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2007 Caparo T1 news, pictures, and information | ||
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The Record-Braking Caparo T1 Unveiled in Monaco
The dramatic 1,000bhp-per-tone T1, which defines an entirely new breed of supercar that is lighter than a Caterham but wîth twice the power-to-weight ratio of a Bugatti Veyron, was unveiled at the 2006 Top Marques show in Monaco by His Serene Highness Prince Albert II.This exclusive preview of the first prototype T1 forms a significant centerpiece for the show, which was held at the Grimaldi Forum in Monte-Carlo in the heartland of one of the world's most glamorous locations and centers of motoring heritage. The presentation of the aerodynamically formed supercar was witnessed by Caparo Vehicle Technologies' design director Ben Scott-Geddes and engineering director Graham Halstead, the two ex-McLaren engineers whose inspiration helped create the car.
Previously known as the Freestream T1, Caparo, a $1.3 billion multinational company involved in manufacturing vehicle structural components, acquired the project started by Ben Scott-Geddes and Graham Halstead, and renamed it to Caparo T1. In March 2006 the group announced its advanced automotive technology and engineering design company called Caparo Vehicle Technologies. The new company will provide advanced technology development, materials engineering and design services to mainstream automotive, motorsport and aerospace markets. Coupled wîth its global manufacturing resource and capability Caparo aims to accelerate the use of lightweight materials in vehicle structures.
Launched in the Summer
The Caparo T1 will be launched in the summer 2007 wîth a new and more powerful engine than previously mooted.
The bespoke lightweight, all aluminum V8 has a higher capacity of 3.5 liters and is now normally aspirated. The engine has a mass of less than 220 lbs and can produce power outputs of up to 550 bhp. The T1 will maintain an ultralight kerb weight of approximately 1100 lbs; around one-third the mass of the average family saloon.
The Caparo V8 has been designed from scratch and is comparable to Formula One and Indy race car specifications.
'This new engine allows us many exciting options for the future, both for the car and the company,' said Richard Butler chief executive Caparo Vehicle Products. 'It will further help us to implement the vehicle lightweight design philosophies necessary to reduce greenhouse gasses being sought by high volume carmakers.'
Ben Scott-Geddes operations director at Caparo Vehicle Technologies and the car's co-designer added: 'The new engine now delivers both the performance and reliability we're lòòking for in the T1, the two key factors vital to our customers when running this type of car.'
Sean Butcher commercial director at Caparo Vehicle Technologies said: 'Given the high engine output, increased power-to-weight ratio, advanced hybrid chassis design and ultra-efficient aerodynamics the T1 offers exceptional value for such an exclusive world class vehicle … and quite extraordinary standards in performance, handling and safety.'
The T1's high power-to-weight ratio delivers phenomenal performance on the track. Similarly, the same principles of lightweight design in a car one-third the weight of the average family saloon combined wîth a normal 15 gallon (70-liter) fuel tank means a range better than the average car of up to 500 miles on public highways. And that is sufficient to tackle seven hours of driving from London to Le Mans, a distance of 338 miles (544 km), without refueling, before putting in a blistering performance on the circuit.
Commenting on the mould-breaking Caparo T1, Angad Paul said: 'This car is in a class of its own when it comes to overall performance; but it also addresses in the most dramatic way possible fundamental design issues facing the automotive today. The same approach to aerodynamics, choice of materials and efficient design, which have allowed us to achieve the world's most reasonably priced supercar, can be applied in equal measure to create affordable, safe, yet lightweight, fuel-efficient family cars.'Source - Caparo
Caparo Vehicle Technologies – a new and advanced automotive engineering consultancy formed a year ago by the rapidly expanding Caparo Group to provide carmakers globally wîth a centre of excellence in lightweight vehicle design – is putting the finishing touches to the first car it has ever produced. The Caparo T1 is a high performance two-seater sports car wîth highly resolved aerodynamics, which has been designed wîth the looks and performance close to that of a Formula One race car.
With series production about to commence, the car will be built for discerning customers seeking the ultimate track day experience in a road driveable vehicle. The Caparo T1 also serves as a technology flagship for demonstrating the company's high level vehicle design and engineering capabilities.
'We said a year ago, at the outset of this programme, that the only way to truly convince carmakers that we have the experience and skills to design a safe, reliable, cost-efficient and high-performance car is to actually design and build one,' says Ben Scott-Geddes, the car's co-designer and operations director at Caparo Vehicle Technologies. 'We've now done so ... we're proud of what we've achieved ... and we now have something real and tangible to discuss.'
Releasing full details of the car's specification during the final stages of prototype testing and development, the company has revealed that while customer cars are being readied for start of production, preparations are also well in hand for the T1's first public appearance as a running car and star attraction at the Goodwood Festival of Speed on 22-24 June 2007 – which effectively becomes the vehicle's launch date.
With distributors appointed in the ÚK, ÚSA, South Africa and Dubai and more dealers under evaluation the company has a fast-filling order book. The handover of the car to the first customer is scheduled for July.
The biggest attraction for customers and the most striking aspect of the car's specification is its headline figure of 1,045bhp-per-tonne power-to-weight ratio. The Caparo T1 is the first series production car ever to break through the 1,000bhp-per-tonne barrier. This has been achieved by installing a home-grown 3.5-litre Caparo V8 engine, which produces 575bhp (425kW) at 10,500rpm and 420Nm (310lbft) at 9,000rpm, into an extremely lightweight body and chassis constructed of advanced composite materials and weighing just 550kg.
The Caparo T1 is around one-third the mass of the average family saloon. Its carbon/aluminium honeycomb monocoque features a separate composite crash structure at the front, while the rear sub-frame specifies aerospace grade steel. The non carbon-fibre steel suspension illustrates the company's ability to specify structural materials that can deliver the maximum performance at the lowest possible cost.
This means the Caparo T1 is lighter and faster even than a race-winning Le Mans sportscar. In terms of power-to-weight ratio its closest rival would be the latest super-bikes, which are now capable of delivering 175bhp into 185kg thereby just falling short of the magic 1,000bhp-per-tonne figure. Apart from these two wheelers and Formula One cars, no other road or track car comes anywhere close to the Caparo T1's power-to-weight ratio and highly efficient aerodynamic properties.
This supreme power-to-weight ratio results in a 0-60mph time of less than 2.5 seconds and the ability to reach 100mph within five seconds. Braking performance is no less impressive wîth 100mph to standstill being delivered in 3.5 seconds.
'We're absolutely delighted wîth the progress we've made throughout the test and development programme,' says engineering director and T1 co-designer Graham Halstead. 'The aerodynamic efficiency was already well established through wind tunnel testing of a scale model even before we built the first prototype. With tens of thousands of miles of durability trials and specific testing now under our belts we have progressively fine tuned the specification of the vehicle to meet and exceed even our high performance objectives.'
'The combination of highly resolved aerodynamics and chassis make the vehicle predictably safe and responsive to driver inputs,' adds Scott-Geddes. 'The car drives and handles extremely well both on the road and track and this was the number one consideration in such an uncompromised high performance vehicle.'
'The Caparo T1 not only looks and performs like a Formula One car but it also helps us to demonstrate new and advanced technology to vehicle manufacturers in the aerospace, automotive, defence, marine and motorsport industries,' says Richard Butler director Caparo Vehicle Technologies and chief executive of Caparo Vehicle Products. 'Already, we're working on a number of highly confidential client projects, applying the same approach to aerodynamics, choice of materials and efficient vehicle design, which has allowed us to develop the T1.'
'Últimately, our goal is to help carmakers to create a new generation of more fuel-efficient and lightweight family cars wîth significantly lower CO 2 emissions more in keeping wîth the needs of the 21 st century,' says Angad Paul chief executive of the $1.2bn turnover Caparo Group, a fast-growing automotive Tier 1 supplier, which created Caparo Vehicle Technologies to back the T1 project. 'We will help carmakers achieve their objectives by continuing to invest in advanced technology in order to develop new lightweight materials and commercialise their manufacturing processes so they are affordable for mass production.'
'Given the car's performance potential - the engine has already been successfully bench tested to 700bhp on methanol - we are now lòòking into the possibility of introducing for our customers an international T1 race series,' says commercial director Sean Butcher. 'Our objective is to give customers an affordable and reliable season on the track without incurring the extraordinary costs of running a real Formula One car.'
'Customers comprise private individuals wîth a passion and desire for ultra high performance and corporate clients requiring an affordable yet prestigious track car for the fast growing market of hospitality race experience events,' added Butcher.
In terms of colour and trim each of these highly exclusive hand-built cars, which has a starting price of £190,000 (excluding taxes), will be tailored to suit individual customer requirements.Source - Caparo
With series production about to commence, the car will be built for discerning customers seeking the ultimate track day experience in a road driveable vehicle. The Caparo T1 also serves as a technology flagship for demonstrating the company's high level vehicle design and engineering capabilities.
'We said a year ago, at the outset of this programme, that the only way to truly convince carmakers that we have the experience and skills to design a safe, reliable, cost-efficient and high-performance car is to actually design and build one,' says Ben Scott-Geddes, the car's co-designer and operations director at Caparo Vehicle Technologies. 'We've now done so ... we're proud of what we've achieved ... and we now have something real and tangible to discuss.'
Releasing full details of the car's specification during the final stages of prototype testing and development, the company has revealed that while customer cars are being readied for start of production, preparations are also well in hand for the T1's first public appearance as a running car and star attraction at the Goodwood Festival of Speed on 22-24 June 2007 – which effectively becomes the vehicle's launch date.With distributors appointed in the ÚK, ÚSA, South Africa and Dubai and more dealers under evaluation the company has a fast-filling order book. The handover of the car to the first customer is scheduled for July.
 | Vital Stats |
| Engine : 3.5 L., 8-cylinder Power: 550 hp | |
6-speed Sequential | |
The Caparo T1 is around one-third the mass of the average family saloon. Its carbon/aluminium honeycomb monocoque features a separate composite crash structure at the front, while the rear sub-frame specifies aerospace grade steel. The non carbon-fibre steel suspension illustrates the company's ability to specify structural materials that can deliver the maximum performance at the lowest possible cost.This means the Caparo T1 is lighter and faster even than a race-winning Le Mans sportscar. In terms of power-to-weight ratio its closest rival would be the latest super-bikes, which are now capable of delivering 175bhp into 185kg thereby just falling short of the magic 1,000bhp-per-tonne figure. Apart from these two wheelers and Formula One cars, no other road or track car comes anywhere close to the Caparo T1's power-to-weight ratio and highly efficient aerodynamic properties.
This supreme power-to-weight ratio results in a 0-60mph time of less than 2.5 seconds and the ability to reach 100mph within five seconds. Braking performance is no less impressive wîth 100mph to standstill being delivered in 3.5 seconds.
'We're absolutely delighted wîth the progress we've made throughout the test and development programme,' says engineering director and T1 co-designer Graham Halstead. 'The aerodynamic efficiency was already well established through wind tunnel testing of a scale model even before we built the first prototype. With tens of thousands of miles of durability trials and specific testing now under our belts we have progressively fine tuned the specification of the vehicle to meet and exceed even our high performance objectives.''The combination of highly resolved aerodynamics and chassis make the vehicle predictably safe and responsive to driver inputs,' adds Scott-Geddes. 'The car drives and handles extremely well both on the road and track and this was the number one consideration in such an uncompromised high performance vehicle.'
'The Caparo T1 not only looks and performs like a Formula One car but it also helps us to demonstrate new and advanced technology to vehicle manufacturers in the aerospace, automotive, defence, marine and motorsport industries,' says Richard Butler director Caparo Vehicle Technologies and chief executive of Caparo Vehicle Products. 'Already, we're working on a number of highly confidential client projects, applying the same approach to aerodynamics, choice of materials and efficient vehicle design, which has allowed us to develop the T1.'
'Últimately, our goal is to help carmakers to create a new generation of more fuel-efficient and lightweight family cars wîth significantly lower CO 2 emissions more in keeping wîth the needs of the 21 st century,' says Angad Paul chief executive of the $1.2bn turnover Caparo Group, a fast-growing automotive Tier 1 supplier, which created Caparo Vehicle Technologies to back the T1 project. 'We will help carmakers achieve their objectives by continuing to invest in advanced technology in order to develop new lightweight materials and commercialise their manufacturing processes so they are affordable for mass production.''Given the car's performance potential - the engine has already been successfully bench tested to 700bhp on methanol - we are now lòòking into the possibility of introducing for our customers an international T1 race series,' says commercial director Sean Butcher. 'Our objective is to give customers an affordable and reliable season on the track without incurring the extraordinary costs of running a real Formula One car.'
'Customers comprise private individuals wîth a passion and desire for ultra high performance and corporate clients requiring an affordable yet prestigious track car for the fast growing market of hospitality race experience events,' added Butcher.
In terms of colour and trim each of these highly exclusive hand-built cars, which has a starting price of £190,000 (excluding taxes), will be tailored to suit individual customer requirements.Source - Caparo| 2000 German Grand Prix: Barrichello Assumes Command | |
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| 2013 Monaco Grand Prix - Preview | |
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| MOTOR SPORT'S FINEST HOURS WITH MERCEDES-BENZ CLASSIC | |
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| 1957 Italian Grand Prix: A True Nobleman Stands Amongst Two of F1's Most Noble | |
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2007
