Aspark Owl Electric Hypercar Targets Nürburgring Lap Record
The Japanese automaker is only building 50 of these carbon-fiber-bodied EVs.
You might remember the Aspark Owl electric hypercar from its debut at the 2017 Frankfurt Motor Show. Development is still underway on the Japanese-built machine, and the company now says that a run at the Nürburgring record could be under consideration.
Gallery: Aspark Owl
"[The] Aspark Owl performances are allowing us to aim [for] the Nürburgring record," a company spokesperson told Top Gear. The automaker's representative also said that a hardcore racing version was possible if there was enough demand.
The Owl shows its talons:
Aspark's testing already shows that the Owl is capable of reaching 62 miles per hour (100 kilometers per hour) in 1.9 seconds. The company's official specs show the hypercar being able to reach 174 mph (280 kph), but the range would be just 93 miles (150 kilometers). According to the brochure on Aspark's site, the Owl has 429 horsepower (320 kilowatts) and 564 pound-feet (764 Newton-meters) of torque. However, Top Gear indicates that development since announcing those specs pushes the output to 1,150 hp (858 kW).
The hypercar features an ultra low-slung body. The entire body is carbon fiber, and there's a tubular frame underneath for minimizing weight. Aspark says that the machine is only 1,874 pounds (850 kilograms).
At a price of 3.1 million euros ($3.5 million) and production of just 50 units, the Owl will be a very rare machine, and the company will deliver the first one in 2020.
Among factory-available, road-legal production cars, the current record holder at the Nordschleife is the Aventador SVJ with a time of 6:44.97, although the Lanzante Motorsport McLaren P1 LM is even quicker at 6:43.2. The existing champion among EVs is the Nio EP9's 6:45.90.
Source: Top Gear
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