Lightweight

All posts in “Lightweight”

Unleash your inner race car driver in this super-rare 2017 BAC Mono

Getting an open-wheel single-seater race car titled for street use in America is nearly impossible. Unless you’re in line for a Mercedes-AMG One, the next best thing is the BAC Mono, which is manufactured in strictly limited numbers in England. Finding one is difficult, but there’s a 3,000-mile example listed for sale on Cars & Bids.

BAC stands for Briggs Automotive Company, and it’s not a household name unless you’re well-versed in small, obscure car manufacturers based across the pond. Formed by two brothers in 2009, its goal was to create what it describes as “a road vehicle that offers the most authentic and pure driving experience possible while implementing the very latest racing technology.” Using an existing chassis was out of the question. BAC developed the Mono in-house on a blank slate, and it enlists the help of over 100 suppliers (95% of them British) to secure parts.

Carbon fiber keeps the Mono’s weight down to about 1,200 pounds, while a pushrod-style suspension system on both axles helps it deliver the kind of handling only race car pilots are normally acquainted with. If it rains, drive faster or wait it out in a dry spot; there are no wipers because there is no windshield, and a roof isn’t available.

The Mono’s engine comes from Ford, though it takes a trip through the Cosworth workshop before settling in ahead of the rear axle. It’s a 2.3-liter four-cylinder that provides around 280 horsepower and 207 pound-feet of torque, and it’s bolted to a six-speed sequential gearbox that the driver must shift manually using paddles on the steering wheel. Note newer models use a different 2.3-liter Ford four that’s turbocharged to comply with emissions standards.

The example currently live on auction platform Cars & Bids was manufactured in 2014, shipped to the United States, and finally completed in 2017, which is the year listed on the title. It shows about 3,000 miles on a digital instrument cluster embedded into the steering wheel, and it’s unmodified with the exception of a red exterior wrap. Built for serious track use, it’s equipped with AP Racing brake calipers gripping carbon ceramic rotors, an adjustable suspension system, an exhaust system made with Inconel, and a five-point harness provided by Williams. It’s the opposite of a regular road car: its seat is fixed, but its braking bias can be adjusted by the driver.

Bidding is up to $42,068 as of writing with about five days left on the clock (four days as of publishing). We suggest adding this Mono to your watch list if you’re in the market for one; a little over 100 have been made since production started in 2011 so used examples rarely come up for sale, especially with an American title that’s ready to be transferred to the next owner. Bust out the measuring tape before placing a bid, though. The seat was made for a driver that measures between 5’7″ and 5’10” with an inseam of 32 inches or less. If you’re tall, or if your legs are long, you might not fit. BAC has never crowed itself a champion of practicality, but it released a variant of the Mono that’s a few inches wider in 2016.

Related Video:

June 19, 2021 / Comments Off

286

Historic French brand Delage returns with the D12

We’ve seen several ways so far of resurrecting a dormant car brand. There’s been the continuation build, like at Alvis, with period vehicles created from new-old-stock or parts created from original blueprints. We’ve seen brands wrap modern technology in historically-themed bodywork, as with the new Hispano-Suiza, or put that technology inside brand new bodywork said to channel the spirit of the original, as at Maybach or Bugatti. ü Called the Delage D12, CEO Laurent Tapie says it fulfills the dream of Adolphe Louis Delage, who campaigned a 2.0-liter V12 in the 1923 and 1924 Grand Prix seasons, supercharging the engine in 1925 and winning two races. Delage took the crown of World Champion of Car Builders in 1927 with the Type 15 S 8 and its supercharged 1.5-liter straight-eight, then returned to a V12 formula in 1938 in a car lost to fire before it could race.

The original Delage insisted on technical excellence, its 1914 Indy 500-winning car benefiting from a 4.5-liter four-cylinder engine with double overhead cams and desmodromic valves, a five-speed gearbox with two overdrive gears, a metal clutch, and brakes at all four wheels plus a transmission brake. On public roads, some of the finest coachbuilding of the era sat on top of a Delage chassis; the brand has won Best of Show at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance three times between 1996 and 2010.

Echoing the dual thrust of those vintage cars, the D12 is road-legal, yet designed to be “the closest to the sensation of driving a Formula One car that has ever been experienced in a street legal car.” Tapie wants the D12 to claim the record for the fast street-legal car around the Nürburgring. There will be two D12 trims, both powered by a naturally aspirated 7.6-liter V12 with 990 horsepower, developed in-house and aided by an electric motor mounted in the eight-speed, single-clutch, automated manual transmission. In the GT version, which weighs 3,086 pounds, the e-motor produces 110 hp for a total of 1,100 horses. In the track-focused Club model that weighs 2,888 pounds, the e-motor contributes a gentle 20 horses for 1,010 hp and is used mainly while driving on the streets, reversing, and parking. Delage says the GT is quicker, but the Club — which can hit 62 miles per hour in 2.8 seconds and tops out at 233 mph — is faster around a circuit.

Delage technical director Benoît Bagur has a résumé including years at Citroën Sport, Seat and VW Sport, and Ligier, the entire technical team said to have been involved with 16 FIA World Championship titles in various series. Bagur claims two in touring cars, the head engineer is responsible for six, and one of those titles is claimed by Jacques Villeneuve, the ex-F1 pilot being one of Delage’s test drivers.

The carbon fiber body panels are accompanied by carbon fiber wheels engineered to channel airflow to cool the brakes, the body and wheels connected by a visible pushrod suspension. In the cockpit, the steering wheel handles are molded to the driver’s hands, the carbon fiber seat and leg support are molded to the driver’s body.

Tapie says he’s backed by 10 investors, four of them apparently billionaires, but he’s looking for two more. Tapie’s father is French billionaire Bernard Tapie, but the elder is not invested in the nascent car company. Laurent sees the D12, produced from next year in a run of 30 cars priced at $2.3 million each, as the opener to more products. Two D12s have been spoken for so far, sold through Delage’s West Coast dealer, Newport Beach Automotive Group.

With the brand name licensed for seven years, the deal including a provision to buy the rights to the name in 2022, Tapie already has a second model in mind. The follow-up will further highlight the historical connection at the same time as it’s powered by “a revolutionary turbine that’s been in development for 12 years, and will also take advantage of some innovative aerodynamic technology. We really see ourselves as a technology company.”

August 19, 2020 / Comments Off

498

2022 Gordon Murray T.50 revealed as the ‘greatest analog driver’s car’

Over the past year or so, the Gordon Murray Design T.50 has been taking shape, from its F1-inspired V12 to its wild fan-assisted active aerodynamics. Now the car has been fully revealed as the machine Murray says is meant to be the “greatest analog driver’s car” ever. And based on the feature set, we’d say it has a good chance of meeting that goal.

The body and chassis are entirely made of carbon fiber, and as a whole, the car is similarly sized to a Porsche 718 Boxster. The design has some clear McLaren F1 cues, which is unsurprising since Murray was responsible for that supercar. The headlights, front fascia, roof scoop and split engine access panels are particularly reminiscent of the F1. The roof scoop also has a function where certain panels will conduct intake noise into the cabin, but they’re only engaged under heavy throttle to keep the cabin civilized when cruising. There’s significantly more glass area around the cockpit, though, and the rear fascia is unique, particularly with the big round fan opening, which we’ll return to in a minute. The whole car is incredibly light, too, at just 2,174 pounds.

2022 Gordon Murray T.50

In the engine bay is a 3.9-liter V12 developed and built by Cosworth. It’s completely naturally aspirated and makes 654 horsepower and 344 pound-feet of torque. Redline is 12,100 rpm, and peak power arrives not far from it at 11,500 rpm. Peak torque is available at a (slightly) more accessible level of 9,000 rpm. The engine can go from idle to redline in just three tenths of a second. The engine is apparently the lightest V12 ever used in a road-going car at 392 pounds, something that was achieved with the aluminum block and titanium connecting rods, intake and exhaust valves and clutch housing, as well as entirely gear-driven camshafts and accessories. Furthermore, the engine is the most power-dense naturally aspirated engine with 164 horsepower per liter. The engine is paired with a lightweight six-speed manual transmission and powers only the rear wheels.

The aerodynamics are equally impressive. The centerpiece is the aforementioned fan that pulls air through different ducts in the car. When pulling air through the lower ducts, fed by vertical intakes with filters to keep debris from damaging the fan, downforce is increased. It can also pull from upper ducts that combine with the fan’s rear exhaust to, aerodynamically-speaking, lengthen the car’s body and reduce drag. There are also adjustable diffuser valves and spoilers that are all controlled via different aerodynamic modes. The Automatic and Braking modes operate automatically depending on driving situations. High Downforce mode activates the fan and lower ducts and angles the rear spoilers more for 50% more downforce over Automatic. Streamline mode activates the upper ducts and fan at high speed, partially closes some of the diffuser valves and lowers the spoilers to instead reduce drag by 12.5%. There’s also a V-Max Boost mode that uses the Streamline settings, but also has the 48-volt electric starter/generator power the fan briefly to reduce parasitic losses on the engine. When using this mode at high speed, engine power climbs to 690 horses.

The suspension and brakes of the T.50 are comparatively simple. Double-wishbone suspension is used at all four corners and is made with forged aluminum components. Steering is a rack-and-pinion setup and only has power assist at low speeds, dropping the assist at higher speeds for maximum road feel. The Brembo brakes are carbon ceramic all around with six-piston calipers and 14.5-inch rotors at the front and four-piston calipers with 13.4-inch rotors at the back. Forged, center-lock aluminum wheels are fitted with Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S tires.

2022 Gordon Murray T.50

The interior is yet another throwback to the McLaren F1 with its center driving position flanked by two passenger seats. The driver has an analog tachometer smack dab in the middle with screens on either side and aluminum knobs and buttons for various controls. To the right is a little console jutting out with the shifter mechanism made of titanium. The clutch and brake pedals are made of aluminum and the throttle pedal is made of titanium. All three seats are formed from carbon fiber. The cabin isn’t a completely barebones, uncompromising affair. It features a 700-watt 10-speaker sound system and standard Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Each customer also gets a fitting session to have the seats and pedals placed in the most comfortable location possible.

Only 100 Gordon Murray T.50s will be built. Last we heard, there were still a few vehicles available, but you’ll need 2.36 million pounds to buy one, or $3.08 million at current exchange rates. Production begins in January 2022 with deliveries happening a little later. And the whole car, including its engine and various components, are all developed and built in Britain.

Related Video:

August 4, 2020 / Comments Off

340

Gordon Murray T.50 beats weight target thanks to ‘Weight Watchers’ meetings

Gordon Murray is staying on the offensive about his T.50 supercar, working the phones recently to let all know that “This car will deliver — and this is a promise — the driving experience of [a McLaren] F1, but better, better in so many ways,” because he and his team have “fixed the things we knew were wrong with the F1.” As they say in the Westerns, them’s big words. Two factors he credited for the T.50’s estimated performance specs are bespoke parts, and the relentless focus on weight savings they enable. The team behind the supercar doesn’t need to restrict any component to parts-bin sourcing, doesn’t need to check with production or accounting departments, and can create or re-engineer any part to serve a single vehicle. Technology improvements since the creation of the McLaren F1 and the use of a bespoke 3.9-liter Cosworth V12 gives the team even more freedom than Murray had with his icon.

This has led to ruthless weight shaving, helped by what Murray described as “Weight Watchers” meetings. The Cosworth V12 comes in at less than 400 pounds, cutting 132 pounds compared to the 6.1-liter V12 in the F1 — the designer citing the S70 BMW engine as part of the reason he overshot his 2,205-pound (1,000-kilogram) target for the 2,579-pound McLaren. Carbon brake technology wasn’t polished enough in the early 1990s to get the units to work on the McLaren, so the F1 used heavier iron brakes, a setback the T.50 won’t suffer. The Xtrac six-speed manual transmission cuts 22 pounds compared to the six-speed sequential box in the F1. The all-carbon moncoque and body panels are less than 330 pounds, the driver’s seat and frame weigh 15 pounds, the twin outboard passenger seats weigh less than seven pounds each. Murray told his team they wouldn’t be able to take any weight out of the pedal box, since he designed it himself. His engineers cut seven ounces. They shaved the windshield glazing to be 28% thinner than what would be standard for this application. The materials analysis team modeled the stress loads for all 900 nuts, bolts, washers, and fasteners in the T50, designing them with just enough material — titanium, of course — to do their jobs.

This and more is how Gordon Murray Automotive beat the 2,205-pound target for the T.50 by 45 pounds. That will put the T.50 260 pounds above the hardcore 260-horsepower Lotus Elise Cup 260, 180 pounds under the 181-hp MX-5 Mazda Miata Sport. Yet the T.50 has 640 horsepower in everyday guise, which can be cranked up to 690 hp with ram air induction in certain modes. That lower figure is 22 hp more than the F1, for a car weighing more than 419 pounds less, part of what Murray means when he says the T.50 is “the F1 for the next generation, with all the same targets. But of course my toybox is much bigger now.” Backing that up, Murray said about a third of the deposits received so far come from people who own a McLaren F1, another 40% of deposits come from buyers under 45 who had McLaren F1 posters on their walls in their youth, but who’d been priced out of the astronomical F1 market.

From now until the end of June, the GMA teams are finalizing details, tooling, and working with suppliers on parts. If all goes well, there’ll be a working prototype ready for road testing in September. Production on the 100 road cars and 25 track-only cars begins in late 2021, deliveries to start in early 2022. About 25 slots remain for the road car, so anyone with a $740,000 to put toward the $2.5 million starting price should send word to England.

Related Video:

June 1, 2020 / Comments Off

524

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.

Related Video:

May 4, 2020 / Comments Off

554

Czinger 21C comes in 1,331-hp widebody version, too

Two months after Czinger introduced its 21C tandem-seater hypercar in regular and track-focused trims, there’s already another variant on the table. Jens Sverdrup, the company’s chief commercial officer, told Pistonheads that Czinger wanted to have a widebody derivative with a higher output ready for the Geneva Motor Show, but that didn’t happen. Sverdrup detailed the new version, explaining that engineers tweaked the 2.9-liter twin-turbo V8 and the twin high-power electric motors to increase output by an extra 98 horsepower, from 1,233 hp to 1,331, without increasing the weight of the 992-pound entire hybrid powertrain. This makes what was already the most power-dense V8 engine in the world even more power-dense. The widebody component shows itself in new bodywork over a wider track and wider tires, and it gets its own chassis tune. Said Sverdrup, “Anybody who buys one of our 80 21Cs can tick for a widebody version on the options list, giving them a hypercar that might not be the best for narrow Scottish or Welsh roads, but will definitely be great for the race track.”

Czinger’s spending the time before deliveries begin in 2021 honing engine characteristics to ensure tractability throughout the V8’s 11,000-rpm rev range. We’ve been promised a coupe that’s tame around town, Sverdrup saying, “With the hybrid system you can lean more on the batteries at low revs for more refinement at low speed.” Get above 6,000 rpm, however, and it apparently sounds like “an old F1 engine.”

The California company’s vision for life after the 21C is also in the works, with three models slated to launch starting in 2023. These could be more practical than the opening act, adopting 21C philosophies from the powertrain to the build, and continuing the push toward synthetic fuels. With Czinger backed in part by 3D-printer Divergent 3D and Hong Kong venture capital, engineers are already considering how to design a monocoque with built-in cavities for wiring and fluids, and “complex internal structures that enhance crash safety.”

The 80 planned builds for the 21C should keep the company busy for the next few years, each car said to take 3,000 to 4,000 man-hours to print and assemble. As for the question of whether Czinger will be around that long, of course, one never knows, but the company supposedly has funding for the next three projects already and, unusual in this space especially, Czinger isn’t asking for deposits for the 21C in order to pay for production. Seeing the dealer network is planned to include “20 established supercar sellers in Europe” by the end of this year, further insight into what’s ahead shouldn’t be long in coming.

Related Video:

April 27, 2020 / Comments Off

537

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).

Related Video:

March 28, 2020 / Comments Off

535

Lister Storm II hypercar teased, with a switch from V12 to electric

Two years ago, the revamped Lister Motor Company dished out sketches for a Storm II hypercar. The name was a nod to the 1993 Le Mans race car and road derivative created by another incarnation of Lister in 1993, which housed a Jaguar XJR-9-derived 7.0-liter V12 amidships producing 546 horsepower. The tentative plan in 2018 was for the Storm II to get a Jaguar-derived 7.8-liter V12 spooling up something like 1,000 horsepower and pointing its snout at the likes of McLaren, Pagani, and Koenigsegg. That was all so two years ago, though. Lister CEO Lawrence Whittaker recently tweeted another image of the Storm II, this time a profile drawing, with the captions, “A glimpse into the future of Lister … the Storm II,” and, “Lister EV super car research.” The EV part is what matters here, Whittaker apparently changing tack on the powertrain and the competitive set.

The side shot offers a look at the vanishing point rear end, a look calling to mind either a truncated McLaren Speedtail, or Speed Racer’s Mach 5 with the fender fins combined into a single shark fin down the centerline. Our best attempts to enhance and enlarge make it seem there’s a deployable spoiler behind the shark fin. The backside’s other big prominent feature is a deep diffuser. In the photo, the carbon fiber floor extends beyond the trailing edge of the bodywork, almost never seen on a car outside of a race track, and even then that car is most likely on a trailer. That makes symmetry, the carbon fiber front splitter jutting beyond the yellow-rimmed intake at the other end.

Original specs were for the V12-powered Storm II to hit 60 miles per hour in under 3 seconds, on its way to a top speed beyond 250 miles per hour, all for a price starting at £2 million ($2.6M U.S.). Lister’s hometown competition, the Lotus Evija, has restrained its top speed references to something “beyond 200 mph,” and the just-announced Apex “hyper-EV” runs out at 174 mph. The Rimac C-Two and Pininfarina Battista, though, have proved Lister’s trio of targets achievable with far less aggressive looks. We won’t be surprised if Lister has a terminal velocity in mind well beyond the Rimac’s 258 mph.

We hope Lister can show us something more than another rendering come 2022. For now, the company seems busy building the F-Type-based LFT and F-Pace-based LCP, various versions of the continuation Lister Knobbly race cars, and selling classic and performance cars out of its new dealership in Blackburn, England.

February 14, 2020 / Comments Off

530

2020 Ford GT gets more power, full carbon fiber body in surprise update

Just when you thought the Ford GT was yesterday’s news, Ford hits us with an unexpected shot of supercar. With a few years of production remaining (scheduled to finish in 2022), Ford has decided to make the last half of its run of GTs a hair better than the first half. Call it a mid-cycle refresh, but for a half-million dollar supercar.

Instead of 647 horsepower from the 3.5-liter twin-turbo V6, all 2020 GTs will produce 660 horsepower. That 13 horsepower increase comes thanks to a few changes, according to Ford. Mechanical upgrades include new gallery-cooled pistons and higher energy ignition coils. This is then combined with a new engine calibration, ultimately resulting in a broader torque band — though Ford hasn’t told us what the exact difference is yet. Ford mentions that lessons learned from the track-only GT Mk II helped this upgrade along.

Cooling to the engine is greatly improved, as Ford designed new buttress air ducts that increase airflow by 50 percent. The intercoolers are also slightly larger than before, a boon for extreme track use. Speaking of the track, Ford says it also increased the suspension stiffness in “Track” mode for even greater on-track performance. It was probably stiff enough before, but maybe you’ll be able to pick up a tenth of a second somewhere in the lap. Everybody will be able to hear you a little better on track in the new car, too, because Ford is making the optional Akropovic titanium exhaust standard equipment for 2020. It was a $10,000 option before.

Lastly, Ford is introducing a couple new looks for the 2020 GT. The first is called Liquid Carbon, and it’s pictured at the top of this page. If you like carbon fiber, this is the GT for you. Ford eliminated the paint! Well, not all of it. There’s still a special clear coat sprayed onto the full carbon fiber body — we’ve asked Ford what kind of weight savings there are with the elimination of the paint, but it wasn’t able to provide a figure. You can bring a little color to the party in the form of optional stripes and painted mirror caps. These will be available in any of the colors offered on the regular GT. The carbon fiber wheels will be standard with this car (duh), and you can still pick an optional brake caliper color.

The last appearance package is an updated Gulf Racing Heritage livery. Ford now uses black pinstriping to surround the orange stripes, and the number has changed from a 9 (2019 car) to a 6 for 2020 as it mimics the racing numbers of the back-to-back (1968 and 1969) Le Mans winning GT40. You can also select carbon fiber wheels on the Gulf liveried car this year, an option that wasn’t available for 2019.

When we asked, Ford told us the 2020 price has increased to “approximately $500,000.” That’s up significantly from the $450,000 Ford wanted when the car first went on sale. For those who want one of the special Liquid Carbon GTs, Ford says to expect a number in the $750,000 range. As a reminder, all GTs are currently spoken for, so these updated cars already have future homes.

Related Video:

February 6, 2020 / Comments Off

492

Top Gear magazine climbs all over the McLaren Elva

Top Gear deputy editor Jack Rix took a camera crew to McLaren’s Technology Center for a closer look at the Elva roadster. Not only did Rix provide his usual, thorough once-over and explanation of design features, but thanks to the magic of moving pictures, we get graphic demonstrations of how the Elva’s most interesting feature works. McLaren engineers needed to figure out a way to protect helmetless occupants from getting their faces painted with bugs and detritus at speed. Their solution is the Active Air Management System (AAMS), composed of a deflector and a network of vents that create a “bubble of calm” around the passenger cell. Unlike the rest of the Elva, the AAMS ain’t pretty, but beauty always loses tie-breakers to effectiveness in Woking.

For a vehicle with so little to it, including the number of body panels, there’s a ton going on all around the open-top. The rear mesh is 3D-printed titanium. Short seat squabs combined with a moving steering wheel and gauge cluster improve ingress and egress. Four high-flow exhaust pipes are placed in two locations and pointed two directions in order to separate tones as if the exhaust were an audio system – because, in truth, it is. And there’s more, but we’ll let Rix explain.

As an aside, for all the Elva does have, we think it’s a shame the roadster doesn’t have a roofed version. Digital artist Nikita Aksyonov drew up an Elva Coupe, and we’re fans. Better looks than the McLaren GT, in a package that appears more compact than the 720S, with a more powerful engine than the Senna? Yes. All day yes.

But we digress, so check out Rix’s take in the video.

December 23, 2019 / Comments Off

544

Brabham BT62 adds a Competition spec variant to the mix

The Brabham BT62 supercar is now available to order in a new Competition spec, in addition to the “Ultimate Track Car” spec and the “Road Compliant” spec. Brabham is still limiting total production of the V8-powered supercar to only 70 units, but now you have options.

Most things about the Competition are the same. It’s powered by the same naturally aspirated 5.4-liter V8 that produces 700 horsepower and 494 pound-feet of torque. This is exclusively mated to a six-speed sequential transmission which sends power to the rear wheels. However, the “Competition” version of the BT62 is stripped back even further than the Ultimate Track Car spec, so maybe they have to change the name? We kid. But still, the Competition is even lighter than the others, as it foregoes exterior paint in favor of a wrap. All the interior trim has been removed, so it’s just bare carbon fiber wherever you look — as of now, there are no photos of the Competition interior, though. It’s also delivered without a passenger seat or maintenance kit. Unfortunately, Brabham has not yet detailed how much weight you save with the Competition. The Ultimate Track Car spec weighs 2,143 pounds.

Due to the de-contenting done here, Brabham actually prices the Competition lower than the other versions of the car. It can be yours for £750,000, or $965,396. That compares rather nicely to the $1.4 million Road Compliant spec. Brabham says that you’ll be able to upgrade from the Competition spec to the Ultimate Track Car or Road Compliant spec at any time of your ownership — just expect to pay for it. You can order a BT62 for track use here, and it can even be had in left-hand drive. However, the Road Compliant car is still not available for road use in the U.S. — it’s designed for European markets.

October 30, 2019 / Comments Off

411