The Ares Design Project1 is a coach-built sports car manufactured by Italian automobile manufacturer Ares Design. Based on the
Lamborghini Huracán
The Lamborghini Huracán (Spanish for "hurricane"; ) is a sports car manufactured by Italian automotive manufacturer Lamborghini replacing the previous V10 offering, the Gallardo. The Huracán was revealed online in December 2013, making its w ...
, the car is meant to be a modern reinterpretation of the
De Tomaso Pantera
The De Tomaso Pantera is a mid-engine sports car produced by Italian automobile manufacturer De Tomaso from 1971 to 1992. Italian for "Panther", the Pantera was the automaker's most popular model, with over 7,000 manufactured over its twenty-year ...
.
Specifications
Initially called "Project Panther", the car was introduced in concept form in 2017. The name of the car was later revealed to be Project1 at its public debut in 2019. It is the first model in the company's "Legends Reborn" series. The car is based on the rolling chassis of the Lamborghini Huracán and features a retro style carbon fibre body harking back to the De Tomaso Pantera. Although the resulting car is wider than the original Pantera, the wheelbase is only 12 centimetres longer, helping the car retain most proportions of the Pantera. A notable feature of the exterior of the car is the use of
pop-up headlamps
Hidden headlamps, also commonly known as pop-up headlamps, pop-up headlights, flip-eye headlamps, or hideaway headlights, are a form of automotive lighting and an automotive styling feature that conceals an automobile's headlamps when they are not ...
having LED projector lights, the first use of pop-up headlights in a new production car since the
Chevrolet Corvette (C5) and
Lotus Esprit
The Lotus Esprit is a British sports car that was built by Lotus Cars at their Hethel factory in England between 1976 and 2004. It was among the first of designer Giorgetto Giugiaro's polygonal "folded paper" designs.
Background
In 1970 Tony ...
were discontinued in 2004.
The engine has been tuned by Ares Design and has a power output of and of torque by installing a new ECU and a new exhaust system. The car retains the 7-speed dual-clutch transmission and the all-wheel-drive system from the donor car but the transmission has been reworked in order to allow for a more direct response.
The exhaust system has been designed to deliver a more enhanced engine noise. The Project1 uses carbon ceramic brakes and callipers (6 pistons at the front, 4 pistons at the rear) from
Brembo
Brembo S.p.A. is an Italian manufacturer of automotive brake systems, especially for high-performance cars and motorcycles. Its head office is in Curno, Bergamo, Italy.
History
Brembo was established in Paladina, Italy on January 11, 1961 ...
with forged aluminium Vossen wheels measuring 20-inch at the front and 21-inch at the rear wrapped in
Pirelli
Pirelli & C. S.p.A. is a multinational tyre manufacturer based in Milan, Italy. The company, which has been listed on the Milan Stock Exchange since 1922, is the 6th-largest tyre manufacturer and is focused on the consumer production of tyre ...
tyres measuring 255/30 R20 at the front and 325/25 R21 at the rear.
The interior of the car has been completely redesigned and now features a retro design. It is upholstered in Nappa leather/Alcantara and has carbon fibre trim. It will be customised according to the customer specifications.
Performance
Manufacturer Estimates
The Project1 can accelerate to in 3.2 seconds and can attain a top speed of over .
Production
The Project1 will be built at the company's factory in
Modena
Modena (, , ; egl, label=Emilian language#Dialects, Modenese, Mòdna ; ett, Mutna; la, Mutina) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern I ...
, Italy and production will be limited to 21 units, all of which have already been sold. The estimated time of production of each car will be 12 weeks.
References
External links
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{{Coachbuilders of Italy
Cars of Italy
Coupés
Retro-style automobiles
Sports cars
Cars introduced in 2019
Rear mid-engine, all-wheel-drive vehicles
2020s cars