The ’Lada Revolution 3′ which was shown for the first time last year at the Paris Motor Show was thought to be the best ever in Russian supercars, but the new Marussia completely crushes that notion.

The Marussia is the brainchild of ADD-addled Nikolay Fomenko, who’s got his fingers in everything from racing to theatrical acting. The Marussia consists of a tube-frame chassis onto which composite body panels are attached.

The modular nature of the body means changes can be made easily to tweak the look of the car. That modular nature carries over in the engine bay, where the car will initially launch with a 240BHP to 300BHP version of the Nissan VQ V6.

Working is being completed on an all-electric version set for unveil sometime in the middle of this year which would debut a nanotech battery sourced from a mysterious “Russian construction bureau.”

This EV version of the Marussia would ticket for around $100k and run for a claimed 248 miles on a single charge and even work in Russia’s frigid climate. Even if an electric version never comes, and the gas motor version doesn’t exactly have barn-burning power numbers, it does look pretty cool.

The Porsche 959 is a sports car manufactured by Porsche from 1986 to 1989, first as a Group B rally car and later as a legal production car designed to produce a minimum number of 200 street legal units be built.

When the Porsche 959 was going through its production run, it was hailed as being the most technologically advanced road-going sports car ever built and a preview of future of sports cars: it was one of the first high-performance vehicles to use an all-wheel drive system and provided the basis for Porsche’s first all-wheel drive Carrera 4 model; and it convinced Porsche executives of the system’s viability so well that they chose to make all-wheel drive standard on all versions of the 911 Turbo starting with the 993 variant.

During its lifetime, the vehicle had only one other street legal peer with comparable performance, the Ferrari F40. The 959′s short production run and performance have kept values high. In 2004, Sports Car International named this car number one on the list of Top Sports Cars of the 1980s. 

In its day, this was the most technologically advanced road-going sportscar ever built. But just 337 were made, each with a 2.8-litre turbocharged flat-six out back.

Honda’s attempt to right-size its development schedule and cope with the economic downturn apparently extends beyond the cancellation of the next NSX. Honda changing its plans for the next two years, and that includes rethinking the development of a range of rear-wheel-drive Acuras, a new V8 and the S2000′s successor.  

Acura seems to be carrying the weight of the bad news, with its RWD 7-series rival, originally due out in 2015, cancelled indefinitely, along with development of a V8 engine that would allow the brand to compete with the best and brightest from Germany. 

Unfortunately, the cancellation of development also extends to Honda’s smaller offerings, Honda planned to release a drop-top version of its CR-Z after the hybrid goes on sale next year, but that model has been axed too. Even more disturbingly, 2009 will be the last year of production for the S2000, with no new model waiting in the wings. This will be very disappointing for Honda as these were exciting plans and it is very unfortunate that it is hitting them so hard.

Tesla has jumped right in with its Lotus Elise-based electric sports car. And for a fledgling company this first effort is mighty impressive, even if the way it drives takes a little getting used to.

The Tesla roadster has no engine noise… But then there’s the 3.9-second 0-62mph sprint and it hits its 125mph limiter in seemingly no time at all, if this is the future of motoring keen drivers have nothing to fear. 

Performance is unbelievable. Every press of the throttle generates immense ‘thrust’ – no other word for the force you feel. Of the two pedals, you’re simply pressing the one on the right and being transported forwards, with immense speed, that’s free from breaks, pauses, vibration, buzzes or other interference. Only Elise-style wind and chassis noise remind you of reality.

 

To think, this is the world’s first electric sports car – they’re going to get faster and more powerful even than this!

The Nissan GT-R has had such an impact over the last 12 months it would be impossible to ignore and the scale of Nissan’s achievement deserves to be recognised.

Even the most hardened roadtesters have struggled to get to grips with just how fast the GT-R actually is. Put simply the mighty Nissan offers 911 Turbo pace for M3 money and deploys an incredible array of technology in its single-minded pursuit of redefining what a modern performance car is all about. 

It’s one of the most talked about cars of recent times and it’s easy to see why there is such a fuss about Nissan’s new GT-R. It’s certainly one of the most dramatic looking cars of recent years. And while carrying various classic GT-R styling cues it’s resolutely futuristic, the origami-style creases and detail distinctively Japanese in flavour. The super aggressive styling certainly shouts loud about the car’s potential. 

At every step of its development the GT-R has been benchmarked against the 911 Turbo. But while the 911 is devoted to the past, the GT-R looks only to the future, ripping up the supercar rule book.

The Nissan has already lapped the Nurburgring in 7min 29sec, three seconds faster than the 911 GT2. And while the Porsche retails at £131,000 Nissan is asking just £55,900 for the GT-R.

Watch the video below of the GT-R reaching a top speed of 190 MPH

Another day of economic crisis, another supercar emerges. This time it is from perhaps Russia’s first supercar manufacturer, Marussia.

Is there such thing as a sensible supercar? Yes, there is, the Marussia is a hybrid with the engine stated to be a 240bhp, 3.5-litre six-cylinder engine, most likely from Renault/Nissan.

It is too early to tell where the electrical components will come from but the company says it will use established companies, with around 35% of parts sourced from Russia. The Marussia is the branchild of Nikolay Fomenko, who also happens to be a popular singer, television news anchor, actor, and FIA N-GT champion.

It will be packed with gadgets, including a 10 Mbps internet connection that works at speeds of up to 120kph. 0-60mph is pencilled in to take around five seconds and the car will have a price tag of around $100,000.

Regardless of the fact the drivetrain hasn’t yet been finalised the company is predicting deliveries next Autumn and wants race versions to take part in the 2010 edition of FIA GT championship.