What's all this about?
It's a Red Bull. But it's not one for competition types only; no, this is one you can buy. Or at least, you could if you were very, very, very rich and supremely well-connected. It's called the RB17 and it's a track-only hypercar built to the same safety regulations as the Le Mans racers, which can also generate up to 1.7 tonnes of downforce as Adrian Newey has had a big hand in the project.
Goodness! So what's powering the RB17?
A normally aspirated, 4.5-litre V10 which revs to 15,000rpm and delivers, with the assistance of some hybrid power, more than 1,200hp. These numbers are not typographicals, either, in case you're wondering as they seem too far-fetched.
Anyway, the mid-mounted, semi-stressed V10 is hooked up to a six-speed carbon-fibre gearbox that sends drive to the rear wheels only. Reverse is handled by the electric motor of the hybrid drivetrain, which delivers 200hp of the grand total, and with a kerb weight of less than 900kg, the RB17 is said to do more than 217mph flat out and can apparently lap circuits with 'F1-equivalent' times.
Seriously?! What else do we know about the tech?
Well, as we said, the carbon-fibre monocoque chassis meets Le Mans hypercar safety regulations, while its two-seat 'motorsport-style survival cell' cockpit was designed so that you can terrify at least one (un)lucky passenger on track; the RB17 is left-hand drive only, though. The suspension is pushrod, the brakes and the 18-inch wheels, shod in Michelin slick tyres, are all made of carbon fibre, and those 1,700kg-generating aerodynamics we talked about earlier? All possible thanks to active elements in the RB17's body, along with the ground-effect skirt system at the bottom of the car.
My word, this is special. So how much is it?
We don't know, but given this spec, the involvement of Newey and the fact just 50 RB17s will be built, we're guessing that the old adage of 'if you have to ask...' might be pertinent here.
Anyway, Red Bull's head honchos, including team, principal and CEO Christian Horner, advanced technologies technical director Rob Gray and soon-to-be-departing chief technical officer Newey, all revealed the RB17 at the Goodwood Festival of Speed.
At the grand reveal, Horner said: "With 20 years of legacy in the world of F1 to draw from, and as a performance-centred organisation, it only made sense for us to design our own hypercar from the ground up. Combining technical innovation, achievement and emotional appeal, the RB17 is a landmark car. We expect the RB17 to be a future classic."
And Newey added: "I had been mulling around the idea to take on the challenge to design our very own hypercar, from concept to delivery, for many years and it has been a magnificent project and journey. For it to finally be the day we pull the covers off and see the birth of the RB17 is truly remarkable.
"The RB17 hypercar embraces everything we stand for: undeniable power, speed and beauty. It is very adaptable in its abilities, and we made sure to design it as a two-seater so that the thrill of driving at F1 speeds can be enjoyed with a friend or partner."
Matt Robinson - 12 Jul 2024
