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1954 Ferrari 375-Plus sells for record $18 million at Goodwood

Among all the action at the Goodwood Festival of Speed this past weekend, Bonhams held its classic car auction, bringing in a massive $38.4 million in sales. And this was undoubtedly the highlight.
Bearing the chassis number 0384 AM, this 1954 Ferrari 375-Plus has a storied racing history, competing that year in such events as the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the Mille Miglia and the Silverstone endurance race, where the late José Froilán Gonzalez drove it to victory. One of only five made, the 375 Plus packed a 4.9-liter V12 with 330 horsepower under aluminum barchetta bodywork by Pininfarina. It was subsequently owned by Kleenex scion Jim Kimberly, trading hands between owners on both sides of the Atlantic and was the subject of a legal dispute over its ownership four years ago.
With the dispute now resolved and after heated competition between two bidders, the Ferrari finally sold for £10.7 million, equivalent to $18.2 million at today's rates and accounting for nearly half of the day's sales totals. Other highlights included a 1902 De Dietrich 16-HP "Paris-Vienna" Rear-Entrance Tonneau and a a '75 Lamborghini Countach, each of which sold for around $1.7 million - the latter eclipsing the example that Bonhams also recently sold for $1.2 million.

Top horsepower-per-dollar cars in 2017

Bang for the buck. That quasi-scientific statistic is bandied about by motor heads everywhere from classrooms to barrooms, though the truth of the matter is that it's exceedingly complex to measure. A fair performance-per-dollar index would include something like cross-referencing MSRP (Manufacturers Suggested Retail Price) with point-to-point times on a track or driving route, which is obviously hard to do comprehensively. But, for the sheer joy of talking about cars and playing with a big spreadsheet, there's always the horsepower-per-dollar index, which is more straightforward, albeit hilariously flawed. There are vagaries even with this simple formula, of course: MSRP for vehicles can change at a moment's notice, to say nothing of the bottom-line shifting that happens with local deals or showroom negotiation. For this list we're running with the straight MSRP wherever possible, and as recently reported as we can get it. All the vehicles on this list are 2017 models, and all trims are reported where the lowest price and differing power levels intersect. Some choices were made for personal preference and some for sanity, avoiding things like all 48 trim levels of the Ford Transit, all with the same horsepower). If this list were a simple top ten, or even a top fifty, you'd be bored to tears with all the red, white and blue that is represented. Following perfectly with conventional wisdom, American cars really do lead the world where hp/$ is concerned. So, for the sake of variety (and the sheer joy of seeing a minivan 'win' one round of this thing) I've sorted out some top five and bottom five lists for broad power categories. Let's dive in. Less Than 100 Horsepower Okay, okay, this is hardly a category we'll grant you. But we've often tried to click off all the sub-100-hp cars on sale in the US, and making this list gave us an excuse. It also illustrates that none of these smallish vehicles bring cheap horsepower to the table - for that you'll need a motorcycle. The segment-leading Chevy Spark (above) asks just over $139 for each hp, and that Smart Fortwo Electric Drive has hp on sale for about the same price as its very distant family cousin, the Mercedes-Benz SL65 AMG (insert your favorite Smart joke here... we know you want to).

Ferrari 488 GTB turbocharges its way towards Geneva debut

Automakers left, right and center are embracing turbochargers as the best way to get more power out of a smaller package, and that includes performance automakers like Ferrari. In line with the latest FIA regulations, the Prancing Horse marque turbocharges its Formula One single-seater, and followed the same route with the California T. And now it's done the same with the replacement for the 458 Italia. Dubbed the 488 GTB, Maranello's latest mid-engined V8 supercar arrives forty years after the debut of the 308 GTB that launched Ferrari into the segment. It packs a 3.9-liter turbocharged V8 offering up 661 horsepower and 560 pound-feet of torque. That represents a 64-horse increase over even the extreme 458 Speciale, and an even more impressive torque boost of 162 lb-ft, despite a decrease in displacement by approximately 600cc. (Ferrari isn't saying exactly how many turbochargers its new forced-induction engine carries, but we're likely looking at a pair of twin-scroll turbos.) The new engine is said to be enough to propel the new 488 GTB to 62 miles per hour in three seconds flat, to 124 mph in 8.3 seconds and on to a top speed in excess of 205 mph. And at 1 minute 23 seconds, the 488's lap time at Fiorano is also a good half second faster than the naturally aspirated Speciale and two seconds faster than the Italia. Ferrari says it dedicated significant efforts to keep the engine responsive and the exhaust note enthralling despite the introduction of forced induction – the first time a turbo has been used in mid-engined, eight-cylinder Prancing Horse, since the F40. Of course there's more to the 488 GTB than the turbocharged engine. It also features a revised Side Slip Control 2 (SSC2) system, working in tandem with the F1-Trac and E-Diff systems to keep the supercar on the razor's edge without sliding off of it. The revised bodywork also generates 50 percent more downforce – thanks in no small part to the active diffuser that necessitated moving the exhaust pipes upwards – and a more slippery shape than any production Ferrari yet. The interior has likewise been revised with new control clusters, air vents, instrument panel and infotainment system for optimized ease of use. The new Ferrari 488 GTB – shorthand for Gran Turismo Berlinetta – is set to debut at the Geneva Motor Show next month, but you can scope it out now in the high-res image gallery above and the full details in the press release below.