Tags: Spyker new models Luxury Cars autoshow Geneva Motor Show 2006 SUV
His Excellency Khaldoon Khalifa Al Mubarak, CEO Mubadala Development Company and Victor Muller, CEO Spyker Cars, unveiled the Spyker D12 Peking-to-Paris at the 76th Salon International de l’Auto in Geneva.
The world premiere of this Super Sports Utility Vehicle (SSUV) marks the introduction of a second product line for Spyker who are already known for producing the Spyker C8 Spyder, Laviolette and Double12 and C12 LaTurbie super sports cars. The Spyker D12 Peking-to-Paris is a four-wheel drive, four-door, four-seater luxury Super Sports Utility Vehicle with a spacious interior and a high performance W12 500 bhp engine. Production is due to start in the fourth quarter of 2007. This is the fourth time that the Dutch manufacturer of exclusive high quality hand-built sports cars and now SSUVs is present at the Geneva Motor Show since 2000.
Spyker D12 Peking-to-Paris: The Heritage
The Spyker D12 Peking-to-Paris traces its origins back, not to one, but three significant Spyker models, each of which contributed significantly to the company’s glorious heritage. This heritage is one of our five core brand values and influences the current models heavily. The second inspiration for the car is Spyker’s unique aviation heritage which created the first Spyker after the Great War in 1919: the Spyker ‘Aerocoque’ with fuselage body and its remarkable fintail. This model was the first Spyker in which the company introduced aircraft technology and design in its road cars. The Aerocoque’s fintail led to the functional roof fin on the SSUV. The final historical reference for the SSUV was its namesake from the Peking to Paris race of 1907, the most gruelling race of all time, in which the Frenchman Goddard entered his almost standard, factory-backed, Spyker 18/22 HP.
On 10 June 1907 five cars set out on what was to become an unprecedented challenge to man and machine. It was the final conquest of he motor car over non motorised mains of transport. Goddard finished second after three months of crossing territory where, for the most part, no car had ever dared to go. The SSUV has been named in honour of this race and the pioneering spirit it embodied: those men charted uncharted territory, something the modern Spyker D12 Peking-to-Paris does in its own very way: it enters an entirely new market segment, that of the SSUV which is currently uncharted.
The Spyker D12 Peking-to-Paris: The Vehicle
Demographics in the Western world show an aging client base for super sports cars. An entire generation of customers, used to driving super sports cars, is facing an interesting challenge: matching their desire to continue to enjoy driving sensations of a super sports car with the harsh reality of their exacting family life and, unfortunately, their age. The alternative is now available: a relatively light weight 1850 kgs SSUV which performs like a super sports car but offers four comfortable seats, easy access through four doors and a spacious luggage compartment. Longing for super sports car excitement, for cars that tantelize all of their senses, for cars that combine exceptional performance with exotic looks. Cars built with passion, cars with soul. Exquisite pieces of car jewelry. Such a car now excists.
The Spyker D12 Peking-to-Paris is an all aluminium, permanent four-wheel drive super sports utility vehicle. The rear doors are rear-hinged coach doors, so-called ‘suicide doors’. It is powered by the 6.0 litre, 12 cylinder, 500 bhp W12 engine from Volkswagen AG and accelerates from 0-100 KM (0-60 MPH) in 5.0 seconds. The six-speed automatic transmission features a multifunctional steering wheel with F1 style shift paddles, a triple dashboard designed in the style of an airplane cockpit, and a sumptuous interior. The vehicle has an all aluminium body fitted to an aluminium space frame, and sits on 24” Aeroblade ™ wheels. It has a length of 4.95 m, a width of 2.0 m excluding mirrors, a minimum height of 1.68 m and a maximum height of 1.77 m and weighs 1895 Kg. The fuel tank capacity is 100 litres (22 gallons). Top speed is 295 km/h (185 mph). The car is custom-hand built using only the best materials available.
