Rear-mounted VW-sourced 3.6L V6 (transverse-mounted) mated to VW's six-speed DSG.
Rear-wheel-drive.
Aluminum spaceframe.
Weight of approximately 1100 kgs.

Er, isn't this quite old?

Crap, you're right. NetCarShow.com just posted its pictures, so I assumed it was just unveiled at Frankfurt. But after Googling it, it looks like it was actually unveiled in March 2007.

It's still amazing.

Yeap, old news, but I like it a lot. I like the "baby supercar" idea in general...nevermind the 700 HP, $500,000 exotics that are 2 lanes wide and a millimeter from the ground. Let's make elise-esque cars with moderately sized 6-cylinder motors and some real roadworthiness built in by design.

I agree. Even if I was worth $100 million, I'd rather drive something like this than the Lambo Reventon or whatever it's called. It just seems like a better driving experience to me.

Plus the added bonus of driving an attractive car instead an ugly green spaceship!

Heh, it was designed by the same guy who designed the DB9 and the V8 Vantage. But also the Z8...

Love the concept and love the looks.

Are you inferring that the Z8 is not pretty while the DB9 and V8 Vantage are? IMO the Z8 is prettier than both those Astons put together.

You know...I'm pretty ambivalent on the Z8. I look at some angles and I think wow, that's fantastic, but I think from other angles it's just weird. Astons look good to me from every angle. I just think it's such a perfectly executed design. Not my favorite necessarily, but so well done.

Astons are textbook pretty to the point of being dull, the DB9 especially.

Probably car of the show for me, and easily some of Fisker's best work. The interior is pretty dull though, and a lot of the trim bits (air vents, headlight switch) blatantly look like they came out of a VW.

The main thing I dislike about the interior is the color. The VW parts bin stuff doesn't bother me. If I had this car in my driveway, the fact that it shares a headlight switch with a Passat would be the furthest thing from my mind.

All the shared interior bits are from the GTi. But that's not my primary problem, the interior just seems so dull after seeing the gorgeous exterior.

Right. Where do I line up?

Psh I think the interior is great. I can't stand elaborate/fancy interiors...they'd just make it harder for me to drive!

Car's first drive of the GT. Sounds, quite frankly, amazing. Small, lightweight, sharp, gorgeous...what's there not to like?

And Artega's future plans.



Awesome.

I fully understand what you are trying to say, and actually agree, to a certain degree. But if I came to you and said here's a Lamborghini Reventon to drive for a year, or here's an Artega GT to drive for a year, I honestly can't think of anyone that won't take the Lambo. Seriously.

But on the other hand, like was mentioned the Lotus-esque ethos behind the car makes more sense than the whole 'fuck everything' type of attitude that one gets from the Reventon.

Ill still take the Lambo....

I'd take something like an Artega GT or Cayman S over a Gallardo in a heartbeat. It looks sexy and it sounds like it drives great. The test-drives of the Gallardo I've read haven't exactly blown me away, I don't like the styling, and I hate that "fuck everything" Lambo aura. As for the Reventon, it just plain irks me, because my understanding is that, despite the seven-figure price, it's little more than a Murcielago in some bodykit and an interior that seems to be designed to cater to nine-year-olds.

I love the styling, except for those rear lights. They look like they were taken directly from a '90s Mercury Cougar.

I wasn't talking about Lambos in general, I was talking specifically about the Reventon. And yes, it is pretty much a Murcielago in drag, but come on. If someone offered you a drive in a million Euro Over-Super-Extra-Hyper Car, I almost can't believe that someone would turn that down to drive a Lotus(and that's not to say I'm taking anything away from Lotus, they make brilliant cars. I think part of the Reventon hype is also the fact that 20 will be/have been made.

I would never take a Reventon over an Elise/Artega/Cayman. Don't get me wrong, it's an insane looking car, but it's very much a show car to me. It's a car you take care of, and leave in the garage, unless it's a beautiful day. Then maybe you'd take it to a concourse show, or drive it carefully along your favorite stretch of road before tucking it away again. I'd take an Artega thanks, so I could drive it around every day and enjoy every minute of it.

really? i wouldn't hesitate to beat the shit out of a reventon daily if i had one. or any perfomance car, for that matter

I also happen to think a tiny mid-engined V6 would be a lot more fun to fling around compared to a rather large V12.

Like you basically agree, the Reventon is all about looks and image and exclusivity. That's what it's famous for, not how it drives. I don't want a car who shoves itself down the throat of every other person on the road. I want a good-looking but subtle sports car that drives absolutely brilliantly, and I don't care how many other people own the same thing. Indeed, I'd be embarrassed to own a car that added $600,000 or so to the price tag, not because of its mechanics, but just for a claim of exclusivity. So in conclusion, unless I could turn around and sell my new gift, I'd rather have a Cayman S or an Evora in my garage than a Reventon.

unfortunately, we'll probably never know

i'd be banging that slut of the limiter daily.

Bumping this thread up because Paragon, the maker of the Artega, goes into administration.

Link (german)

What do you mean, "administration"?

EDIT: Oh, are they going out of business? In bankruptcy? Being sold?

BOOO

That's a real shame. The Artega was a very, very pretty little car. Also it was the "right-size" with the "right power," unlike most startup manufacturers who seem to all be launching 1000hp monstrosities.