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''Sports Car International'' (SCI) was an automobile magazine published in the United States from 1986 to 2008 by Ross Periodicals Inc, first in
Newport Beach Newport Beach is a coastal city in South Orange County, California. Newport Beach is known for swimming and sandy beaches. Newport Harbor once supported maritime industries however today, it is used mostly for recreation. Balboa Island draws v ...
, but then later in
Novato, California Novato (Spanish for "Novatus") is a city in Marin County, California, in the North Bay region of the Bay Area. At the 2020 census, Novato had a population of 53,225. History What is now Novato was originally the site of several Coast Miwok ...
.


History

The magazine was unabashedly enthusiast-oriented, assuming a good knowledge of
sports car A sports car is a car designed with an emphasis on dynamic performance, such as handling, acceleration, top speed, the thrill of driving and racing capability. Sports cars originated in Europe in the early 1900s and are currently produced by ...
s, racing, and automotive history. The magazine was originally edited by Mark Ewing. In the 1990s, (after the move from Newport Beach to Northern California) Jay Lamm served as editor; Lamm had worked at other publications, including ''
Autoweek ''Autoweek'' is a car culture publication based in Detroit, Michigan. It was first published in 1958 and in 1977 the publication was purchased by Crain Communications Inc, its current parent company. The magazine was published weekly and focused ...
'', and had written books on cars like the
Mazda Miata Miata can refer to * The Mazda MX-5 Miata car * ''Miata'', a female first name common among the Gola people The Gola or Gula are a West African ethnic group who share a common cultural heritage, language and history and who live primarily in west ...
. In 1994, SCI became the first magazine publication to go all-digital in its printing process. In 2006, Erik Gustafson served as editor, and upgraded the publication's layout, editorial style, and format to compete directly with rival top automotive publications.Between the Lines: [http://www.autosflow.com/2011/08/10-the-best-and-greatest-sports-cars-of-all-time.html Sports Car] International on the Bugatti Veyron
/ref> The magazine ceased publication with the November 2008 edition due to cost factors such as a lack of advertising revenue. The publisher stated that all subscribers would ride out their subscription with ''
Excellence Excellence may refer to: * ''Excellence'' (magazine), for owners and fans of Porsche cars * Excellence (pop group), a Swedish pop group * ''Excellence'' (software), a word processor for the Amiga * ''Excellence'' (yacht), launched 2019 * Excellenc ...
'', a magazine focused on
Porsche Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, usually shortened to Porsche (; see below), is a German automobile manufacturer specializing in high-performance sports cars, SUVs and sedans, headquartered in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The company ...
automobiles. For those who already have subscriptions to ''Excellence'' and SCI, ''Forza'', a
Ferrari Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello, Italy. Founded by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988) in 1939 from the Alfa Romeo racing division as ''Auto Avio Costruzioni'', the company built its first car ...
magazine would be the substitute. The first magazine ever to be produced using
computer to plate Computer-to-plate (CTP) is an imaging technology used in modern printing processes. In this technology, an image created in a Desktop Publishing (DTP) application is output directly to a printing plate. This compares with the older technology, co ...
(CTP) process in 1994, by Publishers Press Inc.


Top sports cars

''Sports Car International'' compiled a list of the Top Sports Cars of the last few decades. The selections were simply the opinions of the magazine's editors. The following lists are taken from the magazine. All Time :1.
Ferrari 250 GTO The Ferrari 250 GTO is a GT car produced by Ferrari from 1962 to 1964 for homologation into the FIA's Group 3 Grand Touring Car category. It was powered by Ferrari's ''Tipo 168/62'' Colombo V12 engine. The "250" in its name denotes the displa ...
:2.
McLaren F1 The McLaren F1 is a sports car designed and manufactured by British automobile manufacturer McLaren Cars, and powered by the BMW S70/2 V12 engine. The original concept was conceived by Gordon Murray. Murray was able to convince Ron Dennis to ...
:3.
Jaguar E-Type The Jaguar E-Type, or the Jaguar XK-E for the North American market, is a British sports car that was manufactured by Jaguar Cars Ltd between 1961 and 1974. Its combination of beauty, high performance, and competitive pricing established the ...
:4.
Lamborghini Miura SV The Lamborghini Miura is a sports car produced by Italian automaker Lamborghini between 1966 and 1973. The car was the first supercar with a rear mid-engined two-seat layout, although the concept was first seen in a production road car with Ren� ...
:5.
Mercedes-Benz 300SL The Mercedes-Benz 300 SL (chassis code W 198) is a two-seat sports car which was produced by Mercedes-Benz as a gullwinged coupe (1954–1957) and roadster (1957–1963).Werner Oswald: ''Mercedes-Benz Personenwagen 1945–1985''. Motorbuch Ve ...
:6.
Porsche 911 Carrera RS The Porsche 911 (pronounced ''Nine Eleven'' or in german: Neunelfer) is a two-door 2+2 high performance rear-engined sports car introduced in September 1964 by Porsche AG of Stuttgart, Germany. It has a rear-mounted flat-six engine and origi ...
:7.
Porsche 356 The Porsche 356 is a sports car that was first produced by Austrian company Porsche Konstruktionen GesmbH (1948–1949), and then by German company Dr. Ing. h. c. F. Porsche GmbH (1950–1965). It was Porsche's first production automobile. E ...
:8.
Porsche Carrera GT The Porsche Carrera GT (Project Code 980) is a mid-engine sports car that was manufactured by German automobile manufacturer Porsche from 2004 to 2006. ''Sports Car International'' named the Carrera GT number one on its list of Top Sports Cars ...
:9. Shelby 289 AC Cobra :10.
Mazda MX-5 The Mazda MX-5 is a lightweight two-passenger roadster sports car manufactured and marketed by Mazda with a front mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout. The convertible is marketed as the or in Japan, and as the Mazda Miata () in the United Sta ...
1960s :1.
Jaguar E-Type The Jaguar E-Type, or the Jaguar XK-E for the North American market, is a British sports car that was manufactured by Jaguar Cars Ltd between 1961 and 1974. Its combination of beauty, high performance, and competitive pricing established the ...
:2.
Shelby AC Cobra The AC Cobra, sold in the United States as the Shelby Cobra and AC Shelby Cobra, is a sports car manufactured by British company AC Cars, with a Ford V8 engine. It was produced intermittently in both the United Kingdom and later the United ...
:3.
Porsche 911 The Porsche 911 (pronounced ''Nine Eleven'' or in german: Neunelfer) is a two-door 2+2 high performance rear-engined sports car introduced in September 1964 by Porsche AG of Stuttgart, Germany. It has a rear-mounted flat-six engine and origi ...
:4.
Lamborghini Miura The Lamborghini Miura is a sports car produced by Italian automaker Lamborghini between 1966 and 1973. The car was the first supercar with a rear mid-engined two-seat layout, although the concept was first seen in a production road car with Ren ...
:5. Chevrolet Corvette Stingray :6.
Lotus Elan Lotus Elan is the name of two separate ranges of automobiles produced by Lotus Cars. The first series of cars was produced between 1962 and 1975 as a rear-wheel drive vehicle. The second series was produced between 1989 and 1995 as a front-wheel ...
:7.
Ferrari 250 GT SWB The Ferrari 250 is a series of sports cars and grand tourers built by Ferrari from 1952 to 1964. The company's most successful early line, the 250 series includes many variants designed for road use or sports car racing. 250 series cars are chara ...
:7. Ferrari 275 GTB/4 :8.
Ferrari 250 GTO The Ferrari 250 GTO is a GT car produced by Ferrari from 1962 to 1964 for homologation into the FIA's Group 3 Grand Touring Car category. It was powered by Ferrari's ''Tipo 168/62'' Colombo V12 engine. The "250" in its name denotes the displa ...
:9.
Maserati Ghibli Maserati Ghibli is the name of three different cars produced by Italian automobile manufacturer Maserati: the AM115, a V8 grand tourer from 1967 to 1973; the AM336, a V6 twin-turbocharged coupé from 1992 to 1998; and the M157, an executive s ...
:10.
Porsche 356 The Porsche 356 is a sports car that was first produced by Austrian company Porsche Konstruktionen GesmbH (1948–1949), and then by German company Dr. Ing. h. c. F. Porsche GmbH (1950–1965). It was Porsche's first production automobile. E ...
C :11. Ferrari 250 GT Berlinetta Lusso 1970s :1.
Ferrari Daytona The Ferrari Daytona, officially designated the Ferrari 365 GTB/4, is a two-seat grand tourer by Ferrari from 1968 to 1973. It was introduced at the Paris Auto Salon in 1968 to replace the 275 GTB/4, and featured the 275's Colombo V12 bored ...
:2.
Datsun 240Z The Nissan S30 (sold in Japan as the Nissan Fairlady Z and in other markets as the Datsun 240Z, then later as the 260Z and 280Z) is the first generation of Z GT 3-door two-seat coupés, produced by Nissan Motors, Ltd. of Japan from 1969 until ...
:3.
Lamborghini Countach The Lamborghini Countach () is a rear mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive sports car produced by the Italian automobile manufacturer Lamborghini from 1974 until 1990. It is one of the many exotic designs developed by Italian design house Bertone, wh ...
:4.
Lamborghini Miura SV The Lamborghini Miura is a sports car produced by Italian automaker Lamborghini between 1966 and 1973. The car was the first supercar with a rear mid-engined two-seat layout, although the concept was first seen in a production road car with Ren� ...
:5. Ferrari 308 :6.
Ferrari Dino Dino () was a marque best known for mid-engined, rear-drive sports cars produced by Ferrari from 1957 to 1976. The marque came into existence in late 1956 with a front-engined Formula Two racer powered by a brand new '' Dino'' V6 engine. The name ...
:7.
Mazda RX-7 The Mazda RX-7 is a front-engine, rear-wheel-drive, rotary engine-powered sports car that was manufactured and marketed by Mazda from 1978 until 2002 across three generations, all of which made use of a compact, lightweight Wankel rotary engine. ...
:8. Porsche Carrera RS :9.
De Tomaso Pantera The De Tomaso Pantera is a mid-engine sports car produced by Italian automobile manufacturer De Tomaso from 1971 to 1992. Italian for "Panther", the Pantera was the automaker's most popular model, with over 7,000 manufactured over its twenty-year ...
:10.
BMW M1 The BMW M1 (model code E26) is a mid-engined sports car produced by German automotive manufacturer BMW from 1978 until 1981. In the late 1970s, Italian automobile manufacturer Lamborghini entered into an agreement with BMW to build a productio ...
1980s :1.
Porsche 959 The Porsche 959 is a sports car manufactured by German automobile manufacturer Porsche from 1986 to 1993, first as a Group B rally car and later as a road legal production car designed to satisfy FIA homologation regulations requiring at least ...
:2.
Ferrari 288 GTO The Ferrari GTO (often referred to as Ferrari 288 GTO) (Type F114) is an exotic homologation of the Ferrari 308 GTB produced from 1984 to 1987 in Ferrari's Maranello factory, designated GT for Gran Turismo and O for ''Omologata'' (homologated in ...
:3. VW Golf/Rabbit GTI :4.
Audi Quattro The Audi Quattro is a road and rally car, produced by the German automobile manufacturer Audi, part of the Volkswagen Group. It was first shown at the 1980 Geneva Motor Show on 3 March. Production continued through 1991. Background The wor ...
:5.
Ferrari F40 The Ferrari F40 (''tipo'' F120) is a mid-engine, rear-wheel drive sports car engineered by Nicola Materazzi with styling by Pininfarina. It was built from 1987 until 1992, with the LM and GTE race car versions continuing production until 1994 ...
:6.
BMW M3 The BMW M3 is a high-performance version of the BMW 3 Series, developed by BMW's in-house motorsport division, BMW M GmbH. M3 models have been produced for every generation of 3 Series since the E30 M3 was introduced in 1986. The initial mode ...
:7.
Porsche 911 Carrera The Porsche 911 (pronounced ''Nine Eleven'' or in german: Neunelfer) is a two-door 2+2 (car body style), 2+2 high performance Rear-engine design, rear-engined sports car introduced in September 1964 by Porsche, Porsche AG of Stuttgart, Germany. ...
:8.
Toyota MR2 The Toyota MR2 is a line of two-seat, mid-engined, rear-wheel-drive sports cars manufactured in Japan and marketed globally by Toyota from 1984 until 2007 over three generations: W10 (1984–1989), W20 (1989–1999) and W30 (2000–2007). It is ...
:9.
Renault 5 Turbo The Renault 5 Turbo or R5 Turbo is a sport hatchback automobile launched by the French manufacturer Renault at the Brussels Motor Show in January 1980. The car was primarily designed for rallying, but was also sold in a street version. A total ...
:10.
Lamborghini Countach The Lamborghini Countach () is a rear mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive sports car produced by the Italian automobile manufacturer Lamborghini from 1974 until 1990. It is one of the many exotic designs developed by Italian design house Bertone, wh ...
1990s :1. Mazda MX-5/Mazda Miata :2.
Porsche Boxster The Porsche Boxster and Cayman are mid-engine two-seater sports cars manufactured and marketed by German automobile manufacturer Porsche across four generations—as a two-door, two-seater roadster (Boxster) and a three-door, two-seater fastback ...
:3.
Ferrari 550 The Ferrari 550 Maranello (''tipo'' F133) is a front-engine V12 2-seat grand tourer built by Ferrari from 1996 to 2001. The 550 Maranello marked Ferrari's return to a front-engine, rear-wheel drive layout for its 2-seater 12-cylinder model, 23 y ...
:4.
McLaren F1 The McLaren F1 is a sports car designed and manufactured by British automobile manufacturer McLaren Cars, and powered by the BMW S70/2 V12 engine. The original concept was conceived by Gordon Murray. Murray was able to convince Ron Dennis to ...
:5.
Porsche 911 The Porsche 911 (pronounced ''Nine Eleven'' or in german: Neunelfer) is a two-door 2+2 high performance rear-engined sports car introduced in September 1964 by Porsche AG of Stuttgart, Germany. It has a rear-mounted flat-six engine and origi ...
:6. Honda NSX/Acura NSX :7.
Ferrari F355 The Ferrari F355 (Type F129) is a sports car manufactured by Italian car manufacturer Ferrari produced from May 1994 until 1999. The car is a heavily revised Ferrari 348 with notable exterior and performance changes. The F355 was succeeded by t ...
:8.
Nissan 300ZX The Nissan 300ZX is a sports car that was produced across two different generations. As with all other versions of the Z, the 300ZX was sold within the Japanese domestic market under the name Fairlady Z. It was sold in Japan from 1983 to 2000 a ...
:9.
Lotus Elise The Lotus Elise is a two-seat, rear-wheel drive, mid-engined roadster conceived in early 1994 and released in September 1996 by the British manufacturer Lotus Cars. The Elise has a fibreglass body shell atop its bonded extruded aluminium chassi ...
:10.
Mazda RX-7 The Mazda RX-7 is a front-engine, rear-wheel-drive, rotary engine-powered sports car that was manufactured and marketed by Mazda from 1978 until 2002 across three generations, all of which made use of a compact, lightweight Wankel rotary engine. ...
2000s :1.
Porsche Carrera GT The Porsche Carrera GT (Project Code 980) is a mid-engine sports car that was manufactured by German automobile manufacturer Porsche from 2004 to 2006. ''Sports Car International'' named the Carrera GT number one on its list of Top Sports Cars ...
:2.
Ford GT The Ford GT is a mid-engine two-seater sports car manufactured and marketed by American automobile manufacturer Ford for the 2005 model year in conjunction with the company's 2003 centenary. The second generation Ford GT became available for ...
:3.
Enzo Ferrari Enzo Anselmo Giuseppe Maria Ferrari (; 20 February 1898 – 14 August 1988) was an Italian motor racing driver and entrepreneur, the founder of the Scuderia Ferrari Grand Prix motor racing team, and subsequently of the Ferrari automobile ...
:4. Pagani Zonda C12S :5.
Lotus Elise The Lotus Elise is a two-seat, rear-wheel drive, mid-engined roadster conceived in early 1994 and released in September 1996 by the British manufacturer Lotus Cars. The Elise has a fibreglass body shell atop its bonded extruded aluminium chassi ...
:6. Porsche Boxster S :7.
Porsche 911 GT3 The Porsche 911 GT3 is a high-performance homologation model of the Porsche 911 sports car. It is a line of high-performance models, which began with the 1973 911 Carrera RS. The GT3 has had a successful racing career in the one-make national ...
:8.
Lamborghini Gallardo The Lamborghini Gallardo (; ) is a sports car built by the Italian automotive manufacturer Lamborghini from 2003 to 2013. It is Lamborghini's second car released under parent company Audi, and best-selling model with 14,022 built throughout its ...
:9.
Lamborghini Murciélago The Lamborghini Murciélago is a sports car produced by Italian automotive manufacturer Lamborghini between 2001 and 2010. Successor to the Diablo and flagship V12 of the automaker's lineup, the Murciélago was introduced as a coupé in 2001. ...
:10.
Subaru Impreza WRX The is a compact car that has been manufactured by the Japanese automaker Subaru since 1992. It was introduced as a replacement for the Subaru Leone, Leone, with the predecessor's Subaru EA engine, EA series engines replaced by the new Subaru EJ ...


See also

* ''Excellence'' (magazine)


References

{{Reflist


External links


Archive from Archive.org of ''Sports Car Internationals former web site
Automobile magazines published in the United States Monthly magazines published in the United States Defunct magazines published in the United States Magazines established in 1986 Magazines disestablished in 2008 Magazines published in California