Wings of desire: The Los Angeles Auto Show
High-performance cars are back on trend at the Los Angeles Auto Show, writesKavita Daswani
With a top speed of 315km/h, and a 6.3-litre V8 engine that produces 622 horsepower, the new Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Black Series is the marque's fastest car. The new Jaguar XFR-S will be available to only 500 customers worldwide. The third-generation Porsche Cayman S, which is lighter, faster and more efficient than its predecessor, can zoom from a standstill to 100km/h in 4.6 seconds.
Those were some of the luxury cars making their debuts at the Los Angeles Auto Show, which runs until Sunday.
Causing the most excitement was the new gull-wing SLS AMG Black Series, widely touted as an "extreme" car.
The SLS AMG Black Series has not yet been priced. But the new Jaguar XFR-S will retail for US$99,000 in the US, and cost much more in Hong Kong with the city's high first registration tax. According to Hellwig, it is similar to the Benz Black in that it is "the highest level and highest performance version of the Jaguar sedan".
The XFR-S is powered by a supercharged five-litre V8 that has an output of 550hp, giving it a top speed of almost 300km/h.