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So far, just 10 applicants have been accepted to the A:Level customer club. Shishkin’s crew is working on two cars right now, and both will be different from the Volga.
"The Volga was just the first ball in the game," Shishkin euphemizes adroitly. At the time the Volga was being built, resources were scarce.
So the Volga project was principally a stylistic exercise designed to test reaction at the 2001 Moscow show and encourage the existing backer to widen his financial support. It worked. Shishkin isn’t exactly forthcoming about the company’s finances. But with more money, they gathered a team of Russian engineers, including Russian migr engineers from Belgium and Germany, allowing the new projects to be more technically oriented.
A current project—evocatively titled "the Big" and based on a chassis—was racing around the Nrburgring at the time of our visit with air-pressure sensors stuck under it for final aerodynamic tweaks. A:Level was trying to produce downforce at 120 mph of 69 pounds-force on the front axle and 117 over the rear axle. The car looks much like a Mercedes CL with spoilers, bulging wheel arches, and a wing, except its speedo will be wound around by a heavily modified 6.7-liter V-12 Mercedes engine able to go over 180 mph. Fitted with twin Garrett turbochargers and a "huge intercooler," it thumps out a reported 850 horsepower via a transaxle gearbox that is based on a
GT’s unit—the only manual transmission they found strong enough to handle 594 pound-feet of torque.
But if that’s not different enough, follow Shishkin into the end room, and as the camera-shy young mechanics disperse, a striking-looking swoopy coupe is revealed. This one has been dubbed "the Impression." Built on a Mercedes
chassis, but with doors hinged so they open toward the back, it uses a mix of design cues. There’s a Bugatti-inspired grille at the end of a long curved hood, and there are rear wheels enclosed behind panels reminiscent of a 1970s Citron SM. Officially, it is "designed with a spirit of Bugatti, Delahaye, and Hispano-Suiza." During our visit, the front end was stripped, exposing suspension turrets moved 12 inches forward and poised to accept a 550-hp Maybach engine. Shishkin wasn’t saying what this one had cost. "Once we don’t reproduce our cars—why speak about money?" Translation: "You cannot put a price on uniqueness."
Then it was time to drive the more modest 380-hp Volga. With fresh snow falling, they didn’t want us dueling with the unruly Russian traffic. So we were confined to the large square in front of the Stalinist-style Moscow State University. We are unable to confirm the brochure blurb that "it is a sports car and knows what is hot drive of nighttime highways." But what undoubtedly did get hot was a
babushka ("grandmother") who, at another photo location, had to help push the car up a snowy, wheel-spinningly slippery incline. Even with the traction control on, the slightest nudge of the gas pedal put the back end out.
We were never able to exploit all six speeds, so we can’t assess handling, but we haven’t felt this level of solidity since stepping out of a T-72 tank. The Volga’s doors thud shut, and noise is blanked out the moment you finish pulling the leather door handle.
Worth a half-million dollars? Shishkin recalls that acquaintances had informed Mr. D.Z., "You could have got two Bentleys for the money." But Mr. D.Z. replied in a way that offers insight into the type of customer A:Level will be dealing with, "I already have two Bentleys."
Article source: http://www.caranddriver.com/features/04q2/volga_v-12_coupe-feature/the_a_3alevel_club_page_3
Auto insurance for teens and college students is an expensive affair and can burn a hole in your pocket. Since teenaged drivers belong to the high-risk group and have the worst driving records compared to all other age groups the auto insurance premiums are generally very high. However, there are ways and means where one can significantly reduce the auto insurance premiums by taking adequate steps.
The high cost of auto insurance generally is a put off for most teenagers and their parents as well. But if you do some amount of research online you could avail some of the best auto insurance policies. However, if you don’t have the time to shop around for the best auto insurance options for your college-going child, then you could ask an auto insurance broker to do the job for you. Your insurance broker could shop around and get you some of the best auto insurance rates.
Most insurance plans that are meant for the whole family is not the same and can vary greatly from one insurer to another. This could pose a serious problem as you may end up paying much more than what is actually needed. Hence you can only get a suitable policy if you look through various options online.
There are numerous websites that will offer multiple auto insurance quotes for teenagers and it is easy to make a cost comparison and then make an informed choice. Always ensure that you get the quotes for both family insurance as well as individual auto insurance quotes to ensure that you have choice.Full-time college students are more often than not able to get a discount on their policies. Hence student drivers must ensure that they avail the benefits in the quotes they get.
To get affordable auto insurance rates as it is necessary that you avail multiple quotes online and use the online calculator. By doing some research students can save considerable sums of money on their premiums and get the best possible coverage as well.
Enrolling in a good driving school and getting a valid certificate will also help in bringing down the premiums. Installing safety features in the vehicle will also ensure that you get considerable discounts. It is better to give your teenager an old model and make without any modifications as they will again ensure a huge discount on the premiums. Check all these things before signing up for your policy.
House Session 2011-04-13 (10:00:20-10 …
2010 10BEST Our annual hair-pulling, laryngitis-inducing clusterfest seeks to determine the best cars and drivers and engines, plus righteous towns to drive in, winners and losers, clunky quotes, and most talented readers.
58 contenders. $2.5 million total. 12,000 test miles logged. The ultimate quest to find the year’s greatest cars.
Ten who won, 10 who lost, and a few who pulled it out of their toxic assets.
Best crash stories, geek racers, and a fake cover.
COMPARISON TEST Survival of the Fleetest: Four hairy-mammoth hot rods defy reason and the laws of physics with equal glee.
SHORT TAKE ROAD TESTS Seven-year-olds think it’s the Batmobile.
It means “something good is coming,” apparently with four cylinders.
An Accord wagon by any other name.
SPECIALTY FILE X-Rated: Motorcycle maker KTM creates a track-day car. Dirty fun ensues.
CAR NEWS Porsche’s Panoply.
Just for Show: It’s small city likely cost upward of $20 million.
FEATURES Your new career just arrived.
Franken-Benz: It’s alive! It’s alive!
Why do Cab Drivers Shift out of Drive at a Stop?
TECH DEPT.
Now if six turned out to be eight . . .
COLUMNS GEAR BOX Radio-controlled (RC) cars, built to 1/10th scale, are the perfect toy: great for parent-child bonding, and a cost-effective introduction to motorsports. Yep, people race ‘em.
INTERVIEW As Dr. Derek ‘McDreamy’ Shepherd on the TV series Grey’s Anatomy, Dempsey is today’s most visible celebrity auto racer. Here he talks about this path to Grand-Am and 2009′s 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Article source: http://www.caranddriver.com/information/january_2010-table_of_contents