AUTOS CARS CUSTOM

Icona added a sizeable dose of supercar intrigue to the Shanghai motor show with the unveiling of its 950bhp petrol-electric hybrid powered Vulcano concept – a car that was quickly billed as China’s new Ferrari.

The front-engined GT, created expressly to drum up business for Icona, a Shanghai-based design and engineering consultancy, is a busy combination of Ferrari F12 Berlinetta, Lexus LFA and Chevrolet Corvette design cues all rolled into one.

Former Jaguar and Nissan designer Samuel Chuffart is responsible for the car’s dramatic looking. He says the brief was to create a combination in which “beauty and beast come together”. Love it or loath it, there’s no denying the Vulcano’s attention grabbing properties. Just don’t ask about pedigree . . .

The length and width of the spectacular Chinese supercar is put at 4450mm and 1940mm respectively, with the wheelbase extending to 2698mm. It is clothed in a carbon fibre body and uses an aluminium chassis.

The coachbuilding of the model is by a firm called Cecomp, a founding partner in Icona. The firm was behind the Ferrari 575M SuperAmerica and BMW Z4 Zagato, and also offered engineering support for the Alfa Romeo 8C.

Icona proposes two versions of the Vulcano, both powered by a petrol-electric hybrid driveline that uses a V12 engine of unspecified capacity in combination with an electric motor and seven speed gearbox – a system that sounds extraordinarily similar to Ferrari’s HY-KERS arrangement.This is no real coincidence, as the man behind the technical aspects of the new Chinese supercar is Claudio Lombardi, who previously worked in Ferrari’s powertrain division.

A 807bhp rear-wheel drive variant of the Vulcano is claimed to weigh 3509lbs (1591kg), with a 950bhp four-wheel drive flagship said to tip the scales at 3597lb (1631kg).

Like much about the Vulcano, the claimed accelerative properties are theoretical at best. Icona claims 0-62mph in 3.0sec, 0-124mph in 9.2sec, a standing quarter mile time of 9.7sec and 217mph top speed for the rear-wheel drive variant and 2.9sec, 8.7sec, 9.2sec and same 217mph top speed for the four-wheel drive example.

Impressive figures for a car that is yet to turn a wheel in anger.

Thanks to: Autocar