Once again, bespoke British manufacturers chose the Autosport International show to unveil their latest creations The Autosport International show is already one of the premier indoor motoring events on the calendar, despite a lack of interest from mainstream manufacturers. The flip side to this is it gives smaller, bespoke carmakers the chance to make a name for themselves. Of the six new car launches at this year’s show, held from 8th to 11th January at Birmingham’s NEC, five were from British car firms, each aiming to steal the limelight and have motoring hacks vying for prime position at the unveiling. Early on, Noble flaunted an open-top version of its M600 supercar, dubbed the Speedster. In stark contrast to the British supercar maker’s loyalty to a manual transmission, the company has fitted the M600 Speedster prototype with a six-speed semi-automatic gearbox. While this model is strictly a prototype, Noble managing director Peter Boutwood confirmed to Autocar that if enough interest is sparked in the Speedster, it could find its way into production. The recently revealed Ariel Nomad all-terrain performance vehicle was also on display, though eagle-eyed punters would spot it tucked away on the Bilstein stand, due to its partnership with the suspension brand. Ariel general manager Henry Siebert-Saunders said the firm has further plans for the £30,000 Nomad, stating that this is only the beginning for the all-terrain vehicle and that more evolutions of the Nomad could spawn in the future in the same way it has with the Atom over the years. Another British sports car company, Zenos, pulled the wraps off its much anticipated E10 S production car at the Autosport International show. The E10 S, which is made from aluminium extrusions and recycled carbonfibre with thermoplastic core, is on sale from £29,995. Zenos co-founder and former Caterham Cars CEO, Ansar Ali, said 50 per cent of the company’s budgeted production E10 S cars for this year have already found buyers. Track car specialist Radical chose Autosport International to reveal its latest performance flagship creation – the RXC Spyder. Costing £131,940 the Peterborough manufacturer states this is its ‘most advanced, powerful, and aerodynamically-developed’ open racing car yet. The RXC Spyder is powered by a high-revving 3.0-litre V8 naturally-aspirated engine, producing 440bhp at a heady 10,500rpm. The Radical RXC Spyder’s order books are now open with deliveries from Q1 this year. Autosport International also hosted the unveiling of the first Lister Jaguar ‘Knobbly’ Continuation. Built from the ground up using orginal tools from 1958, the Lister is powered by a Jaguar D-Type race specification engine, developing 330bhp at 6750rpm. The 0-60mph sprint is dealt with in 4.3sec before topping out at 181mph. The Lister Jaguar ‘Knobbly’ Continuation is eligible to compete in all historic racing events worldwide. Meanwhile, Renault were the only mainstream carmaker to reveal a new model at the indoor show - the Renaultsport R.S.01. With over 500bhp on tap from its 3.8-litre twin-turbo V6 and tipping the scales at 1100kg, its on display in the UK for the first time and will debut in the Renaultsport Trophy later this year. The Autosport International show had plenty of other attractions for punters to enjoy, including the loud-and-proud Live Action Arena, numerous racing simulators and interviews with world-class racing and rally stars on the Autosport stage in the middle of the hall. Read Autocar’s guide to the Autosport International 2015 show.
Posted on: Fri, 09 Jan 2015 00:24:33 +0000
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