Brabus shows what happens when performance tuners tackle underpowered urban cars.  The Brabus Ultimate R is a turbocharged, 112 horsepower version of the Smart ForTwo.

The three-cylinder OEM engine that comes on the car is also tuned to push out up to 150 Nm of torque, which helps the car reach a new 0-100 km/h in a more respectable 9.5 seconds.  Top speed is now limited to 170 km/h (106 mph), but the thought of driving a Smart Car at that speed is frightening, to say the least.  Other performance upgrades include a new sport suspension, which lowers the car by 30 mm, and more rigid shocks.

Making the Smart look more, well, smart, Brabus added carbon fiber elements inside and out, while giving the vehicle a gun metal gray paint job.  Blacked-out double-spoke wheels are wider in back than in the front, and wrapped in high performance tires.  An aluminum-tipped stainless-steel dual-exhaust from Brabus is also included.  Alcantara-lined sport seats are an interesting addition to a car that is supposed to be for the budget conscious.

Currently on display in Frankfurt, the Brabus Ultimate R has an automatic transmission that also allows a degree of input through the paddle shifters mounted to the new racing wheel.  Sitting inside, you will also find a navigation system, radio, and climate control.

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GeigerCars is based in Munich but American cars are its focus and have been for many years. At Frankfurt the tuner presents its latest high performance car in the form of the Geiger GTS. This supercar is based on the Corvette ZR1, one of the most coveted and respected sports cars of the past couple of years and a recognised slayer of the Nürburgring. Some of its well-documented handling credit must go to the electronically controlled suspension system dubbed Magnetic Selective Ride Control.

Describing the ZR1’s engine as “primitive” Geiger set about to extract more out of the factory 6.2-litre LS9. Power has gone up to 522kW (710hp) at 6,600rpm and torque reaches a maximum of 918Nm at 4,200rpm. The 0 – 100km/h sprint takes a mere 3.6 seconds and top speed is 342km/h.

The list of mods includes a wide air vent on the nose, LED foglights, a massive rear diffuser and LED rear lights. The body paintwork is a pearl varnish that appears to change when looked at from different angles and lights.

Wheels measuring 285/30ZR19 at the front and 345/25ZR20 at the back are mated with 10×19 and 12×20 inch high-performance tyres respectively.

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