Ariel's New 1180bhp Hybrid Missile Is About To Set The Hypercar World On Fire

It may be a tiny company based in a nondescript part of the British countryside, but Ariel is planning a huge assault on the hypercar elite with a car that can hit 150mph in just 7.8 seconds
Ariel's New 1180bhp Hybrid Missile Is About To Set The Hypercar World On Fire

If you thought the McLaren 720S was fast, just wait until you see what another British firm is cooking. Tiny left-field rocket-ship maker Ariel is planning a four-wheel drive, two-seat sports car with 1180bhp – and it’s electric.

Four individual motors will catapult the car from 0-100mph in just 3.8 seconds, Autocar reports, so you already know it’s going to create some incredible times at the drag strip. Each motor feeds up to 295bhp through its respective wheel, taking power from a central, low-mounted battery with 42kWh of juice.

Boosted by a turbine-based range-extender hybrid system similar to the type Jaguar used in the C-X75 prototype, the top-secret project has been ongoing for the last three years. Ariel is calling it ‘P40’ for now, and while it’s expected to weigh as much as 1600kg – heavy compared to the Atom – a big chunk of its bulk will be batteries and hybrid system.

The Nomad is Ariel's craziest car to date, but that looks set to change
The Nomad is Ariel's craziest car to date, but that looks set to change

The chassis will be an aluminium monocoque affair and the body panels are expected to be carbonfibre to help lower weight, but Autocar’s render of how project P40 might look is an educated guess, as the styling and aerodynamics are still in development.

It should be good for over 100 miles of electric driving range before the turbine range extender kicks in, giving enough clout to let the car keep the pace up on winding roads. On a track, it’s estimated that the battery will last around 15 minutes before needing a 50-minute fast-charge.

Other numbers you need to know about are a limited 160mph top speed, its tyre-shredding 1328lb ft peak torque, a 2.4-second 0-60mph sprint and its ability to smash the 150mph barrier in 7.8 seconds – the exact same time span in which the 720S gets to 124mph. If Ariel can pull it off, project P40 is going to be a game-changer.

Comments

Adrian Precupeanu

What a time to be a car guy!

08/23/2017 - 08:22 |
101 | 2

Sees this: says, “Yay, we’re gonna get fast driver focused cars!”
Continues reading: “It’s electric.”

08/23/2017 - 10:55 |
43 | 8

Great time indeed but if you have the money….

08/24/2017 - 04:44 |
2 | 0
Anonymous

This story was embargod until 9pm thursday in an agreement between Autocar, Top Gear magazine and Ariel. Autocar jumped the gun to get more revenue. D*ck move by them if you ask me….

08/23/2017 - 08:38 |
17 | 0
Freddie Skeates

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

Issue for Autocar is that their magazine comes out on a Wednesday, so if they had published the story online tomorrow, by next Weds all weekly publications would’ve also posted it

08/23/2017 - 22:40 |
1 | 0
Joseph Le Corre

Sadly the name crazy cart is taken…
stupid Razor.

08/23/2017 - 08:40 |
9 | 0
Deoxide

This is the missile that can kill North Korea.

No?
Okay.

08/23/2017 - 08:44 |
29 | 1

It may.

I want it to

08/23/2017 - 09:57 |
2 | 1
MrLeo

May they set the world on fire. Would be great if they didn’t set themselves on fire though

08/23/2017 - 08:48 |
6 | 0
TheMindGarage

On a dragstrip, I wouldn’t be surprised if this is an 8-second car. Seriously.

08/23/2017 - 08:55 |
6 | 0

Three hours after being revealed by Ariel: “The NHRA did it again and banned the P40 from drag racing”

08/23/2017 - 23:41 |
3 | 0
Anonymous

And all the Ferrari fanboys be like
“AH AAH LION IS COMING”

08/23/2017 - 09:58 |
2 | 1
Anonymous

This Rocket Might Even Interest NASA

08/23/2017 - 10:22 |
3 | 0
Anonymous

Fire!

08/23/2017 - 10:42 |
0 | 0
Anonymous

Me: 0-60 in 3.8 seconds? That’s not that im-Oh, that says 100. Ok.

08/23/2017 - 11:05 |
13 | 0
Anonymous

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

Same. Crazy world we live in today where 0-60 in under four seconds is not that fast and can be achieved by sub 50k cars.

08/23/2017 - 11:45 |
6 | 0

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