Aspid Roadster Combines Luxury and Performance

The British Roadster is a classic design that will most likely never be completely removed from new designers' bag-o-tricks. IFR Automotive knew this and with a little extra effort, they designed a vehicle that could easily be remembered alongside names like Caterham and MG.

IFR stands for Ignacio Fernadez Rodriquez, the founder and top engineer of the company. His background includes some time with ProRide and the Mitsubishi WRC team. The inspiration behind his design is simple to understand yet had to achieve. He wanted to create a track-ready roadster that not only met or exceeded FIA Safety Regulations and European Homologation Standards, it would also have to offer a level of luxury rarely seen in the top performance category.

After some pencil and paper time, IFR was ready to begin building the Aspid. The first step was to design a strong but lightweight body and frame to compensate for all the amenities they planed on adding. Carbon Fiber and Aluminum were the components of choice and the final weight-in set the mark and 1,550lbs.

Next up was the drivetrain. As with most newer roadsters, more than one powerplant is available depending on what you want. The base engine is a 2.0 liter inline-4 making 270 horsepower. For those who want some extra get-up-and-go, a turbocharged version is available that bumps the total output up to 400 ponies. Power is sent to the rear wheels through a 6-speed close ratio transmission and a limited-slip differential.

Performance specs are all estimated, but still impressive. Zero-62mph should come in the 2.8 second range while 100mph will take 5.9 seconds. The top speed is restricted, sadly, to 155mph. Slowing the Aspid from 100mph will take about 3 seconds and you can expect to hit 1.6G of lateral acceleration.

For a first jump into the designing game, I feel safe saying it is a complete success. If you are interested in owning an Aspid, IFR will be taking orders at the London Motor Show at the end of next month. You should bring your checkbook though, as you will be expected to drop $150,000 before you take delivery.

From : SCC