Caterham RST-V8 Levante cracks the 1000 bhp per ton mark, scares children

TinmanMS6

Member
:
2012 Subaru WRX
260208cat.jpg


Caterhams have always been the model for minimalist motoring and it's rare that owners have been wanting for more motivation, but RS Performance has answered the call of a few owners that want insane power to match the Caterham's spartan looks.

Packing a supercharged 2.4-liter, V8 driving the rear wheels through a six-speed gearbox, RS Performance is giving well-heeled drivers 550 hp (at 10,000 rpm!) to simultaneously dry their hair and wet their pants. With a curb weight of almost 1,150 pounds, that means a power to weight ratio of around 1000 hp per ton and a 0-60 time of under three seconds.

Getting that grunt to the ground is difficult, at best. With the majority of the body panels being replaced with carbon fiber bits, along with an F1-style front splitter, steering wheel and Kevlar seats, the lack of mass is something drivers will have to overcome. Thankfully, the chassis, sticky rubber and traction/launch control should keep things in check.

If the 115,000 cost of entry for the supercharged version is a bit more than your wallet can bear, a naturally aspirated variant is available as well producing a "paltry" 380 hp. Included in the cost of the RST-V8 is a two-day driver training course when you take delivery. Good call Caterham.

260208-a-cat.jpg


260208-b-cat.jpg
 
Ho. Lee. s***. I'm selling my house, and getting one of these. Naturally, the wife and baby can sleep in it, and I'll sleep in a sleeping bag next to it. Well, I guess it's not all that expensive. We could probably just get a townhouse or something.
 
holy crap...

You could build something on par with it in the speed department for cheaper though...think built and turbo'd hayabusa motor on a locost...It just won't have the fancy gizmos like launch control and such.
 
holy crap...

You could build something on par with it in the speed department for cheaper though...think built and turbo'd hayabusa motor on a locost...It just won't have the fancy gizmos like launch control and such.

Fact check time! This is the same basic design as a Locost. They're all Lotus clones, and that's what Caterham does. This one just happens to use a lot of CF and make a lot more power than a turbo 'Busa motor could dream of.
 
Fact check time! This is the same basic design as a Locost. They're all Lotus clones, and that's what Caterham does. This one just happens to use a lot of CF and make a lot more power than a turbo 'Busa motor could dream of.

Fact check time for you sir, turbo'ed busa motors REGULARLY put out in excess of 550 horsepower. I'm fully aware that they are all lotus clones, I'm just saying I wouldn't pay that much for something that puts out a somewhat paltry horsepower number when I could have something with comparable performance for less.


http://videos.streetfire.net/video/3f2123e4-1d2d-482b-b987-cd796fd394ad.htm
Edit: Okay, 499, but I would gladly compromise. 115,000 is a large amount when you could have 51hp less, for a maximum (I can't imagine it being any more) than 30k for a motor like on that that bike in a locost.
 
Last edited:
Fact check time for you sir, turbo'ed busa motors REGULARLY put out in excess of 550 horsepower.


http://videos.streetfire.net/video/3f2123e4-1d2d-482b-b987-cd796fd394ad.htm
Edit: Okay, 499, but I would gladly compromise. 115,000 is a large amount when you could have 51hp less, for a maximum (I can't imagine it being any more) than 30k for a motor like on that that bike in a locost.

How long do you think that motor will make triple what it did from the factory before it explodes? I'd guess somewhere between two days and a week.
 
Fact check time for you sir, turbo'ed busa motors REGULARLY put out in excess of 550 horsepower. I'm fully aware that they are all lotus clones, I'm just saying I wouldn't pay that much for something that puts out a somewhat paltry horsepower number when I could have something with comparable performance for less.


http://videos.streetfire.net/video/3f2123e4-1d2d-482b-b987-cd796fd394ad.htm
Edit: Okay, 499, but I would gladly compromise. 115,000 is a large amount when you could have 51hp less, for a maximum (I can't imagine it being any more) than 30k for a motor like on that that bike in a locost.

BTW, that dude's retarded, as if there were any doubt about somebody who rides a 500hp 'Busa.
 
...as well as the hand of God. You can make a Civic make 500hp too. Doesn't mean anyone would want to drive one.

this is erroneous in that the car in question is clearly just for fun, thus noone is going to be driving this to work every day.
 

New Threads and Articles

Back