ON SALE: Prototype; potential 2006 model
BASE PRICE: $450,000 (est.)
POWERTRAIN: 5.9-liter, 850-hp, 850-lb-ft V12; rwd, seven-speed manual
CURB WEIGHT: 2860 pounds
0-60 MPH: 2.9
DETROIT (Reuters) - Betting that nothing succeeds like excess, DaimlerChrysler's Chrysler division unveiled a muscular new sports car at Detroit's international auto show on Sunday designed to tear up world speed records.
Chrysler Chief Operating Officer Wolfgang Bernhard said the high-performance prototype, dubbed the ME Four-Twelve, was powered by four turbo chargers and a massive 12-cylinder, 850 horsepower engine.
"The ME Four-Twelve has the potential to write a new chapter in the book of super sports cars," Bernhard told a news conference.
He said the top speed of the vehicle was an estimated 248 miles per hour.
"We expect a zero-to-60 time of 2.9 seconds," Bernhard added, saying that would make it the first sports car ever to break the three-second barrier.
Hinting that the car was something more than a mere auto show toy or "concept," and that it may actually go into production, Bernhard told automotive journalists they would have a chance to start test driving it next summer.
He did not elaborate, but Chrysler President and Chief Executive Dieter Zetsche said production of the sports car was also something more than a costly distraction for Chrysler, which has been battling to return to long-term profits.
"The bottom line is defined by both costs and revenues, and revenues are very much defined by emotions," Zetsche said.
"You need to make people dream of your cars and then you're better off than if you save a few hundred bucks elsewhere," he added.
Separately, Zetsche announced on the sidelines of the show that Chrysler's Dodge brand will soon put its Viper SRT-10 sports car on sale in Europe.
Zetsche said in a statement European sales of other Chrysler Group vehicles would follow, more than doubling the total number available outside North America in the next four years.
A new flagship rear-wheel-drive sedan, the 300C, is among new products Chrysler is unveiling this week in Detroit, which plays host to the auto industry's leading annual show.
more pictures
http://www.dodgeforum.com/m_108951/tm.htm
BASE PRICE: $450,000 (est.)
POWERTRAIN: 5.9-liter, 850-hp, 850-lb-ft V12; rwd, seven-speed manual
CURB WEIGHT: 2860 pounds
0-60 MPH: 2.9
DETROIT (Reuters) - Betting that nothing succeeds like excess, DaimlerChrysler's Chrysler division unveiled a muscular new sports car at Detroit's international auto show on Sunday designed to tear up world speed records.
Chrysler Chief Operating Officer Wolfgang Bernhard said the high-performance prototype, dubbed the ME Four-Twelve, was powered by four turbo chargers and a massive 12-cylinder, 850 horsepower engine.
"The ME Four-Twelve has the potential to write a new chapter in the book of super sports cars," Bernhard told a news conference.
He said the top speed of the vehicle was an estimated 248 miles per hour.
"We expect a zero-to-60 time of 2.9 seconds," Bernhard added, saying that would make it the first sports car ever to break the three-second barrier.
Hinting that the car was something more than a mere auto show toy or "concept," and that it may actually go into production, Bernhard told automotive journalists they would have a chance to start test driving it next summer.
He did not elaborate, but Chrysler President and Chief Executive Dieter Zetsche said production of the sports car was also something more than a costly distraction for Chrysler, which has been battling to return to long-term profits.
"The bottom line is defined by both costs and revenues, and revenues are very much defined by emotions," Zetsche said.
"You need to make people dream of your cars and then you're better off than if you save a few hundred bucks elsewhere," he added.
Separately, Zetsche announced on the sidelines of the show that Chrysler's Dodge brand will soon put its Viper SRT-10 sports car on sale in Europe.
Zetsche said in a statement European sales of other Chrysler Group vehicles would follow, more than doubling the total number available outside North America in the next four years.
A new flagship rear-wheel-drive sedan, the 300C, is among new products Chrysler is unveiling this week in Detroit, which plays host to the auto industry's leading annual show.
more pictures
http://www.dodgeforum.com/m_108951/tm.htm