Reading the latest copy of Evo, I got to musing about what might make a car special these days.
In my youth
when all your attitudes to such things get formed, an E type or a Ferrari or a Lotus Elan were special because they offered what the family car could not. When the family car was pushrod, they were OHC if not TOHC. When the family car had 4 gears they had 5. When the family car had a solid rear axle and drum brakes they had discs and IRS*. And above all, when the family car did 0 to 60 in maybe 15 secs, they did it in 7 or 8 or 9. In short they were special because they offered special engineering and performance - at a price.
Nowadays its quite common to get a family car with 500 bhp from an engine every bit as sophisticated as in a Lambo. And with saloon car bodies weighing much the same as an exotic sports car sp performance isnt much different either. Take the Nissan GTR, a souped up saloon car as an example. Or an M3/M4/M5.
So where is the market gap for the builder of special cars to fill. Is it only rarity?
* even then , none of the family saloons had sliding pillar front suspension
