Christmas Car Wishlist 2018: Toyota Supra, Jeep Gladiator, McLaren Speedtail And More

With the season of joy upon us, we couldn’t help draw up a list of the coolest and craziest cars that we would love to see in India.

As we sat down making the list, a lot of really interesting cars popped in our heads and unlike what you might think, not all of them are absurdly priced eccentric hypercars (heck it’s a wishlist, so what if they are?). It was pretty difficult narrowing everything down (yes, we are quite greedy like that) but we eventually did. So here is our Christmas wishlist of cars that we would love to see on Indian roads in the near future (are you reading Santa?)  

Suzuki Jimny
With rumours of its India debut floating around for over a decade now, the Suzuki Jimny has to be among the most awaited cars in the country. The spiritual successor to the venerable Gypsy, it is a rugged-looking, no-nonsense off-roader. And like the Gypsy, it too packs in a peppy petrol engine and not a diesel.

The venerable 4x4 is already on sale in major markets such as Europe, Australia, Russia, and of course, Japan, and Suzuki has promised that it will be sold ‘throughout the world.’ However, there has been no word regarding its India launch yet.

Maruti Suzuki is of the opinion that a small three-door SUV won't drive as much demand as they'd like. The Jimny is a recreational vehicle, and isn't something that most would buy as their primary car. Nevertheless, we would love to see it come to India.

Civic Type R
The most loved Honda car by enthusiasts and the uninitiated alike got a complete reboot in 2017. The Civic not only got an all new design but with the Type R, it also got a new 2.0-litre 306PS petrol motor that helped it run circles around its competition and break the Nurburgring lap record for front wheel drive cars. After the Japanese manufacturer took the eighth-generation Civic sedan away from us in 2012, enthusiasts and purists have longed for the sporty Honda to make a comeback here. The Type R is the radical looking fastback version of the Civic and with the sedan spied testing and being readied for launch, we hope Honda gets the Type R here as well.

Ford Raptor F-150
With its reputation for being one of the toughest, most capable pick-up trucks around, the Raptor F150 is a beast on four wheels. It packs a powerful engine, an extremely capable suspension setup, and off-road abilities that can rival the best in the business.

Powered by a twin-turbocharged 3.5-litre V6, the Ford Raptor makes a hefty 450PS of power and oodles of torque. Despite all its weight (5500 pounds or 2494kg), the Raptor is astonishingly quick and does 0-100kmph in just about 6.0 seconds!

Jeep Gladiator
Jeep has recently taken the wraps off its much awaited, big-and-burly pick-up truck christened the Gladiator. Based on the current-gen Wrangler, the all-new Gladiator is a behemoth on four wheels and takes ‘Bada hai toh Behtar hai’ to another level.

Being a Jeep, the Gladiator gets the best equipment for some spirited off-roading such as Command-Trac and Rock-Trac 4x4 systems, third-generation Dana 44 axles, Tru-Lock electric front- and rear-axle lockers, Trac-Lok limited-slip differential, a segment-exclusive electronic sway-bar disconnect for extra articulation and traction at all ends, and a ground clearance of nearly 282mm!

The last time Jeep built a midsize pick-up truck was back in 1992 when the last Comanche was sold. The all-new Gladiator gets a Wrangler cabin and a five-foot steel bed which has a payload of up to 1600 pounds (726kg).

Powered by the 3.6-litre V6 petrol engine that churns out 289PS and 352Nm of torque, paired to either a 6-speed manual or an 8-speed automatic transmission, the Gladiator packs enough to take over any terrain.  

Toyota Supra
The long-awaited fifth generation of Toyota’s most revered sports car is here. Recently teased with the speckled vinyl camouflage, the reborn Supra has got us as excited as the last time Goku was brought back from the dead in a Dragonball Super episode.

After a hiatus of nearly 16 years, Toyota’s halo two-seater sports coupe is all set to make a comeback. An icon of pop culture and made famous by films like the Fast and Furious, this versatile sportster is every tuners dream.

The 2019 version is powered by a turbocharged 3.0-litre inline-six motor which makes 350PS. It shares the same platform as the BMW Z4 and will debut at the upcoming Detroit Motor Show in January. The Supra is a legend in its own right and one of the best cars to come from Japan.

Mercedes Maybach Pullman S650
The Maybach Pullman S650 is an uber luxurious limo like no other. This armoured beast of a machine is nearly 6.5metres long and features all the creature comforts you can think of.

Priced at around half a million euros (Rs 4.02 crore), the 2019 Mercedes-Maybach S650 Pullman comes with the 6.0-litre V12 bi-turbo engine that has an output of 622PS of max power and a mammoth 1,000 Nm of peak torque. And if you are looking for speed, then the 2019 S650 Pullman can do 0-100kmph in less than 7 seconds. It is the longest, most expensive, and most exclusive S-Class and we would love to get our hands on it.

Aston Martin Valkyrie
If you are old-school and firmly believe that there is no replacement for displacement, then the bonkers Aston Martin Valkyrie is a match made in heaven for you.

Powered by a 6.5-litre, naturally-aspirated V12 engine which makes 1000PS and revs to 11,100 rpm, the Valkyrie is a marvel of automotive engineering itself. It develops all that power and a humungous 740Nm of torque, and that too without any of that turbocharger or electric motor wizardry under the hood. With an estimated price tag of nearly $3 million (Rs 21.16 crore), this hypercar is the most expensive and eccentric entrant on our list.

McLaren Speedtail
Carrying the mantle of being the spiritual successor of the legendary McLaren F1 from the 90s is no easy feat, and with the Speedtail McLaren will leave no stone unturned. This gorgeous Hyper GT is one of the most beautifully designed cars by the iconic British marque.

The Speedtail is built around a bespoke McLaren monocage carbon fibre structure and benefits from lightweight engineering throughout, including an all-carbon fibre body, aluminium active suspension and carbon ceramic brakes. This makes it the most aero-drag efficient Mclaren road car till date.  

Packing in a monstrous 1050PS petrol hybrid engine under the hood, the petrol-electric powertrain can propel the Speedtail from 0-300kmph in a mind-numbing 12.8 seconds! It also enables the Speedtail to break the F1’s top speed record of 243mph (391kmph), set way back in 1993, by a significant margin.

The Speedtail certainly looks a car like no other. And with just 106 units to be ever built (which are already sold out) it is among the most expensive hypercars of its time as well, with a sticker price of over 1.75 million pounds (Rs 16.50 crore). If there ever was a must have wishlist car it is this!

Mercedes-AMG One
The F1-engined Project One, is one of the most talked about cars and probably the most ambitious project from the Mercedes-AMG stables yet. All 275 examples planned for production have long been sold out, despite the hypercar’s eye-watering price tag of $2.7 million (Rs 19.11 crore).

Powered by a hybrid electric powertrain which features a 1.6-litre V6 gasoline engine and two 120kW motors in tandem to make over a 1000PS of power this hypercar is simply mental. It does a top speed of 350kmph and can clock 0-200kmph in less than 6 seconds, talk about hair raisingly fast.

Rimac Concept Two
Let’s end the list with one for the future. The Rimac Concept Two, is the amalgamation of the latest and the greatest tech advancements in the automotive industry. An all electric hypercar, the Concept Two is the better and improved version from the Croatian carmaker after the Concept One. For the uninitiated, the Concept One was the same crazy electric that Grand Tour host Richard Hammond crashed in one of the episodes in season 2. Now Rimac is back and has done one better with the Concept Two.

It comes loaded with an arsenal of electric Motors that propel it from 0-100kmph in a mind altering 1.85 seconds! It does that with a combined output of a mammoth 1914PS of power and 2300Nm of torque. What's more is that you can have all of this insane performance along with a claimed range of around 650km!