2011 Ford Shelby GT500 - Limited 5,500 Units

Even though the 2011 Shelby GT500 carries a base price of $49,495 without any options ticked, Ford has already received more than 3,000 orders for the 550HP Mustang since the car was announced earlier this year. But despite the sales success, the Deaborn-based automaker said today that U.S. sales of the 2011 Shelby GT500 will be limited to just 5,500 units for this model year.

"We are pleased with the pace of retail orders for the 2011 Shelby GT500," said Fritz Wilke, Mustang brand manager. "The car continues to be popular with sports car enthusiasts and collectors who are blown away by the increase in horsepower and performance. The limited production of the 2011 should make this year even more desirable."

Based on the latest Mustang, the 2011 Shelby GT500 is powered by a new aluminum-block 5.4-liter supercharged V8 engine, which churns out 550 horsepower and 510 lb.-ft. of torque. .

Street Legal Batmobile Replica from Tim Burton Films found for Sale

Not only is this example of the 1990s Batmobile nice-looking, it's also street legal - at least in the State of Ohio where the seller is based. The Bat-winged replica was built by a company named "Putsch Racing" and it makes use of a tube frame chassis with a Corvette drive-train and an independent suspension.

It comes equipped with a canopy that opens and is fitted with various gizmos including retractable machine guns that fire blanks. Hit the jump for more photos and videos of the car in motion.

Nissan 370Z Ads Poke Some Fun at German Sports Car Rivals

A new and rather aggressive advertising campaign regarding the Nissan 370Z and GT-R sports cars has kicked off in Britain. The company launched a series of poster and print adverts highlighting the fact that both sports cars are better in terms of performance yet cost less than their equivalent German rivals.

And mind you, Nissan isn't being polite as the automaker is using tongue-in-cheek phrases in the ads such as "The Winner Hans Down," "The Germans Came Off Wurst," "Kaisers Chiefed" and "Deutschland Deutschland Über-Rated".

To further frustrate its German adversaries, the Japanese company took an Audi TTS bearing the slogan "More expensive, slower and less powerful than a Nissan 370Z" around the streets of London. It was joined by a Porsche Cayman adorned with the words "I dream of being as fast as a Nissan 370Z". Ouch...

"It simply challenges the convention of German sportscars being the only benchmark for performance and quality," says Steve McLennan, Nissan Marketing Director.

"Nissan is confident in the ability of 370Z and GT-R to eclipse our comparable German rivals in terms of outright performance and accessibility and it's now time to shout about it."

We still haven't seen the ads on the GT-R, but the 370Z print campaign, which will appear in key men's lifestyle and motoring magazines, plus outdoor poster sites across the UK over the next six months, includes other cars as well such as the BMW Z4 and the Porsche Boxster.

The first outdoor poster concerning the 370Z went on display on the huge 360-degree 47ft tall BFI IMAX billboard at Waterloo, London.

And just in case you're not aware of the 370Z's performance specs and how it compares against the German competition, below are two charts with the basic details, courtesy of Nissan.

Hamann Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG

The tuning folks over at Hamann Motorsport got their hands on the new Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG 'Gullwing' and developed an initial assortment of upgrades. For the time being, Hamann's offerings for the Gullwing model include a new set of " 21-inch cross-spoke "Design Edition Race" alloy wheels in a black matt anodized finish with titanium wheel bolts.

The wheels are wrapped in 245/30 ZR21 tires at the front and 295/25 ZR21 at the rear. The price for the alloy wheel and tire combo is set at €10,500 or about US$13,500 at today's exchange rates.

There's also a lowering kit that reduces the SLS AMG sports car's ride height by 30mm (1.2-in.) and a new stainless steel exhaust system with twin 90mm tail pipes on each side.

A more comprehensive tuning package with aero and performance enhancements is believed to be on the way.

Dodge Mopar '10 Challenger Limited Edition

A couple of weeks ago, Chrysler announced details on the Dodge Mopar 10' Challenger special, but kept the pictures under wraps simply teasing us with a single illustration of the muscle car.

Today, the company published a full set of images on the Mopar '10 Challenger, which is available for pre-order now in a limited production of 500 units with pricing set at $38,000 for an automatic transmission and $39,000 for a manual gearbox.

The limited edition model is based on the 2010 Challenger R/T with the 5.7-liter HEMI V8 engine. Mopar, the parts and accessories arm of Chrysler, has spruced up the car with a raft of cosmetic and performance enhancements.

"Mopar '10 has a wicked, sinister appearance that will turn heads." said Ralph Gilles, President and CEO of Dodge, Chrysler Group LLC. "The Mopar brand resonates with hard-core enthusiasts, and this car will too."

The car comes equipped with a hood-venting system, a cold-air intake, a front strut-tower brace with shock caps, and a unique engine cover plus a rear strut-tower brace that stiffens the chassis to improve handling.

The Mopar '10 Challenger is available exclusively in black with blue, red or silver strips on the outside and matching accents inside. Exterior features include 20-inch forged heritage gloss-black wheels, black-chromed grille surround and a functional, vented T/A-style hood with vintage hood pins. And let's not forget the Mopar logos that can be found just about everywhere, inside and out - we get it, it's a Mopar special...

As for the interior, there's Katzkin leather seating and a custom leather-wrapped steering wheel with baseball-style stitching, while nostalgia fans will surely dig the Mopar shifters (T-handle for automatics and Pistol Grip for manuals).

As a bonus, all owners will receive a unique cover and a special kit that includes a certificate with the vehicle identification number (VIN), date of build completion, and build number, and a limited-edition sketch of the car signed by Chrysler Group design boss Mark Trostle.

Corvette Transformation into Ferrari F40

Just because you can't own a real Ferrari, doesn't necessarily mean that you have to go and butcher one up for the sake of fulfilling your desires... And while this here Corvette C4-based replica of the Ferrari F40, which was spotted hiding out in a garage somewhere in Spain, isn't the worst one we've seen to date, it's not a pretty sight to behold, that's for sure.

Source: Motorpasion

Mercedes Benz SL63 AMG 'Black Saphir' by Inden Design

The crew from Inden Design have launched a new (and very expensive) widebody treatment along with some performance upgrades for the Mercedes-Benz SL63 AMG hardtop roadster.

According to the tuner, the basic wide body kit is priced at €19,000, but to complete the look you'll have to dig out another €3,500 for the bonnet, €800 for the rear diffuser in carbon fiber and €999 for the front apron. And oh, did we mention that the assembly of the kit costs €8,000 and the lacquer finish an extra €7,500? Add them all up and you're already in €38,800.

For the 20-inch deep-dish alloy wheels shod in Dunlop tires size 275/30 R20 up front and 325/25 R20 at the back, you'll have to remove another €13,200 from your bank account.

An extra €1,500 will get you an electronic module for lowering the suspension, while Inden Design also offers a rear parking camera for €900, daytime running lights for €420, a sport exhaust for €1,200 and a power kit that increases output from 518HP to 560HP for an undisclosed price.

Porsche 918 Spyder 718HP Hybrid Supercar

It's official; Porsche will build a limited series of its radical 918 Spyder plug-in hybrid concept that made its debut at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show earlier this year.

"Reflecting the overwhelming response from the public and customers to the Concept Study, the Supervisory Board gave Porsche's Board of Management the mission to develop a production model based on the car already presented," Porsche said in statement on Wednesday.

Porsche insiders noted earlier this year that in order for the car to be produced, the company needed a minimum of 1,000 orders. A report from Bloomberg in the beginning of July made word of at least 2,000 individuals placing non-binding expressions of interest for the supercar.

"Production of the 918 Spyder in a limited series proves that we are taking the right approach with Porsche Intelligent Performance featuring the combination of supreme performance and efficient drivetrain concepts," said Michael Macht, President and Chairman of the Board of Management of Porsche AG.

"We will develop the 918 Spyder in Weissach and assemble it in Zuffenhausen. This is also a very important commitment to Germany as a manufacturing base."

The concept version of the mid-engined two-seater 918 Spyder featured a plug-in hybrid drivetrain comprising of a mid-mounted 500HP 3.4 liter V8 gasoline engine, and electric motors located on the front and rear axle with a combined output of 218-horsepower.

The company claims that the hybrid supercar should return 78 mpg US (3 liters / 100km) with CO2 emissions of just 79g/km, hit 100km/h (62mph) in 3.2 seconds, reach a top speed of around 320km/h (198mph) and speed around the 'Ring faster than its predecessor, the Carrera GT.

Porsche didn't say when it will introduce the production version of the 918 Spyder, which is rumored to carry a price tag of around $630,000.