Challenger

The first Challenger was the division's late entrant to the pony car market segment in the United States, launched for the 1970 model year. It was based on the similar Plymouth Barracuda's new E-body, though the wheelbase, at 110 inches, was two inches longer and had substantially different outer sheetmetal than its Plymouth cousin. Exterior design was done by Carl "CAM'" Cameron, who also did the exterior for the 1966 Dodge Charger. For the 1970 Challenger grille, CAM' based it off of an older sketch of his of a 1966 Charger prototype that was designed to have a turbine engine. The Charger never got the turbine, but the Challenger got that car's grille. Although the Challenger was well-received by the public (with 80,000 sales in 1970 alone), it was criticized by the press, and the pony car segment was already declining by the time the Challenger arrived. Challenger production ceased after the 1974 model year, only having lasted five years; performance dropped off dramatically after the 1971 models. About 165,500 Challengers were sold over this model's lifespan.

Dodge Viper

The Viper was conceived as a futuristic take on the classic American muscle car. While there are some who insist that the iconic AC Cobra was a source of inspiration, the final version of the Viper was far too large and heavy to seriously claim any direct lineage with the compact and lightweight vehicle. Most saw claims to kinship with the Cobra as a marketing exercise, although Carroll Shelby was involved in the initial design of the Viper.

The Viper was initially conceived in late 1988 at Chrysler's Advanced Design Studios. The following February, Chrysler president Bob Lutz suggested to Tom Gale at Chrysler Design that the company should consider producing a modern Cobra, and a clay model was presented to Lutz a few months later. The car appeared as a concept at the North American International Auto Show in 1989. This concept vehicle was originally named Copperhead because of its low, wide appearance characteristic of reptiles. The name would later be changed to Viper. Public reaction was so enthusiastic, that chief engineer Roy Sjeoberg was directed to develop it as a production car.

Sjoberg selected 85 engineers to be "Team Viper", with development beginning in March 1989. The team asked the then-Chrysler subsidiary Lamborghini to cast some prototype aluminum blocks based on their V10 truck engine for sports car use in May. The production body was completed in the fall, with a chassis prototype running in December. Though a V8 was first used in the test mule, the V10, which the production car was meant to use, was ready in February 1990.

Official approval from Chrysler chairman, Lee Iacocca, came in May 1990. One year later, Carroll Shelby piloted a preproduction car as the Indianapolis 500 pace car. In November 1991, the car was released to reviewers with first shipments beginning in January 1992.

BMW

MINI is the name of a Cowley, England-based subsidiary of BMW as well as that of a car produced by that subsidiary since April 2001.

The car, designed by Frank Stephenson,[1] is marketed as a "retro" redesign of the original Mini, which was manufactured by the British Motor Corporation and its successors from 1959 to 2000. The name is written in capital letters to distinguish it from its predecessor.[2] It is sometimes called 'The BMW MINI' or 'The New MINI'. Originally developed by Rover Group and to be sold under the Rover brand and made at the Longbridge plant, the MINI project was retained by BMW when the latter divested itself of Rover in 2000[3]. The MINI is assembled in Cowley, Oxford, United Kingdom, in what was historically the Pressed Steel Company body plant,[4] now known as Plant Oxford.

The 2001 to 2006 model years included four hatchback models: the basic 'MINI One', the diesel-engined 'MINI One/D', the sportier 'MINI Cooper' and the supercharged 'MINI Cooper S'. In 2005 a convertible roof option was added. In November 2006 a greatly re-engineered version of the MINI was released which is unofficially known as the "Mk II MINI".[5]. The Mk II is only available as a hard-top in the 2007 model year.

The MINI was designed and engineered to replace the long running Rover 100 and the larger Rover 200, both deemed unsuitable for the modern world automobile market. The MINI was supposed to replace low end models of the 200 and high end models of the 100 with a Rover 35 replacing high end 200s and low end 400s. After the divestment of MG Rover, the MINI was instead marketed as a small yet desirable city car rather than a mainstream replacement of the 100 and 200.

Holden Commodore

The Holden Commodore is a car built by the Holden division of General Motors (GM) in Australia. From 1989, it formed the basis of a luxury sedan range called the Holden Statesman and Caprice, and from 2001, it formed the basis of the Monaro sports coupé. In 2004, Holden released both four-wheel drive and four-door coupe utility versions, called the Adventra and Crewman respectively. The Commodore is exported to several other countries, where it is often rebadged with other GM brand names.

Since the original VB Commodore of 1978, some thirteen succeeding variants have been released; over four generations. The Commodore range saw the addition of the station wagon body style in 1979 and a utility variant in 1990. The Commodore has seen rivals from both Mitsubishi Motors, and Toyota, but has one dominant rival, the Ford Falcon. For ten years (1978-1988) the medium sized Commodore was not classified as a direct rival to the larger Ford Falcon. The introduction of the VN Commodore in 1988 saw the Commodore become a direct textbook rival to the Falcon, due to the substantial increase in size. The Commodore is also exported heavily overseas to markets such as the New Zealand and the Middle East.

Mitsubishi Lancer

The Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution, colloquially known as the Lancer Evo or simply Evo, is a car manufactured by Mitsubishi Motors. There have been ten versions to date, and the numerical designation of the model is most commonly a roman numeral.

All of them share a two litre, turbocharged engine and four-wheel drive system in common. Evolution models prior to version V were the officially-approved models for Mitsubishi's efforts in the World Rally Championship's Group A class and SCCA Pro Rally Championship. In order to follow these rules, the Evolution is based on the same platform as the Lancer. However, it is much more powerful than the standard Lancer, with the unibody being the only major part in common between the two.

The Evolution was originally intended only for Japanese markets but demand on the 'grey import' market led the Evolution series to be offered through limited type-approval in the United Kingdom and in various European markets from around 1998 (Evolution V-VI).[citation needed] Mitsubishi decided to export the eighth generation Evolution to the United States in 2003 after witnessing the success Subaru had in that market with their Impreza WRX, a direct competitor in other global regions.

[citation needed] The current 2006 Evolution (US market) includes a turbocharged 286 hp (213 kW) inline four-cylinder engine and a full-time all wheel drive powertrain. Variable valve timing is an Evolution first in 2006, coming in the form of MIVEC (Mitsubishi Innovative Valve-timing-and-lift Electronic Control). Japanese-spec cars were limited by a gentleman's agreement to advertise no more than 280 hp (206 kw), a mark already reached by the time of Evolution IV; however, each generation of Evolution's power has clandestinely evolved above the advertised number, with the Japan-spec Evolution IX having real output of about 320 PS, and various versions available in other markets, particularly the UK, have official power outputs up to 405 bhp (302 kW). Even standard components are considered "tuned" compared to other vehicles. For instance, the flywheel on normal cars weighs about 12-15 kilograms but the Lancer flywheel weighs a mere 6 kilos for very quick engine response. The Evolution has, however, been evolving into a heavier and heavier vehicle with each generation in face of tougher worldwide safety and emission regulations.

The Lancer Evolution was unique among its competitors in the World Rally Championship in that it is a homologated Group A car slightly modified to be able to race competitively against WRC class cars. They were successful in the WRC Rallies from 1996-1999, thanks to the Finn Tommi Mäkinen, for clinching the driver's titles from 1996-1999, and the help of teammate Richard Burns for clinching the manufacturer's championship for the first time in 1998. The Evolution however has now been replaced by the Lancer/Carisma GT and the new Lancer WRC04, but the Evolution still competes in the Group A and Group N classes.

In some European markets, the Evolution was sold as the Mitsubishi Carisma Evolution. Proton Motors of Malaysia raced Evolution III's and an Evolution VII as the Proton Pert in various APRC and APAC rally series.

Nisain Skyline

The Skyline is actually one of the most historic Japanese cars and has been around in various models for over 40 years already. Its production started in 1955 with the introduction of the Skyline ALSI-1, a car built by the Prince Motor Company. The Prince Motor Company was established in 1952 by the Tama Electric Car Company. Tama itself was founded by Tachikawa Aircraft Company which built fighter planes in World War II, and started producing the Tama Electric Car in 1952.
In honor of the Emperor of Japan Crown Prince Hirohita, Tama changed its name to Prince Motor Company and started producing petrol powered instead of electric cars. Prince used an engine designed by Fuji Precision Industries, a company which was established by Nakajima Aircraft Company. In 1954, the Prince Motor Company merged with Fuji Precision Industries.

Ferrari

Ferrari is an Italian sports car manufacturer based in Maranello and Modena, Italy. Founded by Enzo Ferrari in 1929 as Scuderia Ferrari, the company sponsored drivers and manufactured race cars before moving into production of street legal vehicles in 1947 as Ferrari S.p.A.. Ferrari's cars are among the most desirable of vehicles to own and drive, and are one of the ultimate status symbols of wealth in the world. Throughout its history, the company has been noted for its continued participation in racing, especially in Formula One, where it has largely enjoyed great success, especially during the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, late 1990s, and 2000s.
Finally, after years of financial struggles, Enzo Ferrari sold the company's sports car division to the Fiat group in 1969 in order to help ensure continued financial backing for the foreseeable future. Enzo Ferrari himself retained control of the racing division until his death in 1988 at the age of 90.
Ferrari also has an internally managed merchandising line that distributes everything from eyewear, pens, perfume, clothing, high tech bicycles to laptop computers bearing the Ferrari brand. Financial Times named Ferrari number one on its 2007 list of the 100 Best Workplaces in Europe.