says the material used in its platform is more advanced than Formula 1 cars and is 52 percent stiffer than the coupe’s architecture. Add to that a dual-clutch transmission that’s 40 percent lighter than similar systems and an aluminum-alloy suspension that shaves 25 percent from the coupe’s setup, and you can see what we mean about this being more than just a restyling.
Peak torque of 738 lb-ft. is available earlier than in the coupe, at 2,400 rpm. Brembo brakes — six-piston front and four-piston rear — haul the supercar down, and Pirelli P Zero Corsa tires help it achieve an astounding 1.8g of lateral grip.
Each of the 100 production cars has already been allocated to a customer for $2.89 million a pop.
BYD has launched the third-generation Qin Plus DM-i in China, and the first thing that caught my eye is its price. According to CarNewsChina, the plug-in hybrid sedan starts at 79,900 yuan, which is about $11,980. That’s an incredibly low price for a brand-new car, especially by US standards.
What’s even more impressive is the range. The Qin Plus DM-i can drive up to 137 miles on electricity alone, which should cover most people’s daily commutes without using a drop of gas. Once the battery runs out, the 1.5-liter engine takes over. Thanks to its 17-gallon tank and roughly 91 mpg with a drained battery, the combined range reaches up to 1,423 miles.
Apple won the PC market’s worst quarter, but that’s not the entire story. It won the race by stumbling less than everyone else.
PC makers shipped just 57 million computers worldwide in Q3, which might look good, but it’s a 21% year-over-year plunge (via Counterpoint Research). And despite Apple’s Mac shipments falling by 11%, to 5.6 million, its market share rose from 8.7% to 9.8%. How did that happen?
Update (October 22 23:54 PT): In response to our query, GM clarified that offline recording support is already available on eligible vehicles. Like Tesla's Sentry Mode, it requires owners to connect a USB drive to save incident recordings, which can be viewed on the vehicle's infotainment screen. The upcoming Connected Cameras feature will build on this by giving owners remote access to these recordings via the revamped OnStar app, allowing them to check footage without walking out to their car.
General Motors has announced plans to add a new Connected Cameras feature to its OnStar service starting next year, giving drivers a way to monitor parked vehicles remotely and capture footage of certain incidents.