Ferrari, Toyota, and Cadillac. Three carmakers took over the podium of the centennial anniversary running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans back in the summer of 2023 with Ferrari the victor. I've been asked if I can reimagine the Le Mans' centennial podium as road cars, which car per brand will it be standing in the now-legendary podium and why?
My obvious choices for my Le Mans centennial podium reimagined as road cars are; the Ferrari SF90 Stradale, the Toyota GR Supra, and the Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing. When you do an improv on them, you'll know they had learnings from their now-legendary podium-standing equivalents in Le Mans.
The SF90 Stradale uses most of Scuderia Ferrari's motorsport know-how and the teachings from the LaFerrari to create the de-facto flagship PHEV hypercar that can dominate the road and track with surgical precision. Powering the SF90 Stradale is a plug-in hybrid setup, a first for Ferrari, where the turbocharged F154 4.0L V8 engine, producing 780PS of power, is connected to three electric motors, two on the front axle and one between the engine and the 8-speed double-clutch gearbox, resulting to a monstrous 1,000PS of total power output that pushes the SF90 to a 0-100kph time of 2.5 seconds and a top speed of 340kph.
The Toyota GR Supra is the first of the Reiwa-era JDM sportscars when it was launched in May 2019, a month after the beginning of the Reiwa era in Japan. Despite the BMW connection because it runs on the same mechanicals as the BMW Z4 G29, most speedo boys went for the Toyota rather than its BMW equivalent because, obviously, IT'S A TOYOTA. Powering the GR Supra is a choice of a 2.0L 4-cylinder turbo engine and the 3.0L BMW TwinPower Turbo engine for the range-topping RZ variant, seen here, producing 340PS of power and 500Nm of torque. All of the engines are mated to an 8-speed Steptronic gearbox. Later updates gave a power hike on the 3.0L turbo engine as well as the implementation of a 6-speed manual gearbox, which made it slightly lighter and more fun.
The Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing transforms the sober American businessman's car into a WMD for the road and track. The 6.2L Supercharged V8 engine was a complete carryover from the old CTS-V but it has been boosted to produce 668HP of power and 659lb-ft of torque while mated to either a 6-speed manual or a 10-speed AT that propels this car from a 0-100kph time of 3.7 seconds and a top speed of over 200mph. It also comes with eLSD, advanced suspension refinements, Launch Control, Performance Traction Management, and MRC 4.0, among many others.
Judging by the performance the reimagined centennial podium possessed, there's no way I would have a three-way shootout between them because, truth be told, the SF90 will mince them both just as Ferrari crushed both Toyota and Cadillac in the Le Mans centennial anniversary race of 2023. I know, the CT5-V Blackwing's more powerful than the Supra but because the Supra is lighter, it slips through the American businessman's car gone mad at ease. Still, using the power of improv, I decided to give the reimagined Le Mans centennial podium a little talent show to demonstrate their native talents and with that, some makeovers.
Using Hana again? I'm starting to fall in love with my in-game GR Supra decorated with Aikatsu Planet's Hana because it has that "main character energy" on it, just like her. This is why I'm using her again for the little exhibition show I've run for her. A final encore, if you like.
The Wings on the Road, CT5-V Blackwing, is now peppered with a touch of Beat from Aikatsu Planet. Suits its personality well because driving the CT5-V Blackwing gives you the impression of pouring a bottle of cola into a teacup and sipping it in. I admire its level of sophistication as much as Beat herself. The CT5-V Blackwing is an awesome super saloon but today, the wings on the road's got Beat's name all over them, the equivalent of drinking cola out of a teacup. Classy, siddity, and elegance.
Lastly, Ferrari's de-facto flagship hypercar, the SF90, is now wrapped in the thorns of Rose from Aikatsu Planet. The toughest ones are always in the Ferrari and Ferrari is the alpha male of the supercar realm, making it the ideal role for the SF90 as Aikatsu Planet's toughest character, the final boss if you like. Up for a real challenge? You'll gonna have to take on her.
With my favorite cars mirrored in, it's time for the reimagined Le Mans centennial trio to have exhibition matches against Horizon's best drivers assembled including dummy drivers in reserve. Time to show these three what they're capable of and how Le Mans influenced sports cars like these. Send in the clips.
The trio put on a great show as if this was the last live show of their lives.
Ferrari, Toyota, and Cadillac took over the podium of the centennial anniversary running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans in the summer of 2023 with Ferrari the victor. When reimagined as road cars in the form of the SF90 Stradale, the GR Supra, and the CT5-V Blackwing, they really shine because of the learnings from their podium-standing equivalents, and when they're mirrored in, they can see their true colors.
Should the next Le Mans race come in, will Toyota mean revenge against Ferrari? Is Ferrari defending its Le Mans comeback? Or will there be another surprise in store? Only time will tell in the summer...
