Feature: T1 Line
August 1, 2007
"The Caparo T1 is set
up for performance and
performance alone," says Ben Scott-Geddes, operations director at Caparo Vehicle
Technologies. "That’s what we think a supercar should be about." The laconic
Brit has an exemplary track record—as a key player in the creation of the
McLaren F1, he was also involved in the development of the Mercedes-Benz McLaren
SLR. In short, Scott-Geddes knows what he’s doing.
Aside from performance, the T1 is also built for
safety with a front crash structure, racing harness belt, and operational fire
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Combine a handful of talented, speed-obsessed technicians,
plenty of Formula One technology, and a huge helping of world-class engineering
skill, and the result may be the most extreme supercar ever built. Pared down to
the essentials, the Caparo T1 takes the basics of speed—high power and low
weight—and wraps them in an aerospace steel and composite shape that is more
rocket than road car. Like a fighter jet shorn of its wings, the aerodynamically
tuned T1 makes every other supercar look flabby, overwrought and, frankly,
dull.
The underlying principle behind the T1 is its low mass, which
is achieved with the use of a carbon fiber and aluminum honeycomb chassis, Nomex
body panels and alloy suspension components. Even the power plant features
all-aluminum construction, titanium valves and a carbon-fiber intake system. The
result is a car that barely tips the scales at 1,213 pounds, or less than a
third of your average family sedan.
Slung out behind the two-seat jetfighter cockpit is Caparo’s bespoke
3.5-liter V-8 engine. Designed, developed and built in-house, the motor delivers
575 hp at 10,500 rpm and 310 ft-lbs of torque at 9,000 rpm—which gives the T1 a
power-to-weight ratio of 1,045 hp per ton.
Technically, that sort of performance may put it in a class above supercar.
The results of such racecar-like ratios are astounding. From
rest, the T1 can catapult to 60 mph in 2.5 seconds, and touch 100 mph in five
seconds flat. Stand on the brakes, and it will slow from 100 mph to a standstill
in 3.5 seconds. Top speed is an eyeball-flattening 205 mph, and it will pull 3.5
g under braking and during cornering.
Scott-Geddes and his team have gone from scale wind-tunnel
model to 99 percent complete running prototype in less than 12 months, which is
about the same time it takes Ford to design a cup holder. He looks tired. But
behind his exhaustion sits a burning pride and pleasure in seeing the T1 in
action. "It’s the best thing I’ve ever done," he grins as the Caparo blurs past
on the track. The project’s credence was further boosted when motorsport legend
and McLaren F1 boss, Gordon Murray, joined the team as an advisor.
"He moved us away from the initial plans for a supercharged
engine to a naturally aspirated power plant, and he played a key role in the
car’s aerodynamics," says Scott-Geddes. The T1’s adjustable front and rear
wings, air diffuser and low-drag body design suck the car to the track. Tweaking
its aerodynamic package will either boost downforce or increase top speed,
depending on the sort of circuit you feel like tackling, and its aerodynamic
shape cleaving through the air is key to its phenomenal handling and
agility.
At 150 mph, the T1 generates a massive 1,765 pounds of
downforce—more than its skimpy 1,213-pound curb weight—which means you could
drive it upside down through a tunnel. Try explaining that to the police.
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