Do You Think Hypercars Are Still Relevant?

Just a couple of weeks ago we saw a variety of new boutique hypercars launched at various Monterey Car Week events, each more expensive than the last. It seems that all of the expensive brands have figured out that it's much easier to market to the world's billionaires than the mere millionaires, moving ever upmarket. There are more brands and more models targeting the two-million-plus segment of the market than there are in the sub-$25,000 market where millions more potential customers can be found. That alone says something about the continued K-shape of the economy. Here's the thing, with this massive proliferation in seven-figure cars today, do they really matter anymore? 

I want to pick your brain on this subject a bit, so bear with me a minute. With the continued concentration of wealth at the top of the economy and the continued prolonged death of the American middle class (and by extension the American dream), it's clear that automakers are chasing the easy money. It's hard to blame them. Every mega-wealthy car collector is hoarding every new model from their favored brand, so why not sell them another $5,000,000 hypercar every year or two? Especially if you can threaten them with taking them off the list for the next one if they don't buy this one. 

Hypercars have always been a status symbol, but they used to be the absolute pinnacle of engineering and style, too. All these decades later the McLaren F1, Porsche 959 and Ferrari F40 are still relevant, but can we say the same about the $6M Red Bull RB17, Lamborghini Revuelto or McLaren W1? Especially if the majority of them are kept locked away from view in a private collection somewhere, will anyone ever grow to care about them in 30 more years? 

Whether you can afford them or not, do you still look at hypercars with a sense of wonder and admiration? Do you lust after a Ferrari F80 or Hennessey's new Blackbird, or do you balk at the thought of spending the GDP of a small island nation on a single car? Sound off in the comments below with your thoughts on hypercars, and we'll discuss it. Then, I'll pick a few of my favorites to recap for everyone else on Monday. 

As a way of getting the conversation started, I'm going to give my opinion on the whole thing. Personally, I don't think hypercars have been relevant since the Bugatti Veyron. Top speed used to mean something, and Volkswagen pulled out all the stops to build the most off-the-wall car that history had ever seen. When this monster was unveiled, it was easily the most bonkers thing anyone in the car world had ever seen. 1,001 horsepower, 16 cylinders, four turbochargers, all-wheel drive, I mean come on, these are the specs of a fighter jet or something. 

I didn't have a million dollars in 2005, and I wouldn't have spent it on a car even if I did, but there's something special about setting a moonshot goal and reaching it, regardless of the price. Nothing that has come out since has come even close to this level of excitement. Bugatti set out to break a top speed record that stood for a decade, and many thought was impossible to exceed. It was proof of the company's engineering prowess, not just a simple game of one-upmanship. 

It's hard to explain, but this is the car that ended the hypercar debate before it even began. If you're only in the game to cuddle up to some wage thieves and war criminals to separate fools from their money, then what's the point? Someone can always build something lighter, faster, slimmer, trimmed in the leather of endangered species, or whatever. Put some heart into it, for Pete's sake.