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Rezvani Beast Alpha X Blackbird goes full afterburner with 700 horsepower

Rezvani has emerged from its Irvine, California, lair again with a beast between its teeth — the beast in question being the Beast Alpha X Blackbird. The LotusElise based, carbon-fiber bodied, targa-topped, sidewinder-doored coupe channels the U.S. spy plane that inspired it with an absurdly powerful heart: a turbocharged, 2.5-liter four-cylinder with 700 horsepower.

The Beast Alpha X Blackbird wears a passel of optional bits available for the 600-hp Beast Alpha X, such as the adjustable suspension, 18-inch wheels with AP Racing stoppers, and carbon rotors. Supplemental details include the green highlights, and of course the extra 100 ponies. The inline-four behind the seats comes with development help from Cosworth plus a Cosworth ECU, and CP-Carillo forged pistons, rods, cams, valve, and springs. Shifting works through a standard six-speed manual, a six-speed sequential transmission can be had for an extra $15,000. With just 2,150 pounds to move — 200 pounds more than the 600-hp Beast Alpha X — that powerplant scoots the targa from standstill to 60 miles per hour in 2.9 seconds.

Rezvani’s only making five Beast Alpha X Blackbirds, all of them in black, and ex-MMA fighter Quentin “Rampage” Jackson has already claimed one. The price: $225,000 gets you in the door, how much you want to play after that is up to you. The Alpine sound system, for instance, adds $2,500 to the bottom line. If you know you don’t need a top, however, you might want to comparison shop Rezvani’s 700-hp Beast X. Still bodied in carbon fiber but based on the Ariel Atom instead of the Lotus, it’s 400 pounds lighter and 0.2 second quicker than the Blackbird, for the same money. Decisions, decisions.

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Rezvani Beast Alpha now just $95,000, but there are no frills

When it debuted last fall at the 2017 Los Angeles Auto Show, the California-built Rezvani Beast Alpha coupe was a carbon-fiber featherweight supercar powered by a 500 horsepower boosted, mid-mounted Honda K24 inline-four cylinder. It managed to have crazy “SideWinder” doors, carbon-ceramic brakes, and a full leather and Alcantara interior while keeping the weight down to 1,950 lbs. The only hangup was the $200,000 price tag. The good news is that the Beast Alpha now starts at $95,000. The bad news is that most of the interesting bits are now optional extras.

That includes the high-output K24. The $95,000 version only makes 400 horsepower from a supercharged 2.5-liter engine. The $159,000 Beast Alpha X swaps the supercharger for a turbo, raising the engine’s output to 525 horsepower. At 3.2 seconds, it’s also 0.3 seconds quicker to 60 mph than the standard Beast Alpha. Both engines have been tuned by Rezvani and Cosworth.

That sweet sequential gearbox is now a $15,000 option on both models. The adjustable suspension is now $2,500. Carbon-ceramic brakes are $8,500. Hell, the upgraded AP Racing brakes are still $3,700. That super convenient Apple CarPlay-equipped Alpine sound system is $3,500. Full leather interior? $3,500. Wait, you want leather seats, too? $3,700. Leather floor mats are $650. Apparently, “full leather” doesn’t actually mean full leather.

The two most egregious options are the $500 trunk and $7,500 SideWinder doors, both of which are only available on the more expensive Beast Alpha X. Yes, that means the standard $95,000 Beast Alpha can’t even be optioned with a trunk. You also have to step up to the Beast Alpha X if you want that svelte carbon-fiber body for a whopping 50-lbs saving over the aluminum and composite skin on the standard car.

If you build a Rezvani Beast Alpha X with all of the things that got us so excited to begin with, it’s actually slightly more than the original $200,000 estimate. You know what else you can buy for $200,000? Several supercars with full leather interiors.

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