Red Bull Unveils Its Ultimate Track-Only Toy

Last October, I grumbled in our pages about the new crop of multimillion-dollar hypercars. Rather than being built around great driver experience, elegant design, or technological innovation, the Mercedes AMG Project One and Aston Martin Valkyrie were attempts to make race cars for the road in the most literal definition.The Valkyrie is basically an LMP1 car with license plates, and the AMG One runs a modified Formula 1 engine. And both are basically pointless. They were nightmares to develop, taking far more time and money than anticipated, and the results have been fundamentally flawed.They are so race car derived that you could never really use them on the road — the Aston Martin Valkyrie is so loud you have to speak with passengers using an internal intercom — and yet, are too compromised by on-road regulations that they get trounced by track-only specials, like the Valkyrie AMR Pro. The road Valkyrie and the AMR Pro were developed together, but because of road legality requirements, they only share the headlights and engine; and the Pro is much, much faster.Red Bull RB17. Courtesy of Red BullRed Bull RB17. Courtesy of Red BullThe conclusion was obvious: these should never have been built as road cars at all. They should have been sold as track toys for the elite, made by engineers who don’t have to conform with the excessive regulations of a racing series or the road. Adrian Newey of Red Bull seems to agree, as this is the concept behind his new RB17 track-only hypercar. And even compared to the AMR Pro, this seems like a step up.For the unfamiliar, Newey is one of the greatest Formula 1 engineers in the world, earning a legendary reputation for squeezing performance out of every regulatory loophole. For the past several years, this has been for Red Bull’s racing team, but over time, discussion has arisen about what it would be like for him to design and build the ultimate consumer-targeted track car.This was meant to be Aston Martin’s Valkyrie, which he worked on until that team fell apart, and Red Bull’s in-house RB17 is now his final vision. It will cost $6.5 million, be limited to 50 units, and take all his knowledge of Formula 1 aerodynamics and apply them to a two-seater, relatively accessible track car.Red Bull RB17. Courtesy of Red BullRed Bull RB17. Courtesy of Red BullThe RB17 is still in active development, and today’s unveiling at the Goodwood Festival of Speed is an early advertisement for potential buyers, but its specifications seem ridiculous. It weighs less than 2,000 pounds, produces almost 3,800 pounds of downforce, and has a total horsepower of 1,184, courtesy of a 4.5L Cosworth-derived V10 — which will scream up to 15,000 rpm — and a small, single-motor hybrid system. This will be sent through an automatic gearbox to the rear wheels and, despite having two seats, is intended to have F1-comparable track times.Red Bull RB17. Courtesy of Red BullThere is no publicly announced date for when customers will get their hands on the car, suggesting “a while” is the polite answer. Given the development nightmares of the AMG One and Valkyrie, even the private answer to customers may be optimistic. However, this isn’t an existing race car engine but a new Red Bull-designed unit, so it should be less troublesome than developing AMG One or Valkyrie, and hopefully, Newey will know what to avoid from those difficulties.Given that Newey has announced his resignation from Red Bull, this will be his final project for the brand. If this early announcement is anything to go by, it will be a worthy, final hoorah. Red Bull RB17. Courtesy of Red Bull

Red Bull Unveils Its Ultimate Track-Only Toy

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