The British may be the masters of building
lightweight and exceptionally quick track cars, but U.S. firm Vandal wants in
on this action – This being their first model, dubbed Vandal One. Underpinning the Vandal One is a
carbon fiber monocoque chassis that’s adorned with body panels also made
exclusively from carbon fiber. All up, the track car weighs a mere 555 kg and will be sold with the 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine
of the current Honda Civic Type R.
Vandal
has managed to bump that 306 hp up to 340 hp in entry-level guise. For those that want
even more grunt, Vandal will sell an upgrade package that increases grunt to
560 horses. As if that wasn’t enough, Vandal says this version of the Civic
Type R engine will rev to 9,000 rpm despite the use of forced induction. Unlike
the Civic Type R, the Vandal One will be sold exclusively with a six-speed
sequential transmission supplied by Sadev.
Don’t for a second think that Vandal has simply
slapped a Honda engine into a carbon chassis, however. The small Detroit
company has also developed pushrod front and rear suspension for the sports car
that uses JRi adjustable dampers and sway bars. The vehicle’s spring rate can
also be customized, while various drive modes adjust the ride height from five
inches above the road to just two inches.
Each and every Vandal One built will also come
complete with a telemetry system which allows for real-time monitoring of
vehicle data from the pit lane, while the driver is putting in fast laps.
Vandal will sell the base 340 hp One for US$ 119,700
but has yet to release pricing for the more powerful versions. Pre-orders with
a US$ 1,000 deposit will open later this year.
