Supercar#Hypercar

File:Lamborghini Miura P400 S in Red over Gold, front left.jpg]]

The Lamborghini Miura, introduced in 1966 by the Italian manufacturer, is often said to be the first supercar.{{cite book |last1=Mason |first1=Paul |title=Italian Supercars: Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maserati |date=2018 |publisher=Rosen Publishing Group |isbn=978-1538338933 |page=4 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=FdxoDwAAQBAJ}}{{cite book |last1=Wasef |first1=Basem |title=Speed Read Supercar: The History, Technology and Design Behind the World's Most Exciting Cars |date=2018 |publisher=Motorbooks |isbn=978-0760362921 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=d6tqDwAAQBAJ |quote="the outlandish Lamborghini Miura, which is widely considered to be the first car to legitimately deserve the title}}{{cite book |last1=Codling |first1=Stuart |title=Lamborghini Supercars 50 Years: From the Groundbreaking Miura to Today's Hypercars – Foreword by Fabio Lamborghini |date=2015 |publisher=Motorbooks |isbn=978-0760347959 |page=4 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=kYK-CQAAQBAJ}}{{cite web |title=Supercars |url= http://www.simoncars.co.uk/racing/supercar.html |website=simoncars.co.uk |access-date=10 March 2019}} By the 1970s and 1980s, the term was in regular use for such a car, if not precisely defined.{{cite news |first=Stuart |last=Marshall |title=Rewards and frustrations of the super cars |newspaper=The Times |location=London |page=23 |date=4 September 1975}}{{cite news |title=Business Roundup; From the Land of the VW, a $35,000 Supercar |newspaper=The New York Times |page=F15 |date=21 September 1975}} One interpretation up until the 1990s was to use it for mid-engine two-seat cars with at least eight cylinders (but typically a V12 engine), a power output of at least {{convert|400|bhp|kW|0|abbr=on}} and a top speed of at least {{convert|180|mph|km/h|0|abbr=on}}.{{cite web |title=Matt Prior's tester's notes – defining a supercar |url= https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/anything-goes/matt-priors-testers-notes-defining-supercar |website=autocar.co.uk |access-date=10 March 2019}} Other interpretations state that "it must be very fast, with sporting handling to match", "it should be sleek and eye-catching" and its price should be "one in a rarefied atmosphere of its own";{{citation|last=Ward |first=Ian |year=1985 |title=Secondhand Supercars |publisher=London Motor Show "Motorfair 1985" Official Catalogue}} exclusivity – in terms of limited production volumes, such as those of the most elite models made by Ferrari or Lamborghini – is also an essential characteristic for some using the term. Some European manufacturers, such as McLaren, Pagani, and Koenigsegg, specialize in only producing supercars.{{cite web |last=Root |first=Al |title=Supercar Maker McLaren Wants to Beat Tesla's Roadster at Its Own Game |url= https://www.barrons.com/articles/mclaren-tesla-roadster-electric-vehicles-51575923514 |access-date=2023-04-17 |website=barrons.com}}{{cite news |date=2019-02-12 |title=Rapid rise: What's next for supercar company McLaren Automotive? |language=en-CA |newspaper=The Globe and Mail |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/drive/technology/article-rapid-rise-whats-next-for-supercar-company-mclaren-automotive/ |access-date=2023-04-17}}{{cite web |date=2022-09-23 |title=The beginner's guide to Pagani |url= https://www.topgear.com/car-news/top-gear-advice/beginners-guide-pagani |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=Top Gear}}{{cite web |title=Koenigsegg Founder Tells The Story Of His "Stupid Business Idea" |url= https://www.motorauthority.com/news/1099739_koenigsegg-founder-tells-the-history-of-his-stupid-business-idea |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=Motor Authority|date= 26 August 2015 }}{{cite web |last=Woodard |first=Collin |date=2016-06-21 |title=Christian von Koenigsegg Was a Frozen Chicken Tycoon Before He Built Supercars |url= https://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/videos/a29667/how-christian-von-koenigsegg-built-company/ |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=Road & Track}}

{{see also|Muscle car#Supercars}}

File:2018 Ford GT.jpg]]

During the 1960s, the highest-performance versions of American muscle cars were referred to as supercars.{{cite book |last=Harless |first=Robert |title=Horsepower War: Our Way of Life |year=2004 |publisher=iUniverse |isbn=978-0-595-30296-3 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=1smsFpLmtIoC |page=1}}{{cite book|last=Gunnell |first=John |title=Standard Guide to American Muscle Cars: A Supercar Source Book, 1960–2000 |year=2001 |publisher=Krause |isbn=978-0873492621 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=_g3CKLbpgHUC&q=Original+muscle+cars+were+called+supercars |quote=The term muscle car wasn't heard much hack when these vehicles were first hitting the market. In those days, the enthusiast magazines favored the term supercar. |access-date=16 January 2018}}{{refpage|page=8}} The description was sometimes spelled with a capital S.{{cite web|last=Severson |first=Aaron |title=Super-iority: Defining the Supercar and Muscle Car |url= https://ateupwithmotor.com/terms-technology-definitions/supercar-muscle-car/ |website=ateupwithmotor.com |date=27 July 2009|quote=what we now think of as muscle cars were more commonly called "Supercars," often (though not always) spelled with a capital S. |access-date=16 January 2018}} Its use reflected the intense competition for primacy in that market segment between U.S. manufacturers, retroactively characterized as the "horsepower wars".{{refpage|page=8}} Already by 1965 the May issue of the American magazine Car Life included multiple references to supercars and "the supercar club",{{cite magazine |title=Rambler Scrambler |magazine=Car Life |volume=16 |pages=33–36 |year=1969 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=UvY6AAAAMAAJ&q=Supercar+Rambler+Scrambler |access-date=11 September 2014}} and a 1968 issue of Car & Driver magazine describes a "Supercar street racer gang" market segment.{{cite magazine |title=Rambler Scrambler |magazine=Car and Driver |volume=14 |page=84 |year=1968}} The "S/C" in the model name of the AMC S/C Rambler produced in 1969 as a street-legal racer is an abbreviation for "SuperCar".{{cite book |last1=Lyons |first1=Dan |last2=Scott |first2=Jason |title=Muscle Car Milestones |publisher=MotorBooks/MBI |year=2004 |page=89 |isbn=978-0-7603-0615-4 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=eQK68tbpAVIC&q=the+SC+stood+for+SuperCar&pg=PA89 |access-date=11 September 2014}}

Since the decline of the muscle car in the 1970s, the word supercar has been more broadly internationalized, coming to mean an "exotic" car that has high performance;{{refpage|page=5}} interpretations of the term span from limited-production models produced by small manufacturers for performance enthusiasts to (less frequently) standard production cars modified for exceptional performance.{{cite book |last=Cheetham |first=Craig |title=Supercars |publisher=MotorBooks/MBI |year=2006 |page=6 |isbn=978-0-7603-2565-0 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=PDaDC1BAKZQC&q=Supercar+Cheetham}}

The 1990s and 2000s saw a rise in American supercars with similar characteristics to their European counterparts.{{cite web |date=2009-03-01 |title=2009-2010 Supercar Showdown! |url= https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/comparison-test/a15144147/corvette-zr1-vs-sl65-amg-black-series-murcielago-lp640-viper-srt10-comparison-test/ |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=Car and Driver}}{{cite web |date=2020-07-15 |title=Tested: 1990 Chevrolet Corvette ZR-1 |url= https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/a15141952/1990-chevrolet-corvette-zr-1-archived-test-review/ |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=Car and Driver}} Some American "Big Three" (i.e. General Motors, Chrysler, and Ford, the historic leaders of America's Detroit-based auto-industry) sports cars which have been referred to as supercars include contemporary Chevrolet Corvettes,{{cite web |last=Edward |first=Kyle |title=2023 Corvette Z06 Is America's Supercar Hero |url= https://www.forbes.com/sites/kyleedward/2022/10/26/2023-corvette-z06-is-americas-supercar-hero/ |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=Forbes}}{{cite press release |date=2021-10-26 |title=2023 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 Elevates the American Supercar |url= https://media.gm.com/media/us/en/chevrolet/news.detail.html/content/Pages/news/us/en/2021/oct/1026-corvette-z06.html |access-date=2023-04-17 |website=media.gm.com}} the Dodge Viper,{{cite web |last=Kennedy |first=George |date=May 18, 2022 |title=Dodge Viper: America's Exotic Car |url= https://cars.usnews.com/cars-trucks/features/dodge-viper-profile |access-date=April 17, 2023 |work=US News}}{{cite web |last=Snavely |first=Brent |title=Dodge Viper supercar being killed off -- again |url= https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/cars/2016/06/21/dodge-viper-supercar-being-killed-off----again/86200822/ |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=USA Today}} and the Ford GT.{{cite web |last=Ross |first=Robert |date=2022-01-10 |title=Car of the Week: A 2005 Ford GT, the First Modern American Supercar, Is Heading to Auction |url= https://robbreport.com/motors/cars/gooding-and-company-2005-ford-gt-online-auction-1234656758/ |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=Robb Report}}{{cite web |last=DeBord |first=Matthew |title=The Ford GT sets a new standard for American supercars |url= https://www.businessinsider.com/ford-gt-review-pictures-2017-6 |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=Business Insider}} Supercars made by smaller American manufacturers include the Saleen S7, SSC Ultimate Aero, SSC Tuatara, Hennessey Venom GT, and Hennessey Venom F5.{{cite web |last=Anderson |first=Gregory |date=2007-08-01 |title=Feature: The Saleen Solution |url= https://robbreport.com/motors/cars/feature-the-saleen-solution-239048/ |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=Robb Report}}{{cite web |last=Charlton |first=Alistair |date=2023-01-02 |title=The SSC Ultimate Aero Is The Underrated American Supercar Everyone Forgot Existed |url= https://www.slashgear.com/1153561/the-ssc-ultimate-aero-is-the-underrated-american-supercar-everyone-forgot-existed/ |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=SlashGear}}{{cite web |last1=McC |first1=James |last2=less |date=2022-05-25 |title=SSC Tuatara Sets New Production Car Speed Record of 295 MPH |url= https://www.newsweek.com/ssc-tuatara-sets-new-production-car-speed-record-295-mph-1710080 |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=Newsweek}}{{cite web |last=Reyes |first=Alvin |date=2022-05-03 |title=Why You'll Hardly Find Any Hennessey Venom GTs On The Road |url= https://www.slashgear.com/851087/why-youll-hardly-find-any-hennessey-venom-gts-on-the-road/ |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=SlashGear}}{{cite web |last=Silvestro |first=Brian |date=2022-08-18 |title=The Venom F5 Roadster Is a Drop-Top Hennessey Says Can Eclipse 300 MPH |url= https://www.roadandtrack.com/news/a40930355/hennessey-venom-f5-roadster/ |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=Road & Track}}

File:Honda NSX JDM 1997 Front.jpg]]

During the early 1990s, Japan began to gain global recognition for making high-performance sports cars; the automotive media described the lightweight, mid-engined, rear-wheel-drive, V6 Honda NSX produced from 1990 through 2005 as Japan's "first".{{cite press release |date=2019-02-06 |title=Acura Marks 30 Years Since Debut of Iconic NSX Supercar |url= http://hondanews.com/en-US/releases/acura-marks-30-years-since-debut-of-iconic-nsx-supercar |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=Honda Newsroom}}{{cite web |last=Irimia |first=Silvian |date=2022-12-11 |title=The Honda NSX Broke and Changed the Automotive Industry Forever - Find Out How It Did It |url= https://www.autoevolution.com/news/honda-nsx-broke-and-changed-the-automotive-industry-forever-find-out-how-honda-did-it-206083.html |access-date=2023-04-17 |website=autoevolution}}{{cite web |date=2020-06-30 |title=Tested: 1994 Acura NSX Is a Fighter Jet for the Road |url= https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/a15141577/1994-acura-nsx-archived-test-review/ |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=Car and Driver}} Matching contemporary European supercars in performance and features, the NSX was more reliable and user-friendly.{{cite web |title=1990-2005 Acura NSX: Supercar Sunday |url= https://www.motor1.com/features/381331/acura-nsx-supercar-sunday/ |access-date=2023-04-17 |website=Motor1.com}}{{cite web |title=Icon Review: Honda NSX Mk1 (1990 - 2005) |url= https://www.autoexpress.co.uk/honda/nsx/354912/icon-review-honda-nsx-mk1-1990-2005 |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=Auto Express}}

In the 21st century, other Japanese makers produced supercars. From 2010 until 2012, Lexus marketed the Lexus LFA, a two-seat front-engine coupe powered by a {{convert|4.8|L|cuin|0|abbr=on}} V10 engine producing {{convert|553|hp|kW PS|0|abbr=on}}.{{cite web |date=2009-10-20 |title=2012 Lexus LFA First Drive |url= https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/a16580655/2012-lexus-lfa-review/ |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=Car and Driver}}{{cite web |last=Hood |first=Bryan |date=2022-10-07 |title=How the Lexus LFA Became a Legend—10 Years After It Was Discontinued |url= https://robbreport.com/motors/cars/lexus-lfa-review-guide-1234756555/ |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=Robb Report}}{{cite web |date=2010-03-26 |title=Tested: 2012 Lexus LFA |url= https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/a15127600/2012-lexus-lfa-instrumented-test/ |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=Car and Driver}} The 2009–present Nissan GT-R has been described as a modern supercar that delivers everyday practicality.{{cite web |title=Nissan Skyline to GT-R: The Evolution of a Supercar |url= https://www.nissanusa.com/experience-nissan/news-and-events/evolution-from-skyline-to-gt-r.html |access-date=6 February 2024 |work=Nissan USA}}{{cite web |last=Hogan |first=Malcolm |title=Malcolm Hogan: Living with the Nissan GT-R supercar |url= https://www.jacksonville.com/story/lifestyle/auto-guide/2015/03/06/malcolm-hogan-living-nissan-gt-r-supercar/15653572007/ |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=The Florida Times-Union}}{{cite web |date=2016-03-23 |title=Godzilla by the Numbers: 2009-2017 Nissan GT-R |url= https://www.motortrend.com/news/godzilla-numbers-2009-2017-nissan-gt-r/ |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=MotorTrend}} It features a twin-turbo V6 producing between {{convert|473-710|hp|kW PS|0|abbr=on}}, with all-wheel-drive and dual-clutch transmission.{{cite web |date=2007-12-01 |title=2009 Nissan GT-R First Drive |url= https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/a17012264/2009-nissan-gt-r-first-drive-review/ |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=Car and Driver}}{{cite web |last=Tsui |first=Chris |date=2022-12-06 |title=The Nissan R35 GT-R Turns 15 Today. Here's a Look Back at Our Supercar Teenager |url= https://www.thedrive.com/news/the-nissan-r35-gt-r-turns-15-today-heres-a-look-back-at-our-supercar-teenager |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=The Drive}}{{cite web |date=2016-05-26 |title=Is the new Nissan GT-R still a supercar bargain? |url= https://www.topgear.com/car-news/supercars/new-nissan-gt-r-still-supercar-bargain |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=Top Gear}}{{cite web |last=Gnaticov |first=Cristian |date=2023-04-12 |title=2024 Nissan GT-R Nismo T-Spec: Aging Supercar Icon Arrives in New York To Make a Point |url= https://www.autoevolution.com/news/2024-nissan-gt-r-nismo-t-spec-the-aging-supercar-shows-up-in-new-york-to-make-a-point-213354.html |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=autoevolution}}

The second generation Honda NSX made from 2016 until 2022 used all-wheel drive, a hybrid powertrain (producing up to {{convert|602|hp|kW PS|0|abbr=on}}), turbocharging, and a dual-clutch transmission.{{cite web |last=Lyon |first=Peter |title=Honda's New NSX Supercar Is Just As Groundbreaking As The First Generation Of 1990 |url= https://www.forbes.com/sites/peterlyon/2016/09/28/hondas-new-nsx-is-just-as-groundbreaking-as-the-first-generation-of-1990/ |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=Forbes}}{{cite web |title=End of an era: Acura concludes production of handmade NSX supercar |url= https://www.dispatch.com/story/business/automotive/2022/11/17/buyers-tour-plant-put-finishing-touches-on-their-own-nsx-supercar/69524414007/ |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=The Columbus Dispatch}}{{cite web |title=Honda NSX review |url= https://www.autoexpress.co.uk/honda/nsx |access-date=2023-04-17 |work=Auto Express}}

File:Bugatti Veyron 16.4 – Frontansicht (3), 5. April 2012, Düsseldorf.jpg]]

Another term for high-performance sportscars is "hypercar", which is sometimes used to describe the highest-performing supercars.{{cite web |title=What's A Supercar? The Debate Rages On |url= https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9qjJ6pvkypM |archive-url= https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/9qjJ6pvkypM| archive-date=2021-12-11 |url-status=live |website=youtube.com |publisher=The Drive |access-date=12 March 2019 |date=27 February 2014}}{{cbignore}} An extension of "supercar", it too lacks a set definition. One offered by the automotive magazine, The Drive, is "a limited-production, top-of-the-line supercar";{{cite web |title=The Best and Worst Hypercars of 2017 |url= http://www.thedrive.com/sheetmetal/17103/the-best-and-worst-hypercars-of-2017 |date=26 December 2017 |first=Chris |last=Constantine |website=thedrive.com |access-date=25 December 2019}} prices can reach or exceed US$1 million, and already had by 2017.

Some observers consider the tubular framed, first-ever production fuel-injection, world's fastest street-legal, {{cvt|160|mph|km/h|order=flip|round=10}} 1954 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL "Gullwing" as the first hypercar; others the revolutionary, first-ever mid-engined 1967 Lamborghini Miura; others yet the 1993 McLaren F1{{cite web |title=McLaren F1 – The First Hypercar? |url= http://thehypercars.com/index.php/2018/07/06/feature-the-first-hypercar/ |website=thehypercars.com |access-date=12 March 2019 |date=6 July 2018}} or 2005 Bugatti Veyron.{{cite web |title=The Bugatti Veyron: The original hypercar |url= https://www.cnet.com/roadshow/videos/the-bugatti-veyron-the-original-hypercar/ |website=cnet.com |access-date=12 March 2019}}

With a shift towards electrification, many new hypercars use a hybrid drivetrain, a trend started in 2013 with the McLaren P1, Porsche 918 Spyder, and LaFerrari, then continued in 2016 with the Koenigsegg Regera, in 2017 with the Mercedes-AMG One, and the McLaren Speedtail.{{cite web |title=Top Gear mag's greatest cars – hypercars |url= https://www.topgear.com/car-news/supercars/top-gear-mags-greatest-cars-hypercars |website=Top Gear |access-date=5 July 2018 |date=7 December 2017}}{{cite web |title=Holy Trinity Of Hypercars Is Up For Auction |url= https://uk.motor1.com/news/142477/hybrid-supercar-trio-auction/ |website=motor1.com |access-date=12 March 2019 |language=en-gb}}{{cite web |title=First hypercar 'holy trinity' boasted by RM Sotheby's |url= https://journal.classiccars.com/2017/04/17/first-hypercar-holy-trinity-boasted-rm-sothebys/ |website=classiccars.com |access-date=12 March 2019 |date=17 April 2017}}

Modern hypercars such as Pininfarina Battista, NIO EP9, Rimac Nevera, and Lotus Evija have also gone full-electric.

Hypercars have also been used as a base for the Le Mans Hypercar class after rule changes came into effect from 2021.{{cite news |title=Le Mans 2021: How new hypercar rules are shaking up the grid |url= https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/motorsport-news/le-mans-2021-how-new-hypercar-rules-are-shaking-grid |first=James |last=Attwood |work=Autocar |location=UK |date=20 March 2021 |access-date=18 March 2022}}

• List of sports car manufacturers
• List of fastest production cars
• Supercar Season
• Super truck
• Super SUV

{{reflist|colwidth=30em}}

• {{Commons category inline|Supercars}}

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Category:Car classifications

Sports cars