Hispano Suiza continues the teaser campaign for Carman, its upcoming electric supercar, by showing off the machine's bare, carbon fibre monocoque. The full debut isn't too far away at the Geneva Motor Show in March.
Looking at the monocoque and Hispano Suiza’s previous, shadowy teaser (above) of the Carmen's exterior, there's finally a good idea of what the upcoming model looks like. The model features a rounded shape with individual arches forming the fenders at each end and the roof. Looking at the chassis, the rear deck appears to come to a boat-tail-style point.
The Carmen model name comes from Carmen Mateu, a granddaughter of Hispano Suiza’s founder. The company imagines the electric machine as a vehicle mixing performance and luxury into a single package, so expect more of a high-speed grand tourer than a hardcore, corner-carving sports car. The automaker also promises a bounty of technology on board.
Hispano Suiza will use a fully electric powertrain for its new model. The company won't provide many details about the tech yet other than that Barcelona-based QEV Technologies will handle the production and development.
Previously from Hispano Suiza:
The Carmen marks a return of the Hispano Suiza brand. The Spanish firm had its heyday in the early 20th century. In addition to building luxury cars, the firm also produced aircraft engines. The company's innovations included developing an aluminium engine block with steel cylinder liners that created a powerplant that was lighter than contemporaries at the time. The Hispano Suiza last took a tiny step at a return in 2010 when the automaker showed off a highly customised Audi R8 with carbon fibre body panels and electrically driven superchargers for the 5.2-litre V10.
HISPANO SUIZA TO PRESENT WORLD PREMIERE OF ELECTRIC ‘HYPERLUX’ MODEL AT GENEVA MOTOR SHOW
04/02/19
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New grand tourer production car is ultimate expression of classically-inspired design, next-generation powertrain technology, exhilarating power and expertly-engineered dynamics
Barcelona, 4 February 2019 – Next month’s Geneva Motor Show will see the world debut of the ‘Carmen’ – a fully-electric hyperlux grand tourer from iconic Spanish luxury car brand Hispano Suiza.
Named after Carmen Mateu, granddaughter of Hispano Suiza’s founder, the new model is the ultimate expression of classically-inspired design, next-generation technology, exhilarating power and expertly-engineered dynamics.
Designed, developed and manufactured in Barcelona, the handcrafted Carmen is based on a super-stiff, hand-laid carbon fibre monocoque. This provides the foundation for the car’s exceptional luxury, comfort, innovation and attention to detail, which are uniquely combined with technologically-superior, fully-electric performance.
While the new model takes inspiration from the Dubonnet Xenia, one of the elegant and luxurious vehicles built by Hispano Suiza in 1938, development and build of the Carmen and its custom-designed electric powertrain will be led by the company’s production partner, QEV Technologies.
Also based in Barcelona, QEV Technologies boasts a team of highly-skilled engineers with experience across design, engineering, R&D and production for Formula-E teams, supercar brands and mainstream car manufacturers.
QEV Technologies has its foundations in motorsport with Campos Racing and is also the technology arm of Mahindra Formula-E Racing, plus the European R&D facility for Chinese firm BAIC.
Hispano Suiza is a historic car brand owned by the fourth generation of the Suqué Mateu family. Between 1904 and 1946, Hispano Suiza built more than 12,000 luxury performance cars and 50,000 aeroplane engines. Today, with its headquarters, technical centre, and manufacturing facility in Barcelona – Hispano Suiza embodies a proud Spanish spirit with a strong family legacy.
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