Lotus Evija: electric hypercar to be revealed later today

Lotus will reveal its groundbreaking all-electric Evija hypercar later today. It will be shown at an exclusive event in Central London this evening, barely a few months after Autocar first revealed the project. Pronounced “eh-vi-ya”, meaning ‘the living one’, or ‘first in existence’, the Evija is shaping up to be the most ambitious car in the firm’s history. Lotus recently confirmed for the first time exactly how many examples will be produced. 130 are planned to be made available to own, up from previous estimates after “several hundred potential owners came forward to express their interest in the new car”. It will be built in Norfolk alongside the rest of the maker’s range. The Evija will be Lotus’s first all-new production car since 2008. Lotus also claims it will be the first fully electric hypercar built and to go on sale from a British manufacturer. A preview image has been released showing a side profile of the new car, and Autocar was recently given an exclusive walk-around of a full-size clay model at the firm’s Hethel base. The model’s previous Type 130 moniker was a reference to a number of innovative models that have appeared throughout the Norfolk brand’s 71-year history, beginning with the Type 14 Elite in 1957 – claimed to be the world’s first composite monocoque production car. The most recent, the Type 111 (the world’s first aluminium and bonded extrusion construction road car) became the Elise. As the official picture suggests, the Evija is low and wide. Lotus design director Russell Carr, who showed the model to Autocar, says it is a similar length to the existing Evora – which is 4.4 metres long – but will sit closer to the ground and be nearly two metres wide. It uses a carbonfibre structure and will be built in Hethel away from the company’s main production line. The cabin is tightly proportioned and adopts the teardrop form familiar from hypercars like the Ford GT40, to better allow airflow to pass around it. The most impressive feature is one that isn’t hinted at by the official rendering – two substantial air tunnels in the rear bodywork which have the tail light elements integrated around their exists. It’s a detail that Carr says has been inspired by the venturi tunnels of LMP sports prototype racing cars. The battery pack will be positioned entirely behind the passenger compartment, with drive sent to all four wheels. No other details are forthcoming at the moment, beyond the fact – as previously reported – that the powertrain is being developed by Williams Advanced Engineering, making this a collaboration between two of the most famous names in Formula 1 history. Lotus boss Phil Popham promises an “entirely appropriate” level of performance for the Evija’s target market and what will be a seven figure pricetag. The total system output is tipped to exceed 1000bhp. It is also set to offer a range of more than 250 miles. Both the battery pack and the pushrod-operated rear suspension will be visible beneath a transparent cover, with Carr saying the plan is for the huge aero tunnels to also incorporate lighting elements. The rear licence plate surround will be removable to help improve performance when the car is used on track. Downforce will be generated from a substantial underbody diffuser and there will also be moveable wing elements and a drag-reducing DRS system. Inside the cabin will feature plenty of carbonfibre and a digital instrument pack, but will also have conventional switchgear rather than a touchscreen interface. “You want to be able to find things without taking your eyes off the road in a car like this,” Carr said. Carr also claimed there will be more room and shoulder space than in a Ford GT or Aston Martin Valkyrie, with moveable seats rather than moveable pedals. “We’re trying to get the balance between prestige and luxury right,” Carr said, “but also to make clear that it’s a very high performance car. We don’t want people to think it’s a stripped-out track day monster, it will be much more practical than that. But equally we don’t want to make a Bugatti either, it has to be a Lotus.” Other neat details include a camera rear view system which will use deployable pods that motor out of the scissor-opening doors, and which relay images onto display screens. It’s a very similar system to the one the forthcoming McLaren Speedtail will have. “We were frustrated when we saw those,” Carr admits, “we’d been working on them for some
Origin: Lotus Evija: electric hypercar to be revealed later today

Aston Martin gives its new AM-RB 003 hypercar a name: Valhalla

When the Norse god Odin selected honored warriors for the afterlife, he sent them to a majestic paradise called Valhalla.Stern stuff, then, and the perfect name for Aston Martins new hypercar.Formerly identified by its code name AM-RB 003, which made it sound like the worlds fastest fax machine Aston Martins latest mid-engined hypercar is a collaboration with Red Bull Advanced Technologies and technical whiz Adrian Newey.Deploying lightweight construction methods and aerodynamics pioneered in the big-brother Valkyrie, the Valhalla will be powered by a hybrid system comprised of a high-output turbo V6 and battery-electric power team. Just 500 examples of the all-carbon-fibre hypercar will be built.Just like that family back in high school who called all their kids names which began with the letter J, Aston Martin has a long history of titling their cars with a V. Vantage, Vulcan, Vanquish, Valkyrietake yer pick of high-performance coupes that exude more than just a dash of swagger.Speaking of the Valkyrie, this car borrows some of its design, but uses less extreme language. The company says it wants this to be a car people can daily, endowing it with space behind the seats for luggage and even a place to mount your smartphone on the dash. The example shown this year in Geneva also had a steering wheel full of vehicle controls and a display screen in the hub.At the show, Aston also showed off the Valhallas aero tech, which has been validated by NASA. Yes, that NASA. The Valhallas rear wing is equipped with something called FlexFoil, which allows the cars downforce to be changed without changing the physical angle of the entire element. This seamless design will allegedly increase downforce while reducing wind noise when compared to a traditional active wing design.Aston figures itll be producing Valhalla road cars by the calendar year 2021. Price? If you have to
Origin: Aston Martin gives its new AM-RB 003 hypercar a name: Valhalla

Toyota Gazoo Racing tests Super Sport hypercar ahead of Le Mans debut

A production version of Toyota Gazoo’s GR Super Sport Concept is set to be entered into a new hypercar-based class at the Le Mans 24 Hours endurance race from 2020, and the factory racing outfit has been conducting early track tests at Fuji Speedway in Japan. An official video, published just as the team was winning the LMP1 division of this year’s Le Mans 24 Hour race, shows Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda trying out the Aston Martin Valkyrie rival alongside test driver Kamui Kobayashi. Toyoda’s participation in sports car development is well documented; the recently launched GR Supra was not signed off until he had a chance to put it through its paces at the Nürburgring. Styling changes over the Super Sport concept, shown in 2018, are minimal, save for the addition of a mild camouflage paint scheme. Two prototypes feature, one with a prominent roof scoop and one without, though it is not clear which is the race car and which is destined for series production. Homologation rules dictate that the top-rung Le Mans hypercars must be strongly related to roadgoing equivalents, meaning reigning LMP1 champion Gazoo Racing will soon reveal a road-going version of the Super Sport. The company says: “Both road and race car are undergoing design and intensive development at the company’s technical centres in Toyota City, Higashi-Fuji and Cologne.” The model’s name has yet to be confirmed. First shown at last year’s Tokyo Auto Salon, the concept is based on the company’s World Endurance Championship prototype racer, the TS050 Hybrid. The concept features the same carbonfibre structure as the racing model and has a 2.4-litre V6 petrol engine with electric assistance behind its cockpit. The road-going version of Gazoo Racing’s concept will sit above the new Supra. Gazoo, Toyota’s performance and racing arm, also recently introduced the Yaris GRMN hot hatch, which marked Gazoo’s arrival in Britain and serves as its entry-level model. Gazoo president Shigeki Tomoyama said: “If the e-Palette concept (an autonomous pod that was revealed in Las Vegas) is the next generation of the horse-drawn carriage, the GR Super Sport Concept would be the polar opposite as the next-generation racehorse. Its appeal is more personal, like that of a much-loved horse to its owner. “Despite the differences between the two concept models, both are electrified vehicles equipped with the latest IT technologies and are set to become safe and environmentally friendly connected
Origin: Toyota Gazoo Racing tests Super Sport hypercar ahead of Le Mans debut

Aston Martin’s new mid-engined hypercar named Valhalla

Aston Martin’s upcoming mid-engined hypercar will be named the Valhalla, as a continuation of the firm’s line of ‘V-cars’ performance models. Revealed at this year’s Geneva motor show under internal codename RB-003, alongside the Vanquish Vision supercar and Lagonda All-Terrain SUV concepts, the hybridised V6-powered road car takes its production name from the warriors’ paradise referred to in Norse mythology. Aston Martin’s association with the letter V can be traced back to 1951, when the Vantage moniker was unofficially assigned to high-performance variants of the DB2 sports car. The tradition has been kept alive with subsequent Vantage, Virage, Vanquish and Valkyrie performance models. “If Valkyrie is the best of the best, then the (Valhalla) is the best at £1m,” design boss Marek Reichman said of the new hypercar, which Aston will put into production in late 2021. The new model, which Autocar received exclusive access to ahead of the Geneva motor show, is the second to be co-developed between Aston Martin and Red Bull Advanced Technologies in Milton Keynes and will bridge the sizeable gap in Aston’s fast-growing range of mid-engined models between the Valkyrie and the production Vanquish. The Valhalla’s power and positioning – most likely with more than 1000bhp and the kind of performance that would threaten the Nürburgring lap record – would place it in contention with the new Ferrari SF90 Stradale and 250mph McLaren Speedtail. The Valhalla will use Aston’s new twin-turbo V6 engine with electric assistance, and the car will be built around a carbonfibre architecture and carbonfibre bodywork. “It will have the same principles as the Valkyrie with its all-carbonfibre tub but will be more usable,” said Reichman. The Geneva concept car is 90% representative of the final production model, he added. Aston boss Andy Palmer calls the Valhalla “the bridge” in the world of mid-engined Aston Martins. “The aerodynamics and tub construction filter down from the Valkyrie to this, and then the new V6 powertrain will go down to the Vanquish,” he said. “The Valkyrie is the fastest production car ever and now we’ve created a son of it that’s a halo car above everyone else’s range, like the P1, LaFerrari and (McLaren) Senna.” There is further technology transfer from the Valkyrie to the Valhalla through the active suspension and electronic systems, with Aston claiming the dynamic brief for the car is to be class-leading on both road and track. Those aerodynamics will not be as extreme as on the Valkyrie, but will in turn be more extreme than on the Vanquish. A high proportion of the aerodynamic work is done under the floor and through the large rear diffuser. The Valhalla also adopts aerospace aerodynamic morphing technology with a new variable airfoil called FlexFoil, which alters downforce without changing the physical angle as with an active rear wing, designed to improve aero performance and reduce wind noise, while also virtually eliminating turbulence and drag. While the Valhalla adopts a look and ethos inspired by the Valkyrie, it does so while being more usable. The doors open out forwards and out of the roof, inspired by an LMP1 car, to improve ingress and egress. Unlike the Valkyrie, there is also luggage and storage space for oddments and a wider centre console to put more space between driver and passenger. The cabin is unashamedly built around the driver and creating the perfect alignment between driver seat, steering wheel and pedals in what Aston calls ‘Apex Ergonomics’, with all major controls aligned for the driver and their eyeline. Instead of a traditional instrument binnacle, there is a small screen mounted directly on the steering column, with infotainment provided by what Aston calls ‘bring your own’, by simply mirroring a smartphone. Aston has not quoted any key stats for the Valhalla beyond the engine configuration but, as with the Valkyrie and Vanquish, there has been an obsession with weight saving and optimised packaging. For example, all four headlights and tail-lights weigh less than one DB11 headlight, while 3D printing is used for parts big and small in the interior, including a centre console that weighs half of what it would using traditional construction methods. Development of the Valhalla is ongoing in Milton Keynes, where Aston has a team of 130 people based within the Red Bull Advanced Technologies campus. The site is the home of development for Aston’s mid-engined
Origin: Aston Martin’s new mid-engined hypercar named Valhalla

Toyota Gazoo Racing commits to new hypercar class at Le Mans

A production version of Toyota Gazoo’s GR Super Sport Concept is set to be entered into a new hypercar-based class at the Le Mans 24 Hours endurance race from 2020. New rules announced by the FIA will allow hypercars such as the Aston Martin Valkyrie and McLaren Senna to race in competition form from 2020 onwards. Toyota’s hybrid concept, revealed last year, looks close to the form that will be adopted by such models and is likely to be part of this new pack. Homologation rules dictate that the top-rung Le Mans hypercars must be strongly related to roadgoing equivalents, meaning reigning LMP1 champion Gazoo Racing will soon reveal a road-going version of last year’s concept. The company says: “Both road and race car are undergoing design and intensive development at the company’s technical centres in Toyota City, Higashi-Fuji and Cologne.” The model’s name has yet to be confirmed. First shown at last year’s Tokyo Auto Salon, the concept is based on the company’s World Endurance Championship prototype racer, the TS050 Hybrid. The concept features the same carbonfibre structure as the racing model and has a 2.4-litre V6 petrol engine with electric assistance behind its cockpit. The road-going version of Gazoo Racing’s concept will sit above the new Supra. Gazoo, Toyota’s performance and racing arm, also recently introduced the Yaris GRMN hot hatch, which marked Gazoo’s arrival in Britain and serves as its entry-level model. Gazoo president Shigeki Tomoyama said: “If the e-Palette concept (an autonomous pod that was revealed in Las Vegas) is the next generation of the horse-drawn carriage, the GR Super Sport Concept would be the polar opposite as the next-generation racehorse. Its appeal is more personal, like that of a much-loved horse to its owner. “Despite the differences between the two concept models, both are electrified vehicles equipped with the latest IT technologies and are set to become safe and environmentally friendly connected
Origin: Toyota Gazoo Racing commits to new hypercar class at Le Mans

Exclusive: Gordon Murray tells Autocar about his 2022 hypercar

As Gordon Murray lays out preliminary details of his 2022 T.50 hypercar, we speak to the father of the McLaren F1 to find out why he’s not obsessed with lap records, how the model will achieve segment-leading downforce figures and why it will be better than 1994’s fastest car in every way. How do you relate the T.50 to the McLaren F1 you designed? “It’s fair to call T.50 today’s equivalent of the F1. That was certainly our intention. Of course, it’s very different because the materials and technologies available today are so much better than they were. I look at the toolbox we’ve got at our disposal now and it excites me more than ever.” Does your different approach with the T.50 mean you don’t think much of current hypercars? “Not true. I’ve driven them all and many are brilliant. Most are amazingly capable. But they’re nearly all heavy, which is something you can disguise at times but which really tells when you’re talking driver involvement. You simply feel the weight. Heavy cars don’t get the hairs on the back of your neck rising the way a powerful, ultra-lightweight car does.” Why are you determined not to chase lap records and performance figures with the T.50? “I just don’t see the point. F1 was quick and T.50 will be quicker. In any case, you’re on a hiding to nothing. Pick some extraordinary top speed, design your car to attain it, and soon someone will come along and beat it – because it’s all he wants to do. Building your car to chase targets compromises it in other ways and we’re trying to build an uncompromised car.” You talk a lot about the disappearance of clean and pure styling. What’s that about? “Modern supercar styling can be pretty ugly and the excuse is that the car has been ‘styled by the wind tunnel’. I think that’s cobblers. It shouldn’t be true. With our fan providing T.50’s downforce, we can give it ideal proportions and clean lines.” And the T.50’s styling extends to the engine bay? “Very much so. We did it with F1 and we’re doing it better this time. We won’t just have a big composite panel that looks a bit like an engine, as others do. You’ll be able to see our engineering. We’ve even designed the engine with internal galleries for the pipes and wires so you’ll see beautiful cam covers, inlet trumpets and exhausts. It’ll look like engines are supposed to look.” The F1 had a gold-lined engine bay. Will you do that again? “It’s possible. If gold is still the best medium for reflecting heat when we get to build our cars in 2022, we’ll probably use it.” Why not make an all-electric hypercar? “Just about the most ridiculous thing you could do at present is make an electric supercar. With batteries in their current state, you’d end up with something that weighed two tonnes, would go well in a straight line for a while, but wouldn’t corner because of the weight, and wouldn’t have much range. Our new car is the opposite of an electric supercar in just about every
Origin: Exclusive: Gordon Murray tells Autocar about his 2022 hypercar

Lotus’ first all-electric hypercar will debut July

Colin Chapman is widely credited with coining the creed “simplify and add lightness.” Whether that attribution is accurate or not is up for debate, but what cannot be disputed is that the company’s current owners are determined to drag the British marque into the 21st century. They’re thinking—simplify and add electrons, and why not? It’s been a minute since Lotus introduced a new car; over ten years, in fact. Earlier this year, the brand confirmed at the Shanghai Auto Show it’d be unveiling an all-electric hypercar, dubbed the Type 130. We now know it is set to appear at an event in London in mid-July, on the 16. Thanks to a new teaser video, we also have a clue as to a few of its details. https://youtu.be/XJ-zYTBoue0 Kicking off with a panning shot of a badge reading “Hand built in Britain by Lotus” should have petrolheads across the U.K. beaming with national pride. That same badge is then shown residing underneath a retractable cover, whose panel also houses a charging port. That port, by the way, seems shaped to accept electricity from fast-chargers, meaning even if the Type 130’s battery pack is small, it won’t take long to refill. Beyond that, the car is a bit of mystery. One can assume the red trim bookending the charging port opening’s edges are tail lamps, while the illuminated L O T U S’ billboard is a slick interpretation of the traditional badge found on cars like the Elise and Evora. Betting on all-wheel drive is a smart move, since most performance vehicles powered by electrons send juice to the four corners thanks to two or more electric motors. Interested? The car should begin finding its way into customer hands sometime next
Origin: Lotus’ first all-electric hypercar will debut July

Lotus Type 130 electric hypercar will be unveiled on 16 July

Lotus has revealed a date for the unveiling of its groundbreaking all-new electric hypercar – the Type 130. The most ambitious car in the firm’s history will be shown at “an exclusive event” in Central London on 16 July, barely a few months after Autocar first revealed the project. Lotus has also confirmed for the first time exactly how many examples will be produced. 130 are planned to be made available to own, up from previous estimates after “several hundred potential owners came forward to express their interest in the new car”. It will be built in Norfolk alongside the rest of the maker’s range. The Type 130 will be Lotus’s first all-new production car since 2008. Lotus also claims it will be the first fully electric hypercar built and to go on sale from a British manufacturer. A preview image has been released showing a side profile of the new car, and Autocar was recently given an exclusive walk-around of a full-size clay model at the firm’s Hethel base. The name is a reference to a number of innovative models that have appeared throughout the Norfolk brand’s 71-year history, beginning with the Type 14 Elite in 1957 – claimed to be the world’s first composite monocoque production car. The most recent, the Type 111 (the world’s first aluminium and bonded extrusion construction road car) became the Elise. As the official picture suggests, the 130 is low and wide. Lotus design director Russell Carr, who showed the model to Autocar, says it is a similar length to the existing Evora – which is 4.4 metres long – but will sit closer to the ground and be nearly two metres wide. It uses a carbonfibre structure and will be built in Hethel away from the company’s main production line. The cabin is tightly proportioned and adopts the teardrop form familiar from hypercars like the Ford GT40, to better allow airflow to pass around it. The most impressive feature is one that isn’t hinted at by the official rendering – two substantial air tunnels in the rear bodywork which have the tail light elements integrated around their exists. It’s a detail that Carr says has been inspired by the venturi tunnels of LMP sports prototype racing cars. The battery pack will be positioned entirely behind the passenger compartment, with drive sent to all four wheels. No other details are forthcoming at the moment, beyond the fact – as previously reported – that the powertrain is being developed by Williams Advanced Engineering, making this a collaboration between two of the most famous names in Formula 1 history. Lotus boss Phil Popham promises an “entirely appropriate” level of performance for the 130’s target market and what will be a seven figure pricetag. The total system output is tipped to exceed 1000bhp. It is also set to offer a range of more than 250 miles. Both the battery pack and the pushrod-operated rear suspension will be visible beneath a transparent cover, with Carr saying the plan is for the huge aero tunnels to also incorporate lighting elements. The rear licence plate surround will be removable to help improve performance when the car is used on track. Downforce will be generated from a substantial underbody diffuser and there will also be moveable wing elements and a drag-reducing DRS system. Inside the cabin will feature plenty of carbonfibre and a digital instrument pack, but will also have conventional switchgear rather than a touchscreen interface. “You want to be able to find things without taking your eyes off the road in a car like this,” Carr said. Carr also claimed there will be more room and shoulder space than in a Ford GT or Aston Martin Valkyrie, with moveable seats rather than moveable pedals. “We’re trying to get the balance between prestige and luxury right,” Carr said, “but also to make clear that it’s a very high performance car. We don’t want people to think it’s a stripped-out track day monster, it will be much more practical than that. But equally we don’t want to make a Bugatti either, it has to be a Lotus.” Other neat details include a camera rear view system which will use deployable pods that motor out of the scissor-opening doors, and which relay images onto display screens. It’s a very similar system to the one the forthcoming McLaren Speedtail will have. “We were frustrated when we saw those,” Carr admits, “we’d been working on them for some
Origin: Lotus Type 130 electric hypercar will be unveiled on 16 July

Aston Martin AM-RB 003: £1m hypercar ‘oversubscribed’

Aston Martin sold 1057 cars in the first three months of 2019, up from the 963 it sold in the same period last year, resulting in revenues of £196 million. But higher costs meant that the company posted a £2.2 million loss for the quarter – although that exceeded the expectations of analysts. The firm says that it expects the second half of this year to be the “major driver of profitability”, due to a number of special editions planned to go on sale. As part of its financial report, Aston Martin also confirmed that work on the first production trial version of the DBX, its forthcoming first SUV, began on 15 April. The company is continuing an extensive test programme with the prototype
Origin: Aston Martin AM-RB 003: £1m hypercar ‘oversubscribed’

Next-gen Porsche hypercar could adopt retro styling

Porsche design boss Michael Mauer is deciding whether the firm’s new hypercar, due around 2025 as a successor to the 918 Spyder, should be styled futuristically or with a retrospective nod to some of the greatest cars from the company’s past. The firm recently released a Porsche 917 Concept design study (above) to mark the 50th anniversary of its 1970 Le Mans victory, with Mauer saying it reflected ongoing discussions over the next-generation hypercar. “If you launch a new hypercar then you can go extremely modern in your thinking or maybe just go back to our sports car roots and take inspiration from some of the many icons in our history,” he said. “When you look at the 917 Concept then, personally, I love it. You look at it and you immediately make the connections. “But as a designer who believes that the next hypercar should point to the future, I’m not so sure. There is always the option to look into history, but sometimes you can also take the option to create some history.” Porsche CEO Oliver Blume confirmed that plans for a next-generation hypercar are under way, but said its future hung on a decision on its powertrain: “If we want it to be electric then we must wait, because battery performance is not where we need it to be yet in order to meet our performance targets. “It is not decided though that the car will be fully electric. There are opportunities with hybrid, too. We will make a decision when the time is
Origin: Next-gen Porsche hypercar could adopt retro styling