Jalopnik: asc

One-Off ASC McLaren Diamonback Viper Up For Grabs

The Auto Insider — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 09:45:00 EST

Big Dodge Viper Fan? Have $295,000 burning a hole in your pocket? Always wanted to own one of the fastest, rarest Vipers ever made? Well we've got the car for you.

The ASC built McLaren Diamondback Viper is now up for grabs on DodgeVipersForSale.com. Originally built for the 2006 Detroit Auto Show, the Diamondback Viper was a one-off concept based on the 2006 Dodge Viper SRT-10 Coupe that showcased lighter weight components and a McLaren tuned 8.0-liter V10 good for 615 horsepower. It was originally rumored that the Diamondback was the precursor to the 2008 model, but unfortunately it was shelved to live its life as a concept study only.

The Diamondback Viper featured custom carbon fiber body panels, a special stainless steel quad outlet exhaust, a custom carbon fiber racing stripe with "Mclaren Orange" and "Viper Blue" accents as well as a custom in-hood trumpeted air intake system with individual port throttles.

It's estimated that it cost ASC and Dodge $750,000 to build the one-off Diamondback Viper, but it can be yours for the much lower price of $295,000. This may seem expensive to you and me, but considering the collectability of concept cars, this is one's a steal.

Diamondback Viper Startup

Original ASC Press Release:

THIS IS NOT YOUR AVERAGE VIPER
ASC (American Specialty Cars) has a long history of developing vehicle prototypes with innovations designed to showcase the company’s expertise in vehicle design and performance materials. ASC showed its expertise at the 2006 North American International Auto Show by unveiling a supercar made even more super by the addition of a mostly carbon-fiber body. A ‘snake’ with an all-new skin, the ASC Viper Diamondback is super-light and super-fast. It’s fitting that ASC, which helped the Chrysler Group bring the new Dodge Viper SRT10 coupe to life, would, with the aid of McLaren Performance Technologies, show how the Viper coupe might be taken to an all-new level of ‘extreme’.
The 2006 615-horsepower Diamandback Viper features a carbon fiber roof, deck lid, rockers, fascia inserts and body trim. It also sports a massive OmniCarbon™ hood that shows off ten unique trumpeted air intakes, with individual port throttles peeking through. This is a McLaren Performance Technologies feature, reminiscent of McLaren Can-Am engines of the past.

The hood is comprised of compression-molded carbon fiber, both painted and woven. It’s displayed beautifully, with a broad, clearcoated racing stripe down the Arctic White painted expanse, subtly outlined by “Viper Blue” and “McLaren Orange” pinstripes. In all, ASC removed about 85 lbs. from the vehicle — the hood alone weighs about half of the standard production model. Taken together with the performance modifications by McLaren, the resulting power-to-weight ratio is estimated to yield an incredible 0-60 time — in just 3.5 seconds!

ASC MODIFICATIONS:

* Custom McLaren Performance Technologies engine tuning, resulting in 615 Horsepower

* Exterior racing-type kill switch

* Custom ASC OmniCarbon™ hood, with carbon-fiber roof, hatch, front chin spoiler, rear fascia, side rockers, deck spoiler, side venting gills and interior accents

* Custom in-hood tumpeted air intakes,
with individual port throttles

* 1.25" lowered suspension

* 4-point racing harness

* Custom stainless-steel, quad outlet exhaust

* Custom carbon-fiber racing stripe, with "McLaren Orange" and "Viper Blue" accents

* "Arctic Ice Pearl" paint

* Custom 3-piece forged and painted 19" aluminum wheels

[Dodge Vipers For Sale via Motor Authority]

Buick GNX

Jonny Lieberman — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 12:15:00 EDT

One of the most tired cliches in all of autojournodom is "Darth Vader's Ride." You've read it one million times, I've used the phrase several ~~hundred~~ dozen times and we think of it every time a pitch-black Corvette Z06 passes by. It's old, it's worn and until further notice, the Maybach Excelero owns that appellation forever. Nonetheless, we're old enough to remember the first time an all-black coupe was mentioned in the same sentence as the Dark Lord of the Sith. Twenty years ago, it was good old Car & Driver that (as we recall) created the trope when they subtitled a piece on the special-edition Buick GNX, "Darth Vader, Your Car Is Ready." For a 12-year-old car nut with Empire Strikes Back bedsheets and two or three shoe boxes filled with Star Wars trading cards, that was enough to peg the GNX as the coolest car ever. Even better, my father's childhood friend Joe Silverman showed up to my Bar Mitzvah in a pitch-black GNX and took me on a joyride. Obviously, that was the highlight of my passage into manhood. Two decades later, very little has changed.

The first thing you need to understand about the two-door GNX — dubbed the "fastest production sedan in the world" (more on that later) — is that it's not just a hopped up G-body. Of course it is exactly that, but it is also a last gasp, a closing argument, a punch before dying. The GNX is Ali rope-a-doping Foreman in the jungle. No, check that – the last great Buick was the equivalent of George Foreman beating Michael Moorer to regain the heavyweight championship at the age of 45, two decades years after he lost the title to Ali. The GNX is the legitimate heir to the legendary GSX. You see, GM's RWD G platform was set to be replaced by the FWD A-body chassis in 1981. But due to high sales (hint, hint) the General decided to keep the Gs around for a few more years. The GNX then, was the final chance for Buick's engineers to show the world their unholy yet good stuff. And boy did they.

In 1982 Buick introduced the Nascar-inspired Grand National package for the aging Regal. For a small sum you could get an optional turbocharged (but not intercooled) 3.8-liter V6 good for 180 hp. Not bad for the early '80s. The car disappeared for a year and then popped back up in 1984 with fuel injection and an intercooler. Power continued climbing year by year and by the time 1987 showed up – the final year for the G-bodies – GM's juiced 3800 was cranking out a very respectable 245 horsepower. But that wasn't nearly enough. So, 547 fully optioned (though no t-tops or sunroofs) Grand Nationals were handed over to ASC/McLaren for a bit of polishing.

Remarkably, ASC/McLaren didn't alter a single bolt on the engine. But everything else was tweaked to within an inch of its life. Out went the factory turbo and in came a fast-spooling, ceramic-impellered Garrett turbocharger. The intercooler was beefed up and cold air was fed from it to the turbo via a ceramic-coated pipe. A Performance chip was added. The transmission was reprogrammed (though, still mechanically stout enough to handle the extra twist), a special torque-converter was added and a transmission-fluid cooler was bolted in place. A custom, low-restriction exhaust was fitted. The GNX was the only Regal ever offered with 16" wheels. These were machined from a lightweight alloy and were wider in the back than the front (P255/50VR16 vs. P245/50VR16). Wider arches, functional heat-sapping fender vents, a strengthened aluminum pumpkin and gallon after gallon of black paint were all part of the kit.

Results? The official numbers were blood-pumping. 276 hp, 360 lb-ft of torque, zero-to-60 in 5.7 seconds and the 1/4 mile in just over 14. Let's put this in perspective. The Corvette in 1987 was capable of hitting 60 mph in 5.9 seconds and turning a 14.5-second quarter mile. A Porsche 928 S4 of the same vintage was good for 5.5 seconds and 13.9. Those numbers are basically identical to a 1987 911 Club Sport's. Ferrari's wild-looking 12-cylinder boxer-engined Testarossa, a real live supercar, managed 60 mph in 5.3 seconds and the quarter mile in 13.6. Only the Lamborghini Countach LP500 QV was significantly faster, hitting 60 mph in 5.2 and breaking the 13 second barrier with a time of 12.9. Still, as the GNX only cost $29,900 (the GNX package was jaw-dropping $10,995 option over the Grand National's $19,000-ish sticker). The Countach? How about $100,000, more than three times as much.

Only thing was, the GNX's factory numbers were bullshit. GM being GM, it didn't want any of its vehicles outperforming the Corvette. So Buick was forced to fib. When the press cars were handed out, journos discovered actual power was closer to 300 horses and an unbelievable 400 lbs. ft of torque. The ASC/McLaren boys also went to work on the chassis, essentially building a dragster for the street. They ditched the rear control arms in favor of a ladder bar/panhard rod setup. The back of the ladder bar attaches to the passenger side of the differential (to prevent left-side up, right-side down twisting during brake stands) and the front attaches to a frame crossmember. For further stability they added a stamped diagonal brace behind the rear seat. All this tuning added up to a shocking zero-to-60 mph time of 4.5 seconds and quarter-mile best of 13.26 at 104 mph. Essentially, those were Countach numbers from a Buick sedan (although the Regal had just two doors, its structure and interior volume made it a sedan, technically – this is still being argued). These numbers are competitive even today; a Shelby's GT500 takes 4.5 to hit 60 mph and covers the 1/4 mile in 12.9.

The GNX also looked the part. All 547 dash-plaque numbered examples were black-on-black with all the badges (save one in the grill) deleted. Few cars have ever looked more bad-ass. Fewer still ever tried. The GNX is just evil, especially from the rear. That makes sense, considering the rear is the vantage point from which you'll most likely observe a GNX. (Look at those taillights!) Darth Vader indeed. Sadly, 1988 was the year Buick decided to "damage" itself and pursue the AARP/golfer set. But no matter how screwed up the Tiger Woods brand is today, none of that sadness can detract from the infamous glory of the GNX. My dream? To one day take a GNX onto a golf course and do some serious donuts. Which is of course, to paraphrase George Carlin, the kind of dream that kept me out of the really good schools. So be it. A final note: we're well aware that the GNX can't turn left or right. It was never supposed to. – Jonny Lieberman

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Spy Photos: 2008 Jeep Liberty To Get Fabric Roof?

Ray Wert — Fri, 20 Oct 2006 15:44:45 EDT

According to the folks so in love with Mopar, they're Allpar, the 2008 Jeep Liberty spy shots from the other day that I positively orgasmed over were missing a shot from a very key direction — up top. Here's why, according to spy shot mistress, Brenda Priddy:

The photos above were shot at street level and may have overlooked one of the most interesting features that will be offered on the new Liberty: A huge retractable fabric roof! When we first started inquiring about the upcoming Liberty, our sources seemed to switch subjects and asked us if we saw the ASC Cosmos Hummer H3 that was shown...

...at the 2006 NAIAS. With that in mind, our focus on a camouflaged Liberty was from above, paying special attention to the roof. And sure enough, the roof had unique camouflage covering what apparently is Jeep's biggest secret: a fabric roof system, which will put the Liberty in a class of its own.

Hmm, interesting. I'm not so sure how I feel about a fabric — and what looks to be retractable — roof. But we're sure of one thing, we'll stay on top of the situation. Ha, I slay me. – Ray Wert

The Jeep Liberty for 2008 (new! October 20 - fabric roof! See photos below) [Allpar via AutoBlog]

Related:
Spy Photos: 2008 Jeep Liberty [internal]

Rumored! 2010 Iteration of Four-Door Chrysler 300 To Get Drop-Top Treatment?

Ray Wert — Fri, 08 Sep 2006 10:37:09 EDT

Although specialty builder and supplier ASC Incorporated unveiled its Helios concept, a lattice-structured ragtop based on a 300C four-door sedan, at the Detroit show last year, word on the street is the German-American hybrid's rejected the ASC design due to cost considerations and feasability studies. Instead, Motor Trend is reporting the 'merican side of the cross-Atlantic merger of equals has contracted with another cross-Atlantic merger of equals, the Austrian/Canadian killer combo of Magna-Steyr to build a Karmann-style retractable folding steel roof for the next design iteration of the big gangsta sedan. Of course, they've been mulling over this idea forever — so who knows whether this is real or Memorex.

Spied: 2010 Chrysler 300 Four-door Convertible [Motor Trend]

ASC Releases Preview of Detroit Concepts

Mike Spinelli — Tue, 03 Jan 2006 07:37:09 EST

Specialty car and coachwork supplier American Specialty Cars (ASC) — builder of the convertible Chrysler 300C "Helios" — will bring two open-top concepts to warm and sunny downtown Detroit next week for the NAIAS show. The Cosmos is a Hummer H3 equipped with a new fabric-top system that can open the truck's entire cabin to the elements, or cover the passenger or cargo areas exclusively; the second, yet to be announced, will sport a panoramic sunroof that employs panels made from Lexan, which is some kind of mutant plastic. No word on production of the "Sunvertibles," but ASC will likely offer them as part of an aftermarket conversion package sometime in the near future.