What Makes a Supercar a Supercar?

As the name would suggest, a supercar is a pretty spectacular car. Far from the run of the mill everyday vehicles you see driving through town or along the motorway, a supercar is guaranteed to turn heads, attract admiring glances and have everyone reaching for their camera phones. But what exactly makes a supercar a supercar though?

The term supercar was originally coined to describe an extremely expensive, incredibly beautiful and outrageously fast car. The proper use of this term is often subjective and disputed however, especially amongst car enthusiasts. Although there may be no clear definition of what characteristics a car must possess, there are some basic criteria for measuring whether or not a car should be considered a supercar.

Made in limited quantities

As the ultimate status symbol, supercars are famed for their extravagance and luxury and still to this day, they have a certain mystique about them. This is no doubt down to the fact that they are extremely limited in quantities as manufacturers only make a small amount of them. This clever tactic ensures that there is always some kind of exclusivity to own one, making them increasingly desirable and maintaining their supercar status.

Beautifully designed

Supercars are exotic, they have great style and they’re dressed to impress. In fact, the way it looks is one of the main things that makes a supercar what it is. Boasting unique designs, quirky gadgets, bold colours and only the best technology, these cars are built to stand out and attract attention.

They tend to be wider and much lower down than your average everyday car which makes them a force to be reckoned with on the race track but perhaps not so ideal for busy, built up areas.

Incredibly fast

It’s not just looks that count when it comes to the supercar. These vehicles are built for incredible performance and are amongst the fastest in the world. Boasting the best sport handling available, many of these cars have the horsepower of three or more cars put together and certainly aren’t for the faint hearted.

Achieving 0-60 in just 2.5 seconds and reaching a top speed of 258 mph, the Bugatti Veyron Super Sport is currently the fastest production car in the world. Unbelievably, the manufacturers have actually limited the car to that speed to prevent the tyres from disintegrating which means that it may even be capable of more. In true supercar style, the Super Sport will set you back an incredible £1,725,000 so chances are, you won’t see many of them around.

Price

When it comes to defining what a supercar is, the price tag associated with them is not to be sniffed at. Starting from a couple hundred thousand pounds and going all the way into the millions, it’s not hard to see why these vehicles are so incredibly exclusive. Whilst there are some very lucky people out there who may even have a few supercars parked in their garage, for most of us, we’ll have to stick to getting our supercar fix from the likes of Jeremy Clarkson and Top Gear.