One of the things I like about my "real" job is that I get to travel a bit within the US, and have spent many trips in LA. Last time on my way out, I was perusing through the latest edition of DuPont Registry, or Playboy for car nerds, when I saw that there was a Bugatti dealership located not too far away from where I was staying. Well, it turns out I had a free morning, so I decided to point the rental car in the direction of the dealership on the off chance that I could cast my eyes on probably the most insane car ever made. After several miles of LA traffic, I pulled up onto Olympic Ave and into O'Gara Coach Company, who have

Test Vehicle: 2006 Ford GT 5.4L V8 with 6-speed Manual Gearbox I was born in the (cough) mid to late 1960's, and this car was originally conceived around about the same time. The original was called the GT40 because it was 40 inches tall. This new one is a full 5% taller... Most exotic cars are low to the ground. This one is almost wing like. I didn't think I was going to fit to be honest. I can't imagine losing that extra 5%. The design itself hasn't changed too much other than a little bit of modernizing from the Ford design team. The old GT40 was iconic and this one really sets the right tone from the start, from the white

Test Vehicle: Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione Coupe The hardest part of this review is knowing where to start. This car is as rare as hen's teeth. There are to be only 500 made of the Alfa Romeo 8C, and only about 50 to make it to the US, so the fact that I am about to drive this is not lost on me. Pictures have circulated on the web and their various tubes for a while of this car, but *sigh* good god, it is jaw dropping in the paint. If there was a naked woman on the 8C's bonnet, you'd want her to get off it. Honestly, it's just ridiculous. Curves everywhere. The body is carbon fiber and is draped over the chassis to

Test Vehicle: Audi R8 4.2L V8 with 6-speed R-Tronic Automated Manual Gearbox This car feels to me like its been around forever, and I don't know why that is.  Maybe every magazine extolling its virtues has overloaded my brain with it so much, that it just feels like it. This isn't the first time I've seen one in the paint, but it is still small.  Wow.  Its a great looking car from the front, and the back, but the side view looks awkward to me, in the same way that the Cayman looks awkward from the side.  I love the sideblades, and wish this one didn't have them the same colour as the rest of the car.  The LEDs around the headlights make a real statement and

Test Vehicle: Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4 5.2L V10 with 6-speed eGear Auto Gearbox You are never quite prepared for how small these supercars are sometimes.  Low slung, painted in a beautiful pearl metalic color with a set of beautiful black wheels, the latest Gallardo out of Sant A'gata looked purposeful and amazing. The Gallardo doesn't have the sense of drama of the Murcielago with the regular opening doors, but it's still a design that turns heads.  Totally different from the other Italians and their curves and swoops, I loved the angular look of the Gallardo. It was attracting a lot of attention, and camera phones were in full force wherever I went in this thing.  The redesigned front of the LP560-4 looks fantastic, with the scoops looking more dramatic

Test Vehicle: Aston Martin Vantage 4.7L V8 with 6-speed SpeedShift Auto Gearbox Pig ugly. What a horrible looking thing. What were they thinking? All things that you will never hear when talking about any Aston Martin. The V8 Vantage was introduced to the world in 2006 to partner the already achingly gorgeous DB9. It looks like a shrink wrapped version of the DB9 with the skin pulled even more tightly across the frame to give a more taut looking car. I don't know if it's better looking than the DB9, but it's certainly no worse looking. Then there's the DB9 convertible. I can't even talk about it. Its the most beautiful thing on 4 wheels in my opinion. The V8 I was going to drive was a gorgeous green metallic. I believe