Leading Formula 1 team Red Bull Racing is working on a hypercar and plans to take the covers off as soon as this year.
Team boss Christian Horner announced the reveal date during an interview with Sky Sports, Evo reported last week.
Red Bull first announced plans for the car, which will go by the name RB17, in mid-2022. The team said at the time that 50 examples are planned, each priced at around 5 million British pounds (approximately $6.3 million), and that production will start in 2025.
One of the main goals for the car is to deliver a true F1 experience from behind the wheel, the team said.
Adrian Newey
Spearheading the design is Red Bull’s star aerodynamicist, Adrian Newey, who was also responsible for the design of the Aston Martin Valkyrie, as well as multiple championship-winning F1 cars.
Unlike the Valkyrie, the RB17 will be designed for the track only. It will feature two seats and a closed cockpit, and according to Evo will generate a combined output of 1,250 hp from a twin-turbocharged V-8 and mild-hybrid system. The mild-hybrid system will make 150 hp on its own and will primarily be used for torque fill and reducing turbo lag. The targeted weight of the RB17 is just 2,000 pounds.
Red Bull has also said the RB17 will sport the most advanced ground effects package used on a car sold to the public. According to Evo, this will include features such as adjustable side skirts, and an active suspension to compensate for some of the negative side effects of such packages, like the bouncing and resulting nose lift, known as porpoising, seen on some F1 cars since 2022, when new ground effects design rules were introduced. It will also have a blown diffuser, which directs exhaust gases above the diffuser to aid downforce.
Handling the development is Red Bull Advanced Technologies, the F1 team’s consulting division. The division will also handle production, which is expected to be at the rate of roughly 15 cars per year.
