Is 2000 Horsepower Enough?

by Hansen 21 February, 2016, 6:11 am 1.6k Views

The Arash Motor Company is a small car company based in the UK, home to some of the best bespoke and the best supercars in the world… This company came out with the Arash AF10 back in 2008, which was featured in Top Gear, possessing a 7.0 liter V8 good for 0-60MPH launches in 3.4 seconds, and a 204 MPH top speed.

That was then. Now the Arash Motor Company is revealing an update to the Arash AF10 to a more modern standard for ~~supercars~~ ~~hypercars~~ megacars. The new model runs a hybrid system, called the Warp Drive, consisting of four electric motors and one gasoline engine, with each powerplant attached to its own gearbox: 2 speeds for the electric motors, and a 6 speed manual or paddle-shifted gearbox for the internal combustion engine. Each electric motor outputs 295 horsepower and 200 lb-ft of torque, while the 6.2 liter supercharged V8 gasoline engine is capable of producing 900 brake horsepower.

[ads1] That math adds up to 2,080 horsepower… Arash Motor Company claims the new AF10 will produce a 0-60 time of 2.8 seconds. This acceleration is similar to the much more modest 691 horsepower Tesla Model S P85D equipped with Ludicrous Mode, but the Tesla won’t be able to keep up at the top end with AF10’s 2,080 horsepower.

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The chassis is unsurprisingly a lightweight tub made of carbon and Aramid fibers, with bits of aluminum and carbon honeycombed sandwich panels. The internal combustion engine is lightweight too, dialing in at 264 pounds for the 2 valve per piston V8. Arash Motor Company did not disclose the total weight of the car but claims a clichéd “Go Cart” feel due to the engine’s rotating mass being below the driver’s waist. The suspension is a double wishbone suspension for both the front and rear axles and is equipped with a hydraulic lift system, that will raise the car by 15 cm for those pesky speed bumps.

The company has already displayed pricing for the AF10, which comes in several flavors: a £350,000 (~$500,000) non hybrid model, a £1,100,000 (~$1.6 Million) hybrid model that comes with the Warp Drive system, and finally a £1,200,000 (~$1.7 Million) hybrid model in a racing trim.

The race model comes with extra bits such as a roll cage, a communication system, center lock equipped lightweight magnesium wheels, and most importantly a fire extinguisher. The race model also comes in an electric livery.

So to answer our earlier question, no, 2000 horsepower is not enough. We will always need more power and more speed until our bodies cannot handle the acceleration. The AF10 is already pre-claiming the benchmark for megacars. The Koenigsegg Regera should be a little nervous right now.