Top 10 Most Expensive Cars

There are so many different cars around these days, and the general public only really knows about half of them. Everyone knows about the regular car companies. People know all about these car makers and they also know about the standards they can expect from these companies. There are also other car companies that most people know about, but only a half of the population would ever have the finances to own one of their cars. The general public only knows the name of these cars, and not much about what makes them a quality vehicle.

After those two groups of cars, there is another group that most of the population would never be able to afford, and most people also do not know a lot about these cars. In fact, some people may not even know that some of these cars even exist. The cars I'm talking about are more than luxury cars, more than sports cars, and more money than four or five "regular" cars put together! Here are the top ten most expensive cars in the world:

Bugatti Veyron - With a price tag of $1,700,000, there aren't too many people who you will see driving this vehicle around town. With "1001" horsepower, this car has a 16.4 engine and it can get up to a speed of 400 kilometers per hour. This car was built by a subsidiary of Volkswagon in France, and it took years to perfect.

Ferrari Enzo - This sports car costs 1,000,000, and is also known as the Enzo Ferrari or the F60. It was built with Formula One Technology in 2003. This car and its brand name basically speaks for itself in the racing world.

Pagani Zonda C12 F - Weighing in at $741,000, this car is still too expensive for the average person to own, and probably the above average person as well! It sports a 7.3 V12 engine that has been passed down by its predecessors.

Koenigsegg CCX - This sports car will cost you $600,910 to buy, and it is worth every penny. The Competition Coupe X (CCX) commemorates the anniversary of the completion and first test drive of the first CC car in 1996. It has a 32 valve V-8 engine that was based on the Ford Modular engine design.

Porsche Carrera GT - This car has a price tag of $484,000. Labeled as a super car, this German made sports car has a 5.7 liter, V10 engine. It also boasts a 612 SAE horsepower.

Mercedes SLR McLaren - Weighing in at a price of $455,00, this car is still too expensive to drive around town. The "SLR" in its name stands for "Sportlich, Leicht, Rennsport", which is German for "Sport; Light; Racing". This car has a 5.5, V8 engine.

Maybach 62 - This car will cost a more affordable $385,250. This is also the first of the above listed vehicles that is not a sports car. The Maybach 62 is known as an ultra-luxurious car, and was designed with a hired driver in mind.

Rolls-Royce Phantom - This luxury car costs $320,00, and it is one of he most well known brand names of the luxury car business. The Phantom was made in 2003, and it was the first to be made under the BMW name.

Lamborghini Murcielago - This sports car costs $279,900 to buy, and is a lot more affordable than the above sports vehicles! This car will definitely turn heads and has a 6.5 liter engine.

Aston Martin Vanquish - This super car will cost you $255,000 to buy, and it was featured as the official James Bond car in one of his films. This sports car has a 5.5 liter V12 engine.

What makes these cars so expensive? A combination of things contributes to the price tags of these vehicles. One part is the years of work that went into designing and making them. Another part would be the brand name of each car. Add to that the power of the engines, and the style of the cars, and you have the reason for the expensive price tags.

source :  http://www.freearticles.co.za/culture-and-society/consumer/top-10-most-expensive-cars.html

Read more...

Hybrid Cars Advantages and Disadvantages

Hybrid cars are considered as the car of the future. It is able to effectively conserve fuel and at the same time, it only produces low levels of toxic fumes. Because of these benefits, hybrid cars are now growing in popularity every single day. Many people are now considering getting rid of their conventional cars and purchase a hybrid car to help in cutting fuel consumption cost.

Hybrid cars have two engines for it to effectively conserve fuel consumption. It has the traditional gasoline engine and it also has an electric motor and batteries. The two engines work together in order to cut fuel consumption. With this technology, you will be able to cut fuel usage by more than half. Just imagine, with a hybrid car, you will be able to go more than 60 miles to the gallon. With this kind of savings, hybrid cars are definitely the car of the future.

Hybrid car owners virtually do not feel the increasing cost in fuel prices. This is the main advantage of the hybrid car. There are other advantages that a hybrid car can give you. Recently, the President of the United States has signed an agreement that hybrid car buyers will be able to enjoy tax incentives. This means that by owning a hybrid car, you will be able to save money on taxes.

There are other benefits that the government imposes on hybrid car owners, such as free parking, and free entry to car pool lanes. Some even offer discounted fees on toll gates.

The braking in hybrid cars is also configured to capture the energy released and uses it to charge the batteries inside the hybrid car. This means that unlike electric cars, hybrid cars do not actually need to be charged from your home electric outlet.

However, with all the advantages that a hybrid car can give you, there are also disadvantages. The main disadvantage of hybrid cars is that the retail price is quite expensive. Only people who have enough money can purchase hybrid cars. However, the twist in all this is that hybrid cars are actually cheaper when compared to conventional cars in the long run. If you compute the total fuel consumption of both cars, you will actually see that you can save a lot more money on hybrid cars.

The only thing is that hybrid cars are expensive right from the car lot.

Hybrid cars are relatively heavy because of the heavy batteries installed inside the car. This is why hybrid car manufacturers integrates smaller internal combustion engines and are constructed with light materials and should be aerodynamic in order to maximize efficiency. This means that hybrid cars can never really go fast.

Another issue about hybrid cars is that it is very risky in accidents. What makes a hybrid car work effectively is also what makes it risky if it ever gets involved in an accident. This is because hybrid cars stores high amount of voltage in its batteries. This means that there is a high chance of getting electrocuted when you get involved in an accident. This also means that it is relatively difficult for rescuers to get the drivers and passengers out of the hybrid cars because of the dangers of high voltage in the car.

These are the advantages and the disadvantages of hybrid cars. Car manufacturers today are now looking for ways to get rid of the disadvantages of hybrid cars. In the near future, you will see that hybrid cars will be lighter and also contains less risk due to high voltage dangers.

source :  http://www.freearticles.co.za/cars-and-trucks/hybrid-cars-advantages-and-disadvantages.html

Read more...

Spacious Cars Offering High Level of Comfort and Safety

Spacious cars not only offer comfort, sophistication and glamour, but also safety. Big cars not only accommodate more people inside and provide more head and leg space for the commuters, but also guarantee stability and safety. Cars that come with enough head and leg room also have the best of security features like safety airbag, which provide additional security in the event of a crash.

* Low Centre of Gravity Guarantees Stability

The bigger size of spacious cars guarantee low centre of gravity - a proposition which prevents the car from tipping while going past curves. The risk of tipping while taking fast turns is comparatively lower for spacious cars. Also in the event of a crash, the bigger cars don't easily get thrown away. The weight of the vehicle is on its side, ensuring safety for the commuters.

* A few Spacious Cars Offering High Level of Comfort and Safety

The cars that guarantee maximum space for front passengers include Nissan Maxima, Lexus LS 430, Lincoln Town Car, Audi A8, Infiniti Q45, Chevrolet Impala, etc. These cars come with spacious interiors, ensuring enough head, hip and leg room. They are not necessarily the biggest or the priciest cars. Lots of interior space is everyone's requirement, even while they buy a small car.

* Standard Car Safety Features

Other features that guarantee safety of the passengers include crumple zones, strong passenger compartment, seat belts, air bags, head rest, etc. Side impact protection can be guaranteed by internal padding, strong doors and side beams. Recent models of vehicles also come with side airbags, which provide protection against severe injury while side impact or crashes.

* Crash Avoidance Features

There are also advanced safety measures like antilock braking systems (ABS), Active Braking Systems, Intelligent Speed Adaptation (ISA), electronic stability control (ESC), traction control systems, etc. Some of these systems are computer controlled systems, which guarantee stability and control while performing evasive manoeuvring and in conditions like slippery road.

* Crash Protection Features

Spacious cars also come with adjustable seats and steering wheels. These are standard features of any car today. Automatic transmission, electrically adjustable mirrors, etc are other features aimed at enhanced safety of drivers and passengers. These features are aimed at minimising the risk of a fatal injury in the event of a crash or rollover.

* Car Safety Ratings

In the US, car safety tests are conducted by The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. In Australia, The Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP) and Used Car Safety Ratings (UCSR) are the safety ratings. In both cases, cars are subjected to frontal and side collision tests. They publish the results, which the car manufacturers use in their advertisements.

In the US, it is a five-star rating system. In Australia, it is a points-based test, with 37 points the highest safety rating. The test results are published in the respective websites for easy access by car buying public. Thus you can easily find the safest cars by simply checking the safety tests by the authorities.

* The Advantage of Spacious Cars

New car tests and historical data of road accidents suggest big cars with spacious interiors and enough safety features ensure protection against fatal injuries to the occupants, even in case of big collisions. The spacious cars ensure better visibility for the drivers, around the car and can be better prepared against frontal and side collisions.

The big cars also come with the best of collision avoidance and collision protection features, which minimise the risk of collisions and in the event of a collision, the vehicle absorbs the impact and doesn't pass it on to the passengers. Thus, it can ensure higher levels of security than the cars that don't come with the safety features.

The big cars also come with another advantage. It is easier for other drivers to spot a big vehicle, than it is to spot a smaller vehicle. Make sure the vehicle has coloured lights at the right areas to ensure easy visibility at night. Thus, big size is not just about status symbol, but also about ensuring your safety on road.

Road safety is the sum total of several different factors. Road conditions, driver's concentration on road conditions, the safety features of the car, etc are the first things that come to mind. Add to that, the size of the vehicle and the comfort of the passengers. Thus spacious cars offering high level of comfort and safety is not that difficult to find. You find the best driving experience and safe journeys, EVERY time.

source :  http://www.freearticles.co.za/cars-and-trucks/spacious-cars-offering-high-level-comfort-and-safety.html

Read more...

Luxury, Top-Class Cars Feature Difference

We need to clearly know what we mean by this class of vehicles. Luxury, top-class cars are considered styled, luxurious automobiles aimed at the comfort and satisfaction of its owner or driver, dispensing with passenger space, cargo capacity and other practical concerns for the achievement of style.

The luxury, top-class cars are very costly and their price range is above Rs 20 lakhs. Hence, these cars are affordable and are chosen by high income group.

Luxury, top-class cars have the capacity to carry a maximum of 6 passengers. The companies such as- BMW, Daimler Chrysler, Porsche, Rolls Royce manufacture these cars and companies such as -Aston Martin and General Motors are still planning to dish out their models in the market under this segment.

A car may be classified as a luxury automobile even if it is not a luxury, top class car. Performance alterations of common, production cars, such as luxury compacts, luxury, top class sedans, muscle cars, hot hatches and other cars similar to these generally are not luxury, top class cars, still share characteristics owned by luxury, top class cars.

Sometimes, performance cars of all compositions are classified as luxury, top class cars, or, often, as performance cars.

A luxury, top class car does not need a big, powerful engine, even though a lot of them do have them. Some traditional cars of this category do not possess powerful engines, but were popular for excellent handling because of their light weight, a well-engineered, balanced chassis, and modern suspension. On complex and compressed roads, automobiles like them achieve more efficiency than a heavier, more powerful luxury car with less flexibility.

As a result of North American safety regulations, a lot of luxury, top class cars are not in the market for sale or use in the United States and Canada. In the United Kingdom, Europe, and the Middle Eastern market (e.g. UAE), an adjustable attitude towards small-volume specialist manufacturers has helped companies to flourish.

The drive train and engine layout decide the handling features of an automobile, and is the core to the design of a luxury, top class car.

It is common for luxury, top class cars of any generation to have the following features: the front-engine, rear-wheel drive train layout (FR layout). This configuration has lasted the test of time longer in such cars compared to mainstream automobiles.

For achieving of better handling and weight distribution, other formats have been developed. The RMR layout is a common feature seen only in luxury, top class cars - the motor is centre-mounted in the chassis (nearer to and behind the driver), and supports only the rear wheels. High-performance cars of this type and supercar manufacturers always show a liking to this layout.

A lot of modern cars, specifically grand tourers, also employ a FMR layout, with the motor placed between the front axle and the firewall.

Only a few manufacturers still employ the rear-engine and rear-wheel drive layout (RR layout). The motor has well spread out weight across the wheels, and this delivers exceptional traction, but is not advisable, as the engine's weight is not between the two axles, the vehicle is badly balanced. Thus, many early vehicles handled errantly.

However with the continuous modifications to the design, added with the engineering developments and support of electronic driving i.e. computerized traction-stability control, the manufacturers have been able to fight against inherent weaknesses in the design. Luxury, top class cars continue to be an irresistible attraction for car fanatics all over the world.

source :  http://www.freearticles.co.za/cars-and-trucks/luxury-top-class-cars-feature-difference.html

 

Read more...

Driving Lessons Brisbane - The Simple Solution

Learning to drive is one of the biggest things in your life! Especially when you are younger. It's like getting a whole new level of Independence and being free from any worries. Just driving down the street without having to worry about anything can be so exciting! But first you have to get there. How do you get there? By having lessons of course! But who should you chose to give you the best lessons available? Where do you find driving lessons in Brisbane that are both useful and value for money? Well we are here to help you find the right driving school for you. In this article we are going to give you a few pointers so you can pick your favorite driving school and get learning right away!

The first thing to look for in driving lessons in Brisbane is a driving school with experience. If a school has just opened up then it may be a good idea to get a few customer references before signing up to a course of lessons. If a driving school has been around for several years then you know that it's doing a good job otherwise it wouldn't still be around! You can also ask for a driving instructor that has lots of experience, after all you need to be happy and comfortable with your instructor so it's a good idea to make sure you get one you are happy with.

You need to find driving lesson in Brisbane that cater to your style of driving and car type. If you are only interested in driving an automatic then find a school that caters for this. The same goes for manual driving. You will need extra lessons to learn all about the gears and clutch but a good teacher will help you to learn this quickly and may even save you a lesson or two. Many schools will give you a recommended amount of lessons that you should have and this can include practice with anyone other than an instructor so it's a good idea to go for an initial assessment drive to see how many hours you need.

There are a few other things that you should look out for when booking driving lessons Brisbane and these are how you can pay for your lessons. Some schools offer you the chance to buy a block of lessons at a discounted or reduced price while others let you prepay in advance for your lessons. These options may work for you or you may just want to pay cash when the instructor collects you. The important thing to remember is that you feel comfortable taking your lessons with your instructor and that you feel happy the driving school will help you pass.

So now you know how to find the best driving lessons Brisbane has to offer, what are you waiting for? Get out there and get driving now! You will love the freedom and will enjoy every minute of learning with the right instructor. 

 

source :  http://www.articletrader.com/automotive/driving-lessons-brisbane-the-simple-solution.html

Read more...