All posts in “Videos”

Did the Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series set a new Nurburgring record?

According to well-known YouTube Nürburgring-watcher Misha Charoudin, the Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series likely set a new production car record at the famous German race track. According to the channel’s calculations, the 720-horsepower AMG GT Black Series likely crossed the finish line with around 6:43 showing on the stopwatch. If that’s true it would be a new record, taking top billing away from the Lamborghini Aventador SVJ, which did the deed in 6:44.97. It also wouldn’t be a big surprise, since Mercedes was known to be honing the car at that exact track for years.

Instead of rehashing the great debate about the never-ending quest to set records at the Nürburgring Nordschleife, we’ll just recap a few highlights: Does it matter? Is it repeatable? Is it relevant to actual street performance? Do the mods that make it fast at the ‘Ring make it worse on the road? Now that those are out of the way, let’s add this unqualified statement: ‘Ring records are nothing if not impressive and newsworthy.

If Charoudin’s projected time is accurate — and he’s been on the mark in the past — we expect confirmation from Mercedes-AMG will be coming in short order. Probably with onboard video, and probably with much pomp and circumstance. We look forward to it.

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October 21, 2020 / Comments Off on Did the Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series set a new Nurburgring record?
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Watch This Inventor Fly a Jet Suit Over Iceland

For as long as we can remember–and even probably before then–we’ve wanted to be able to fly. It’s a pretty common thing for humans and something that Richard Browning’s Gravity Industries wanted to make possible…

September 2, 2020 / Comments Off on Watch This Inventor Fly a Jet Suit Over Iceland
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Listen to the Mercedes-AMG Project One romp around Mercedes’ proving grounds

It’s been over three years since we saw the reveal of the Mercedes-AMG Project One, and we’re still waiting on a final production car. Mercedes isn’t keeping us entirely in the dark on what’s going on behind closed doors, though.

Today, Mercedes has dropped a new video and new photos of the Project One testing on track. The company says that testing is entering a new phase now, as pre-production models are running hot laps on Mercedes’ proving grounds in Immendingen. Mercedes also says that this is the first time it’s testing with the engines turned up to their full power potential of “more than 1,000 horsepower.”

For us, this is simply a great chance for us to hear the 1.6-liter turbocharged V6 scream around a racetrack. Mercedes says the sound we’re hearing is authentic and what owners will hear from behind the wheel of their Projects Ones. Since this engine is a street-tamed Formula One engine, it sounds very similar to the Mercedes race cars piloted by Lewis Hamilton and Valterri Bottas on Sundays. The sound isn’t exactly the same as what we hear on TV, but there’s no mistaking this engine’s origins. 

In addition to running at full power, Mercedes says it’s working to validate and develop the active aerodynamics. After this bout of testing is complete, Mercedes says it plans to head to the north loop of the Nurburgring. Don’t expect to see a record attempt, though — AMG already ruled that out a couple years ago.

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August 18, 2020 / Comments Off on Listen to the Mercedes-AMG Project One romp around Mercedes’ proving grounds
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Hyperion unveils XP-1 hydrogen fuel cell supercar

Did you hear that? It didn’t sound like much, did it? Pretty quiet. Did you feel it? Just a whiff of passing vapor? Either that’s the emissions of a fuel cell supercar, or a big entrepreneurial dream not long for this world. When you see it, though, it’s hard to miss. That’s the Hyperion XP-1, which, after a little teasing, was officially revealed in the video above.

We don’t have a lot of details yet. Hyperion says the hydrogen hypercar can travel 1,000 miles between refueling — a process that takes mere minutes — and that it’ll do 0-60 miles per hour in a blistering 2.2 seconds. Its side aero elements not only help provide high-speed cornering stability, but they house solar panels, “which can articulate to follow the trajectory of the sun.” Hyperion, which also has aerospace and energy arms in addition to its automotive business, plans to produce the XP-1 in the U.S. starting in 2022.

Sure, I was a little flippant in my lede with the vaporware insinuation. We’ve seen a lot of high-tech, green cars come and go without making much of a splash or nary a ripple in the marketplace. We’ve seen it go the other way, too, and we’re still waiting on sure signs of success from others. Hyperion CEO Angelo Kafantaris called the XP-1, in part, “an educational tool for the masses.” He added, “Aerospace engineers have long understood the advantages of hydrogen as the most abundant, lightest element in the universe and now, with this vehicle, consumers will experience its extraordinary value proposition. This is only the beginning of what can be achieved with hydrogen as an energy storage medium. The potential of this fuel is limitless and will revolutionize the energy sector.”

It’s easy (maybe even lazy) to be dismissive of hydrogen with all the gains battery electric vehicles are making, but I still believe hydrogen has a place in the green energy ecosystem, and I’m not alone. Look at Toyota, Hyundai, even a number of countries that see a big future for it in their economies. It currently has its challenges (and listen to our Green Episode of the Autoblog Podcast for more about that) but also plenty of promise, if you know how to look at it. Furthermore, Hyperion says it has a “plan to revolutionize the hydrogen refueling industry.” If that’s the case, it gives the XP-1 — and hydrogen cars in general — a better shot at success.

Anyway, check out the cool fuel cell car from Hyperion in the video and photos above, and debate about it — and about hydrogen — in the comments.

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August 12, 2020 / Comments Off on Hyperion unveils XP-1 hydrogen fuel cell supercar
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Prototype Ferrari 812 Superfast caught making awesome noises at Fiorano

In January, spy photographers snapped an 812 Superfast prototype testing around Maranello. Bodywork revisions included an open front intake, smoothed-out bumpers, taped-up side sills, covered air extractors behind the rear wheels, and new bodywork around the exhaust outlets with what appeared to be additional venting. The Supercar Blog suspected the prototype was a hardcore version of the 812, possibly earning the hallowed “GTO” appellation. Autoevolution went further with the speculation, writing that a reworked 6.5-liter V12 would produce 850 horsepower, a 61-hp jump over the standard 812, and would rev beyond the 9,000-rpm limit in the Ferrari LaFerrari.

At least one more of these testers has been caught on video around Ferrari’s Fiorano test track, giving us a chance to hear what’s going on underneath the patchwork skin. YouTube user Varryx got the footage, doing us the favor of including a regular 812 lapping the circuit for comparison. The differences are clear. The 812 is already praised for its glorious exhaust note. The prototype, which looks to have put on a more finished rear valance, snarls more during downshifts and bellows with a lower, angrier pitch on the flyby. 

We’re still not sure what it is, but perusing Ferrari Chat forums reveals members having a conversation about an “812 VS” for nearly two years now. VS is Italian for Versione Speciale, the thrust here being a track-focused and lighter 812. The Speciale cars began with the one-off 1955 375 MM Berlinetta Speciale — “MM” representing Mille Miglia, another name mooted for the special 812. The denomination has returned a few times throughout the decades, used most recently on the one-off 458 MM Speciale commission shows in 2016.

Keeping in mind that this is all speculation until Ferrari reveals the real thing, one Ferrari Chat poster wrote we’ll get “a somehow more powerful blistering naturally aspirated large V-12 track oriented version of the prodigious 812 Superfast. As one of, if not the last of, its kind this will be a high-priced limited edition. Likely limited to 799 pieces. Probably priced at $750,000 or more and approaching $1 million for Tailor Made cars. Prospective launch date 2020. Confidence level 80%.” That production figure matches the number of F12 TDF units Ferrari built. Another forum member said the 812 VS will make 860 metric horsepower, which comes to 848 of our horsepower.

Supposedly, Ferrari had planned the debut the car at the Geneva Motor Show. As of now, suspicions have settled on Ferrari showing an SF90 Spider in September, and this hardcore 812 VS with “organic and pure” bodywork in October or November. We’re also waiting on the mid-engined hybrid supercar spotted all over Maranello of late, so it could be an especially flouncy year for prancing horses.

June 18, 2020 / Comments Off on Prototype Ferrari 812 Superfast caught making awesome noises at Fiorano
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Ferrari mule lapping Fiorano could house V6 hybrid

Ferrari spoke of plans to add a V6 to its lineup two years ago, without dropping its two other trademark motors. The brand’s SVP of commercial and marketing, Enrico Galliera, told Australia’s WhichCar last year, “So the technology we are going to have, V12, V8, V6 turbo. Hybrid will give us the possibility to have a platform that we can mix to achieve emissions targets.” There’s been much chatter around when and where the V6 in turbo and/or hybrid form would show. We still don’t know, but it’s possible that we’ve had our first sound check for it, thanks to four brief videos on Instagram.

Instagram user simonemasetti_photography, a regular around Ferrari’s Fiorano test track in Maranello, captured the vids, while Instagrammer cochespias uploaded them. The camouflaged 488 mules lapping the circuit wear camo similar to that on a 488 mule spotted on Maranello roads with an electricity warning sticker on its frunk.

We can’t be certain of what engine lurks behind the cabin of the test cars, but all the cars are much quieter than one would expect Ferrari’s 3.9-liter twin-turbo V8 to be. In the first video, the coupe accelerates so hard that a long lick of fire shoots out the exhaust, with only a gentle ‘whoosh’ — no wail or roar — to accompany it. The third vid makes the best comparison, the one that opens on two 488-looking coupes in the far distance, one black and one camo’d. When the camo’d car takes off, moving away from the camera, we hear the sound we’d expect from a charging Ferrari V8. However, when the car we suspect is a hybrid V6 passes right in front of the camera, even under acceleration it makes hardly any noise compared to the car in the distance.

These cars, in fact, sound just like the car Masetti caught testing at Fiorano last September, which he believes is the V6 hybrid.

No matter what’s being tested, we know little about Maranello’s V6. One origin story says the mill has been developed from the 2.9-liter twin-turbo six-cylinder in the Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio, which itself is suspected to be derived from the 3.9-liter twin-turbo V8 in the F8 Tributo. Another origin story figures the V6 is a brand new engine. No matter where it began, consensus is that the hybrid unit will enter production around 2022 and produce more than 720 horsepower.

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May 13, 2020 / Comments Off on Ferrari mule lapping Fiorano could house V6 hybrid
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SSC Tuatara shown screaming down an empty highway in new video

Nearly three months after SSC North America finally unveiled the production version of the Tuatara, and after more than a decade in development, the company has released video showing the supercar in action.

The 49-second clip shows company founder Jerod Shelby piloting the Tuatara at speed down an empty highway along a windswept, treeless landscape. The rear-mounted camera gives us a good view of the cockpit and its sense of openness, thanks to the expansive glass roof panels on the butterfly doors.

We also get a view of the CIMA seven-speed automated manual gearbox, developed by Automac Engineering of Italy and sending power to the rear wheels as Shelby uses the paddle shifters on the wheel. There’s no indication of how fast he was driving, but we hear the sound of its engine, which has an 8,800-rpm redline, and the video is tagged with #lifebeginsat300 and #yearofthetuatara, reminders of the company’s boast that the Tuatara can go “well over” the vaunted 300-mph mark.

The car boasts a 0.279 drag coefficient and active aerodynamics. Its 5.9-liter twin-turbo flat-plane crank V8 was developed with Nelson Racing Engines. It puts out 1,350 horsepower using 91-octane fuel, and 1,750 hp on E85. Torque is 1,280 pound-feet at 6,800 rpm.

Others have already broken the 300-mph barrier, of course, including a street-legal 2006 Ford GT and a Bugatti Chiron longtail prototype last September, with Koenigsegg claiming that simulations suggest the Jesko Absolut is capable of doing 330 mph. Still, we look forward to SSC’s inevitable assault.

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May 6, 2020 / Comments Off on SSC Tuatara shown screaming down an empty highway in new video
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Alois Ruf details 80 years of history in ‘RUF: Love at the Red Line’

Alois Ruf, Jr. knows the exact moment he and his father Alois Ruf, Sr. realized just how fanatic Porsche people are about their cars. While sitting at a stoplight in their Porsche 356 Karmann hardtop one Sunday afternoon, a stranger knocked on the window and begged for a chance to buy that exact car. The Rufs agreed to follow the person to his house, and the random buyer used cash from a candy box to overpay for the car that same day. After handing the cash over, the trusting stranger then loaned the Rufs a different Porsche to use to grab the necessary paperwork. “These Porsche people, they must be crazy,” Alois, Jr. remembers his father saying. “Everything is different with these people. Something is there that is not normal.” The Rufs went on to use craziness to build an 80-year business that is now engrained in Porsche lore.

Marking eight decades of service, Ruf put together a 30-minute documentary about its own history and recently released the project in full on YouTube. The video is spearheaded by Alois, Jr., and includes several other notable Porsche employees, owners, historians and fans. Ruf remains headquartered at Pfaffenhausen, Germany, where Alois, Sr. first opened a small repair shop.

Senior’s first Porsche was the result of a terrible crash. In 1963, while driving a Mercedes-Benz O 321 HL, he witnessed a Porsche 356 Karmann hardtop pass his slow-moving omnibus. When the Porsche try to correct into the proper lane, it lost control, drove into a ditch and flipped twice. Senior calmed the man down, brought him to the hospital, and explained he had an auto shop that could repair the car. But the owner ended up selling the car to Alois, and Alois sold it about a year later in the previously mentioned scenario. From that seed, a lasting relationship grew.

The car RUF is known for, the Yellowbird, came from an idea that emerged back in 1979. At the time, Junior called it the 945 R, and he planned to give it 450 horsepower with a twin-turbo version of the 935 engine. He ended up building the CTR 1 out of a shell from a 911 Carrera 3.2, and the car’s pure performance characteristics filled a gap left by Porsche at the time. In part due to a popular VHS tape, that car later became a legend.

Learn more about RUF’s beginnings, and how the business progressed, straight from Alois, Jr., in the video above.

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May 4, 2020 / Comments Off on Alois Ruf details 80 years of history in ‘RUF: Love at the Red Line’
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American Watch Brands Are Back – Check These Out

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This Week In Gear, Episode 54
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American watch brands have seen a resurgence in recent years; here are our nine favorite watches made in the U.S. Plus, why you should drink your best whiskey *right now*, our roundup of the best approach shoes that are best for day hikes, and rumors about the next (hybrid? AWD?) Ford Mustang.

Must-Read Headlines:

• Drink Your Damn Whiskey
• The 9 Best Technical Day Hike Shoes
• Will the Next-Gen Mustang Be an AWD Hybrid?

Our 9 Favorite Watches from American Brands: See the Full List with More Detail

• Brew Mastergraph – $375
• Nodus Retrospect Diver – $450
• Shinola Runwell Automatic – $1,095+
• Autodromo Intereuropa – $1,250
• Pelton Sector – $1,499
• Oak & Oscar Olmsted – $1,375
• Haven Chilton Chronograph – $1,799
• Monta Atlas – $1,840
• Vortic Railroad Watch Edition – $2,995+

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May 1, 2020 / Comments Off on American Watch Brands Are Back – Check These Out
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America’s Six “Dream Cars,” Ranked By State

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April 24, 2020 / Comments Off on America’s Six “Dream Cars,” Ranked By State
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Jacob & Co. Bugatti Chiron Tourbillon puts a mini W16 engine in motion inside a watch

In early 2019, Bugatti ended its 15-year watch partnership with Swiss watchmaker Parmigiani Fleurier and inaugurated a new collaboration with New York watchmaker and jeweler Jacob & Co. — the latter firm once known for helping define the bling-bling era in American music. When announcing the new tie-up at the global timepiece showcase Baselworld in March last year, Jacob debuted two new limited-edition watches, both based on extant Jacob models. The $545,000 Twin Turbo Furious Bugatti Edition reworked the watchmaker’s Twin Turbo Furious timepiece, and the $37,000 Bugatti Chrono Edition Limitee 100 Ans celebrated Bugatti’s 110th anniversary and was based off Jacob’s Epic X Chrono. Yet, as the partnership promised to push “the limits of what seems mechanically possible,” a new and incredible watch would be needed, so Jacob spent a year developing this, the Bugatti Chiron Tourbillon. Behind its sapphire crystal there’s an automaton suspended inside the case mimicking the movement of the Chiron’s W16 engine.  

The animated engine serves no timekeeping purpose, it’s there for show — and it’s quite the show. Pressing the pusher crown at the base of the case sets the engine in motion for about 20 seconds; a stainless steel crankshaft milled from a single ingot pushes stainless con-rods and pistons inside a sapphire crystal block, and two spinning turbochargers can be viewed through a window on the side of the case. After three runs, the engine’s barrel needs to be recharged by turning the center crown counterclockwise, then it’s ready for another three goes. The setup consists of 578 pieces, and is so tiny and complicated that it took more than three days to program the CNC machines milling the stainless steel, and the animation designer wasn’t sure it would work. Those two factoids are perhaps the best connection to the improbable wonder that is the Bugatti Chiron. 

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We meant the phrase “suspended inside the case” literally. The watch’s movement sits on four coilover dampers at the corners, allowing the movement a hint of up and down flotation which necessitated an Incabloc shock protection system. Other Bugatti-themed touches include the titanium case, the Chiron Blue hands, the watch movement’s 60-hour reserve dial that looks like a gas gauge, a window onto the tourbillion shaped like a Chiron grille, the black rubber strap, and the customization possibilities that include an owner be able to choose what color the coilovers should be.   

Jacob & Co. will make 250 of the Bugatti Chiron Tourbillion, each priced at $280,000.

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April 13, 2020 / Comments Off on Jacob & Co. Bugatti Chiron Tourbillon puts a mini W16 engine in motion inside a watch
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McLaren releases new Senna GTR footage and explains that giant wing

McLaren launched the McLaren Tech Club last week with a brief episode about the aerodynamic magic of the open-top McLaren Elva. In part two of the video series, McLaren continues to explain how air and wind affect a car’s design, but this time it’s in a very different way. McLaren Principal Designer Esteban Palazzo dives into how the massive wing on the McLaren Senna GTR came to be and what purpose it serves. Three extra videos also show new footage of the Senna GTR testing in Bahrain.

Like the McLaren F1 GTR and McLaren P1 GTR that preceded it, the Senna GTR’s most prominent feature is its multi-tiered, multi-layered, carbon fiber pedestal wing. Palazzo says it was not only inspired by high-performance cars of the past and aircraft design, but also by the likes and tastes of the intended customers. In the case of the Senna GTR, Palazzo mentions science fiction and architecture.

The wing, which creates about 2,204 pounds of downforce and aids vehicle stabilization, has a few features that might not be immediately noticeable from photos or video. The shape takes design cues such as the endplates from LMP1 cars. In addition to connecting to the posts, the wing is further integrated into the car’s shape with attachments to the rear diffuser. The last piece mentioned is the automatic drag reduction system (DRS), a new piece of moving technology that helps with, well, minimizing drag.

After releasing episode two of the McLaren Tech Club, the Brits followed up with three videos of the Senna GTR testing on the Bahrain International Circuit, on which the Senna GTR holds the fastest race lap in the circuit’s current configurations. The first video offers an interactive 360-degree interior view, the second video shows the driver’s point of view, and the third video is shot from the Senna’s front splitter. McLaren does not say who is in the driver’s seat.

Episode three of the McLaren Tech Club should arrive at a similar time next week.

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April 10, 2020 / Comments Off on McLaren releases new Senna GTR footage and explains that giant wing
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Gordon Murray’s T.50 gets a soundcheck and a website

Gordon Murray Automotive isn’t slated to begin building the T.50 supercar until late next year, with deliveries scheduled for early 2022. Thankfully for us, the next step on the march to that goal is a website and a soundcheck of a portion of the 3.9-liter V12 which will power the three-seater coupe (watch that video here). We say “a portion” because Cosworth — the engineering firm developing the mill — put just three of the 12 cylinders on the dyno to verify emissions output and ensure the components can handle 12,100 rpm, said to be 300 rpm short of a 12,400-rpm “hard limit” redline. That figure is 1,400 rpm beyond the north wall of the 6.5-liter V12 Cosworth built to propel the Aston Martin Valkyrie. Murray told TopGear that the air pulses sucked into the ram-air intake above the cabin will result in magnificent sound. The English engineering legend tuned the thickness of the roof panel on the McLaren F1 to enhance the engine sound, and he’s done the same thing on the T.50. Based on the short snippet of the dyno run, the free-breathing V12 will excite blood and bone.

Output checks in at 650 horsepower and 332 pound-feet of torque, meaning ten hoses more than the 2021 Porsche 911 Turbo S but 184 lb-ft less. Unlike just about every other supercar out there today, the T.50 will weigh no more than 2,161 pounds, a stunning spec that’s 1,475 pounds less than the Turbo S, 899 pounds less than the Lotus Evora 400 Lightweight, 180 pounds less than an entry-level Mazda MX-5 Miata Sport. The V12 will utilize two engine maps, one that loads up torque at the bottom of the rev range for potting about town, dropping the redline to about 9,500 rpm and horsepower to roughly 600, the other unlocking every rev and joule. A 48-volt mild hybrid system powers the 15.7-inch rear fan and active aero panels, and employs a small electric motor to add 30 ponies in certain aero configurations. Power in the 100 units of the T.50 road car is sent to the rear wheels through a six-speed manual with an exposed linkage; the 25 units of the T.50 track-only car will use paddle shifters. 

The coupe serves up five aerodynamic maps, two automatic and three driver selectable. Auto mode moves the under-floor and diffuser panels and active rear spoilers automatically as needed. Braking mode — as on a Bugatti Chiron or any McLaren — stands up the rear spoilers and powers the fan to suck air from under the car, improving downforce and therefore traction. Selectable High Downforce mode is made for the track and wet roads, boosting downforce by 30% over Auto mode. Streamline goes the opposite direction, closing aero inlets to reduce drag by 10% compared to Auto mode, and it “activates the fan at high speeds to extend the trailing wake of air behind the car, in effect creating a virtual long-tail.” VMAX mode starts with Streamline and kicks in extra boost from the 48-volt system to get to about 680 hp. Murray said the T.50 tops out somewhere around 220 miles per hour.  

The carbon-intense supercar has moved into wind tunnel testing in Silverstone, using the Racing Point F1 team facility. At the same time, Gordon Murray Automotive is finishing its customer experience and service center in Dunsfold, England next to the factory that will build the T.50. Have a listen to the engine and imagine what’s to come for what it’s designer calls the “last and the greatest analog supercar ever built.” We also recommend checking out TG‘s piece on the car, where Murray admits that driving dynamics have been benchmarked against the Alpine A110, power steering will only work at low speed and in parking lots, the V12 flips from idle to 12,000 rpm in 0.3 seconds, and the rear tires are just 295-section (911 Turbo S rubber is 315-section out back). 

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March 28, 2020 / Comments Off on Gordon Murray’s T.50 gets a soundcheck and a website
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Coldplay NPR Tiny Desk Concert

We’re all trapped inside working from home, preparing to kill our spouses and binge-watching Netflix because of the very real health crisis going on. Want to get a glimpse into all the five-star concerts that…

       

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March 19, 2020 / Comments Off on Coldplay NPR Tiny Desk Concert
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Ferrari Diecast Racing League Tournament

In what was most certainly news to us, there’s an entire racing league and tournament not only dedicated to Ferrari, but dedicated to tiny, scale-model Ferraris specifically dedicated to slot-car style racing. Ultimately, that pseudo-Ferrari…

March 17, 2020 / Comments Off on Ferrari Diecast Racing League Tournament
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The Apex AP-0 is a 649-hp EV that weighs 2,645 pounds

Apex Motors sounds like a brand new name in the game, but the Hong-Kong-based company’s been around for more a few years and through a few transformations. In 2015 a maverick outfit of car designers banded together under the name Elemental to reveal the RP1, powered by 1.0-liter and 2.0-liter EcoBoost engines. By 2017, the 1,278-pound coupe could produce 2,205 pounds of downforce and was running Goodwood. By 2019, the Elemental RP1 had turned into the even-more-evolved Apex AP1, putting out 400 hp from a 2.3-liter EcoBoost four-cylinder and blitzing from 0 to 60 miles per hour in 2.5 seconds.

The brand new AP-0 is the follow-up. As the naming scheme suggests, it takes the top spot in the lineup ahead of the AP-1 by having battery-electric power, a single electric motor turning the rear axles with 649-hp and 427 pound-feet of torque, a 320-mile range on the WLTP cycle, and a 0-60 time of 2.3 seconds. Top speed is 190 mph.

Just as remarkable, and even more unusual for an EV, the whole package weighs 2,645 pounds. Compared to a McLaren 720S, the AP-0 is 4.5 inches shorter but 3.4 inches wider, and while the Apex gives up 61 hp and 131 lb-ft to the Englishman, the AP-0 weighs almost 500 pounds less than the 720S. Compared to performance EVs, the Apex weighs about 1,380 pounds less than a Tesla Model 3 Performance, 1,700 pounds less than a Rimac Concept 2, and almost 2,500 pounds less than a Porsche Taycan Turbo S.

The Apex packs a floor-mounted, 90-kWh lithium-ion battery that consumes 1,213 pounds of its curb weight. When plugged into the right CCS charger, the pack can refill 80% of its charge in 15 minutes; on a standard Type 2 charger, filling up from empty takes eight hours.

The chassis and bodywork is entirely carbon fiber, a central carbon tub and modular spaceframes laid on a rigid carbon spine connect the front to the rear. Outside, the Le Mans-like fin houses a retractable LIDAR system up front and a cross-shaped taillight in back. Built as a road-legal racer for gearheads and sitting just 3.7 inches off the ground, there’s an adjustable pushrod suspension with automatic ride-height adjustment, 14-inch carbon ceramic rotors with six-piston calipers in front and four-piston in the rear, and a pair of 19-inch center-lock wheels up front paired with 20-inchers in back. 

Behind gullwing doors, the carbon, aluminum, and leather interior makes every occupant feel like a racer with a single-seater-style, reclined and feet-up seating position. Three displays for the driver sit atop the instrument panel behind a square steering wheel. To help drivers make the most of track days, Apex says the AP-0 can “gamify the way drivers can learn new racetracks and deliver the ultimate immersive racing experience” through augmented reality projection. The software-based “instructor” can be improved through over-the-air updates. To ensure the instructor knows what it’s talking about, Apex said it wants to build an FIA-approved race track, followed by a racing academy, around its Hong Kong HQ. 

The ambitions only begin there. When off the track, that LIDAR unit is intended to provide Level 3 autonomous capability at launch, with the company saying Level 4 potential is already built in. More handily, the AP-0 will come with automatic emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, and lane keep assist. That’s all down the way, though, the AP-0 not scheduled to enter production until the latter half of 2022, costing around $195,000 for U.S. buyers. If all goes well from here to there, Apex plans to build up to 500 units per year in Britain, what it calls its second home, on the way to introducing a wider lineup of offerings.

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March 14, 2020 / Comments Off on The Apex AP-0 is a 649-hp EV that weighs 2,645 pounds
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