What Makes an “Exotic” Sports Car?
If you’re shopping for a quality luxury sports car, you will inevitably come across the adjective, “exotic”.
Exotic food or exotic beauty may easily defined, but what really makes an exotic sports car?
Sleek and Elegant Design
Part of what makes an exotic sports car is the vehicles’ streamlined, sleek, and smooth designs – all of which serve functional purposes which add to the overall performance of the vehicle as well as being so aesthetically pleasing to the eye.
Indeed, even exotic sports car makers understand the emphasis that car enthusiasts and racers put on their engineering and design. After all, owning an exotic sports car in contrast to owning an everyday Ford or Chevy is, in itself, a status symbol. This status is endowed not only by the brand of exotic sports car, but also the elegant style and visual appeal.
In fact, sports car manufacturing companies like Ferrari will outsource specialist design houses to come up with new car designs. Sports car design powerhouse Pininfarina, for example, designed the 2002 Ferrari ENZO.
Breakneck Speeds
While design is one of the considerations of many car enthusiasts, the primary characteristic that by-far differentiates a sports car from most everyday driving vehicles, is the acceleration factor and manageable fast road speed. When it comes to sports cars, it’s all a matter of speed, speed, and more speed. A pretty car won’t cut it if it cannot deliver the heart-pounding driving experience that is expected of a sports car.
Exotic sports cars are continually increasing the rate at which a car can accelerate from 0 to 60 mph.
Designs are beginning to be shaped from the engineering needs of the car, in order to suitably deliver a new record speed. As of the moment, the 1994 Dauer 962 LeMans continues to reign with 2.6 seconds. However, with the likes of the 2002 Ferrari ENZO being designed based on the specifications of making a fast car, expect faster sports cars in the near future.
One-in-a-Million
Indeed, exotic sports cars are not mass produced and you can’t buy one “off-the-lot”. Part of its exotic appeal is the fact that you can only have a certain number of models made available for sale. The rarer and more difficult to acquire, the greater a car’s exotic value.
It’s in the Name
Most cars don’t need visualization to be called exotic, they just are. These would include your cult sports car classics—like Porsche, Ferrari, Lamborghini and Lotus.
While an ‘exotic sports car’ may be subjectively defined by an individual, it’s hard to classify the exact point at which a sports car becomes “exotic”.
At any rate, one look at a car, and the price tag, may be enough to give you a clue!