Not another supercar?
Afraid so, though that’s hardly a bad thing. And unlike the numerous other sketches and concept cars that seem to appear by the day, deliveries of the Caparo T1 will start in May. It will also be running up the hill at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in June. However, since the car was first unveiled last year it has undergone a few changes. Read on to find out what the team in Basingstoke has done to create the British Bugatti…
So what’s new then?
Gone is the supercharged 2.4-litre V8, and in comes a bespoke, all-aluminium, naturally aspirated 3.5-litre V8. Of course, this means more power. Rather than a measly 480bhp, especially in the days of 600bhp S-classes, the new engine promises up to 200bhp per litre. That’ll be 700bhp, then. Oh, and it’ll run on sustainable fuels too.
But the Bugatti Veyron has 987bhp…
It does, but it also weighs two tonnes. Caparo promises the T1 will weigh a quarter of that. That’s 700bhp in a 500kg car. Incredibly, that’s 100kg less than a typical Formula 1 car, and equates to 1400bhp per tonne: the Bugatti manages a piffling 506. And Caparo says the only reason the T1 doesn’t weigh any less is that the company feared it would compromise the car’s crash structure. It will also go around corners like you have never experienced before; developed by two ex-McLaren F1 engineers, the T1 is claimed to reach forces of 3G under cornering and braking thanks to fully-adjustable front and rear wings.
Will it come with the usual supercar foibles?
For what could be the quickest road car of all time, not a bit of it. The T1 looks to have good visibility with your single passenger offset behind you, and both of you will view the rapidly approaching world from behind a bubble canopy. Keep things in context though – this ain’t the sort of car in which you’ll pop to the shops. Caparo also expects the T1 to do 30mpg. All this, plus a 0-60mph run in 2.5 seconds, can be yours for £180,000 plus local taxes.