Red Bull has officially presented its RB17 hypercar, a two-seater which it claims is capable of matching Formula 1 lap times.
Designed by outgoing chief technical officer Adrian Newey, the RB17 weighs 900 kilograms – around 100kg more than a current F1 car – but uses a normally-aspirated V10 engine which produces 1,200bhp at 15,000rpm.The engine is semi-stressed within the RB17’s carbon fibre monocoque. Red Bull claim the car will reach 350kph, but expects its cornering performance will set it apart from other top-end hypercars. The dramatically low and sleek design allows the car to “deliver F1-equivalent lap times,” says Red Bull, “while remaining easy to own and operate.”
Red Bull launched the RB17 at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, where it is also marking its 20th season in F1. “With 20 years of legacy in the world of F1 to draw from, and as a performance centred organisation, it only made sense for us to design our own hypercar from the ground up,” said Red Bull team principal Christian Horner, who predicted the machine will be a “future classic.”
Newey, who will leave Red Bull at the beginning of next year, said he had “been mulling around the idea to take on the challenge to design our very own hypercar, from concept to delivery, for many years and it has been a magnificent project and journey.”
“The RB17 hypercar embraces everything we stand for: undeniable power, speed and beauty,” he added. “It is very adaptable in its abilities, and we made sure to design it as a two-seater so that the thrill of driving at F1 speeds can be enjoyed with a friend or partner.”
Red Bull Advanced Technologies will manufacture just 50 examples of the RB17, each of which will be bespoke to the customer willing to pay its expected £5 million price tag. Exterior colours, interior materials and other details an be customised. Red Bull will also provide driver development to buyers and events at a range of circuits.
Advert | Become a RaceFans supporter and
Leaning heavily on Red Bull’s F1’s pedigree, the RB17 uses the same chassis nomenclature as the team’s cars, sitting between the RB16B which took Max Verstappen to the 2021 drivers’ championship and the RB18 the team used to win both titles the year after.
Red Bull RB17 pictures
Miss nothing from RaceFans
Get a daily email with all our latest stories - and nothing else. No marketing, no ads. Sign up here:
Formula 1
- Stats: Chinese Grand Prix saw most disqualifications in an F1 race for 21 years
- Even the best driver on the grid needs a team mate to push them – Norris
- McLaren “in a better situation” with race starts compared to last year – Stella
- F1 responds after Ferrari calls broadcast of Hamilton’s radio a “joke”
- 2025 Chinese Grand Prix weekend F1 driver ratings
HerbertSteward (@madlewis)
12th July 2024, 10:52
That thing looks sick..omg. Thats one hell of a engineering masterpiece.
Ivan Vinitskyy (@ivan-vinitskyy)
12th July 2024, 11:17
I don’t know…. in 2 minds about this. On one hand its a monster machine, if performance is real, but on the other hand its a £5m car… so nobody will push it on track, or even take it to the track… it’s going to sit in some garage all the time and gather ‘value’. That to me is a waste of an effort.
Coventry Climax
12th July 2024, 11:35
And a waste of natural resources and energy as well – if they indeed all end up in the collections of people that got rich in ethically dubious ways. (Which actually, by my definition, applies to practically all of them.)
Would indeed love to see how this car holds up against the WEC ‘hypercar’ anomaly and F1 cars in an actual race.
It’s funny it says (who did RB or RF?) it has F1 comparable performance. So do my own -much cheaper- sportscars. That all depends on what year of F1 you make the comparison to..
CarWars (@maxv)
12th July 2024, 16:11
A waste of natural resources and energy.. oh boy you must be Carbon Neutral
Dex
12th July 2024, 16:22
We spend 90% of our lives wasting resources. One car like this makes no difference. These things are easy to point to as perfect examples, but I’d be worried about the industry, especially in places like China. One Chinese industrial village pollutes more than a smaller European country. Germany turns back to coal (because it’s greener than nuclear energy lol), and I couldn’t care less about resources being wasted on a 900kg car. I’m equally worried about F1 being sustainable… PR doesn’t make a change, it masks lack of real change.
If someone buys all 50 of these cars and have them running 24h every single day (minus maintenance time), then burns them when they can’t run anymore, it still won’t affect our lives at all, not even symbolically. The coal industry though… All those wars don’t help either.
Nick T.
14th July 2024, 22:44
China is stunning. They use coal to run fake turbines to make it look as if they’re into green energy. Basically, everything you see come out of China from the photos, let alone the words, to the data (like GDP) is a fabrication. Unless you study the country, it’s impossible to grasp just how deep the rot goes or how Orwellian the government is. I really fear for democracies since we play by one set of rules while they play by another and use our rule of law to undermine that very thing. It’s too much to think about.
Coventry Climax
12th July 2024, 20:12
You guys, @maxv and Dex, completely miss the point here.
I’m fine with creating these cars, but agree to what @ivan-vinitskyy said about it being a waste if they just end up in a car collection with he odometer stuck a 0, km or miles is irrelevant at that value.
It’s not what they’re intended for, they’d otherwise just be a non functional and empty – but good looking – shell.
Not using resources for pointless things is a mindset.
cdfemke (@cdfemke)
13th July 2024, 18:10
Did you take a flight for vacation and tourism ? That did a whole lot more damage
Coventry Climax
14th July 2024, 18:36
Nope, haven’t even actually been abroad for well over five years.
But to be fair, I’ve had people come over and visit me for their holidays, so I should plea guilty probably, to some extent.
Again though, it’s not got to do with how much or how little difference single events make, it’s got to do with the mindset to not waste things if it isn’t necesary, and realise resources aren’t endless.
If this car is intended to go in a glass cage, than putting effort in it having an engine, gearbox, suspension, battery, airco and what not, just things you can’t see and will never, ever be actually used, is pointless.
Same with vintage instruments. You have no idea how much -say- an authentic ’57 electric guitar fetches these days, even if it’s battered up. But that’s a complete pity, because they’ll never be played on ever again.
Nick T.
14th July 2024, 22:50
Yeah, because a trip that could enrich your life is so comparable to conspicuous consumption…
BTW, I’m not referring to this car, which I do liken to art. However, I agree that people who buy dozens of Ferraris rather than one or two and maybe put all those other hundreds of millions to a better cause is part of the problem.
I also agree that this is a problem that can only be solved at national and international governmental scales, but it doesn’t help the little guy agree to any legislation that might require a small sacrifice (or compared to his annual income, a large one at times) when you see conspicuous consumption and the elite flaunting their lifestyles all over the media.
Mog
13th July 2024, 21:00
This is art. And art is priceless.
Coventry Climax
14th July 2024, 18:38
Gee thanks, you mean I get one for free? I solemnly promise to take it to the track every two weeks.
BasCB (@bascb)
16th July 2024, 14:21
i wonder how much this is just a RB owned redevelopment of the valkery, really.
Wholly agree that it is pointless except as part of the cost of letting Newey have fun to keep him from walking away from the team.
Coventry Climax
12th July 2024, 11:24
A ‘hypercar’ is a car adhering to the Endurance rulebook, as molested by the FiA, and hijacking the term.
This is not a hypercar by that definition, this is a mega car, with no rules defining it, right?
Hence probably also the Michelin tyres ;-)
Patrick (@paeschli)
12th July 2024, 11:26
I suppose it is not road legal?
anon
12th July 2024, 11:56
@paeschli it is not, and it is intended for circuit use only.
Coventry Climax
12th July 2024, 11:47
We still don’t know where Newey goes, do we?
Suppose that wherever he goes, he repeats the trick, building a copy or an evolution of this one.
We might get to see a RB17 against a Ferrari ‘whatever’ or an Aston Martin ‘whatever’.
I’m sure the companies themselves as well as the media would hype it, where in essence it would just be a Newey 1 against a Newey 2.
Anyway, projected laptimes anyone? Of, say, Spa or Silverstone?
Acceleration/decelleration figures? Fuel consumption?
There should be some specs somewhere, if it’s for sale?
anon
12th July 2024, 12:06
Coventry Climax, the car that you see is a static display model – testing of the actual car is not scheduled to start until next year. It therefore means there are no answers to your questions, because the car is still in development and therefore we do not know what the final performance will actually be.
For example, you ask about the engine design, but all we know are the proposed rev limits and power outputs – no other details have been released, and it’s not even been confirmed who exactly will build this proposed engine (although the press announcement suggests it might be a third party developer).
Coventry Climax
12th July 2024, 13:03
OK Anon, thanks.
So this is just version 20 of the ever ongoing Newey supercar design story, probably timed like this because he leaves RB end of year and needs to clean up after himself.
Not something that’s made very clear in the article though, which basically is just another motorshow prototype ‘review’ then.
We’ll wait to see the final specs – If it indeed ever gets produced and sees the light of day that is.
Osnola
12th July 2024, 12:49
if you ask these kind of questions this car is defenitly not meant for people like you…
Coventry Climax
12th July 2024, 12:56
You’d be surprised to know what cars (plural) I drive and have driven, over the years.
The fuel consumption question is to verify the “naturally aspirated V10 against hybrid(?) F1 performance” claim, nothing else.
Maybe your response tells us more about you than that it ‘accuses’ me?
Alesici
12th July 2024, 15:24
Indeed. Some seek speed simply using a big powerful engine, crippling fuel efficiency. Others achieve it by minimising the things that slow a car down – weight and aero drag. The latter approach can achieve both speed and efficiency, and makes a car a delight to drive.
Some think of fuel efficiency as a purely monetary subject. This is really pretty blind. For example, there is a strong correlation between fuel usage and CO2 emissions. RB17 customers might be interested in the latter.
Bullfrog (@bullfrog)
12th July 2024, 13:35
Can you get a set of golf clubs in it?
MacLeod (@macleod)
12th July 2024, 13:56
2 overalls and 2 helmets was told by Newey is that about the same size as golfclubs then your answer is yes.
But as it’s a track car we never know :) I hope we see this in Le Mans :)
Coventry Climax
12th July 2024, 20:16
No, but there’s an accessory that allows you to hook a golf cart behind it.
Stoo
13th July 2024, 14:18
It’s definitely useless, there’s nowhere to put a towbar !!!
Coventry Climax
14th July 2024, 18:45
Depends on the type of car you’re looking for.
For family cars, you’re right.
If it’s about sportscars, a towbar converts any of those into a tractor instantly.
Same with doors: Even a roadgoing Ferrari has two too many.
MacLeod (@macleod)
12th July 2024, 13:57
Adrian said the same times as F1 at Silverstone…. rather fast.
Coventry Climax
12th July 2024, 11:52
Is that a normally aspirated V10 by RBPT? New design from the ground up or with Honda genes?
Bore and stroke? Cylinder angle?
Boy, do I miss a lot of information here.
I love the color, but is that all I’m supposed to say about it?
F1Genova (@f1genova)
12th July 2024, 12:58
apparently its easy to own and operate. Seems neither are true.
operate once you get it towed to a track?
Own, as in you can buy with the change in the couch?
who are they referring to here?
Coventry Climax
12th July 2024, 13:13
Depends on your definitions regarding ‘easy to own and operate’, I guess:
Even Apple Pay needs to give up it’s monopoly position I read, so ease of payment, meaning the process itself, not how to amass that sort of money, is probably true. Just transfer the money and you own it; easy.
Easy to operate is likely true as well, as it most likely has (is intended to be having, I now understand) a steering wheel and the regularly configurated and functioning pedals, as well as a host of switches to make it behave docile.
I was referring to the utter lack of essential automotive engineering information here, who ever may be guilty of that.
But I’m stupid alright, to have fallen for this article.
EffWunFan (@cairnsfella)
13th July 2024, 7:01
Easy to own commonly means factors effecting ongoing ownership, not the costs involved.
Coventry Climax
13th July 2024, 11:06
I know that, but still, ‘commonly meaning factors effecting’ is not the same as ‘is defined as’.
But I wasn’t even referring to that. Hard for people to recognise jest and sarcasm these days, it seems.
Alan Dove
12th July 2024, 20:00
Its being built and developed by cosworth. RBPT were involved in early stage concept iirc
Only Facts!
12th July 2024, 13:05
Dear old friend Adrian,
Front looks awesome, with double wings and suspension showing through.
The car looks like an F1 that received a top cover, wheel base makes it “street impossible”. Sick!
Really, that’s my type of car. But I will pass the offer this time. Rear wing looks too low for Eau Rouge and Radillon.
Keep up the good work 👍!
Bullfrog (@bullfrog)
12th July 2024, 13:33
That looks unreal round the back (the front’s more like a bog-standard Hypercar – Alpine or something.) I bet it sucks, in the best possible way.
I hope someone sends one round the Nordschleife and Le Mans one day.
Postreader
12th July 2024, 13:51
They should have added a fan at the back :) just imagine the speeds.
Covcentry Climax
12th July 2024, 20:18
You’re invited. But you need to really hold on when they step on it…
M2X
12th July 2024, 14:19
You mean naturally-aspirated, Keith ;)
anon
12th July 2024, 20:05
M2X, it may be that the term is used more commonly in the UK than in other English speaking nations, but the term “normally aspirated” is recognised in most dictionaries as a common alternative to “naturally aspirated”. Keith’s use of the term “normally aspirated” is therefore entirely valid.
AllTheCoolNamesWereTaken
12th July 2024, 14:53
That would look right at home parked next to my 2012 Toyota Aygo.
… wait, it’s not road legal? Never mind, then.
Aquila_GD
12th July 2024, 20:24
Just about to send my post dated cheque to Red Bull racing.
They should be able to cash it in 2030. :)
Alex
12th July 2024, 20:55
No engine exhaust. Since it is not supposed to be offered as an electrified version, I would say it is far from ready to hit the road. A blown diffuser would help to improve its performance even more. Let’s hope for the photos with the exhausting pipes properly placed.
SteveP
13th July 2024, 0:02
Are you saying that they’ve maximised the Hype in hyper-car?
Coventry Climax
13th July 2024, 11:35
No engine exhaust as far as you can see from the pictures doesn’t -necessarily- mean it’s not there.
Maybe it has not been designed with noise restrictions in mind as well, meaning who knows what the exhaust(s) look like and where it/they are?
AlanD
12th July 2024, 21:26
I am not denying that this looks like a brilliant piece of engineering, but I didn’t think building something “as fast as an F1 car” would be that big a deal, since it is not contrained by F1 regs. The enclosed body work helps with aerodynamics, making it easier to manage air flow over the wheels and cockpit, you could have active aero bodywork, fans to help maintain airflow and downforce, turn the nose of the car into a massively deep front wing, no constraints on floor design or ride height, and you could have all sorts of driver aids not permitted in F1 such as active suspension, differential braking, traction control, and so on. The only advantage an F1 car would retain would be being a sinble seater, it is narrower which might improve top speed.
chimaera2003 (@chimaera2003)
13th July 2024, 8:03
I’m personally cynical about it being as fast an F1 car (ie within 5%). However as you mention the F1 regs are so constraining so there are many areas they can exploit to make up the difference.
To me it would be a huge kick-in-the-teeth to F1 if it is genuinely as quick as an F1 car. Maybe that is the intent of the exercise!
Coventry Climax
13th July 2024, 11:20
@chimaera2003:
You can start ordering your new dentures then, I’m afraid.
F1 has ceased being the technical pinnacle or even a front runner of technology for a long, long time already.
Other than that, like I said earlier already, there’s an essential piece of information missing in that comparison: What year F1 are we talking about? Silverstone is the circuit that’s been there since the inception of F1 – with sidesteps in just a few seasons. And depending on what school you adhere to, it’s since 1946 Turin or 1950 Silverstone.
I’m sure there’s quite a lot of cars that compare favourably to what was raced back in the ’50’s.
Then if we talk fast only, regardless of track, try googling ‘car land speedrecord’, and be amazed.
chimaera2003 (@chimaera2003)
13th July 2024, 12:27
I wasn’t trying to state that F1 is the forefront of technology in general, but that if the claim of being able to “deliver F1-equivalent lap times” can be genuinely realised then F1 will look a bit silly. Especially since a good chunk of the F1 marketing strategy is based around the fastest cars (fast is defined as quickest laptime around a circuit, not highest top-speed) are being raced around tracks.
If someone can, albeit theoretically rather than practically, purchase a machine that goes as quick (referring to lap-time) as an F1 car then people would ask why teams are employing hundreds of people to design a car delivering similar performance. It just then proves that F1 is too artificially constrained and therefore may need a rethink, maybe that is the end result that Red Bull are looking for but that is just unsubstantiated speculation on my part. Unsubstantiated speculation is of course the oxygen that the comments section here thrives on.
Not really sure what your point about the F1 year is. If the RB17 is 30% slower over a lap than the latest Red Bull F1 car, the owner askes for their money back but Red Bull refuse on the basis that it was referencing an 1980 car then this would be a marketing own goal and they would be sued.
AlanD
13th July 2024, 16:10
Chimera, some of the hypercars which are legal for road use have a top speed which is faster than an F1 car. I’m thinking of the Bugatti Veron, for example, which I think goes about 250mph, 20mph faster than the fastest current F1 car straight line speeds, and 10mph than the fastest ever which was a Honda-powered car about 20 years ago in a straight line test. In race conditions it is a different matter.
This year, both F1 and WEC raced at Imola and I’m pretty sure it was the same track configuration so it is the closest I can think of to comparing like for like. The pole lap for Verstappen was 1:15 and for the Ferrari Hypercar it was 1:29, so the F1 car is quite a bit faster.
The hypercar race was six hours long so it would probably have heavier brakes than an F1 car which only has to last 200 miles. The aero on the endurance cars is designed more for optimising fuel efficiency over that long period than outright downforce. F1 cars are built for F1 tracks, so they are designed with floors that run millimeters above the ground, can’t cope with bumps, and towards the end of the race the blocks and skid plates on the floors are wearing away, wheras the endurance cars have to cope with a wider range of circuits and surfaces over a longer period. And remember, the endurance cars have to have driver changes so you can’t have the incredibly tight cockpits tailored exactly to the individual driver that F1 has.
The biggest aero challenges for the F1 designer are the open-wheel and open-cockpit rules. Way back when engine horsepower was a limiting factor, race cars had everything stripped away to save weight. That’s why we have open-wheeled single seater cars as our traditional view of what a fast F1 car should look like. But they would go faster if aero designers were allowed to wrap the bodywork around those wheels, use more sophisticated wheel covers, have moveable aero around the front of the car.
I’ve no doubt that if you had an F1 sort of budget and built a hypercar which was optimised for F1’s flat short twisty circuits and a short race distance, and you were not constrained by the F1 rulebook on aero, weight balance, driver-aids such as mass dampers, traction control, differential braking, parc Ferme rules, tyres, etc, and you were not contrained by the WEC requirements for fuel efficiiency etc, that you could build a car which would lap faster than an F1 car. It would be no use of course, since it couldn’t ever compete against an F1 car, which is why I think the Red Bull claim is just empty meaningless marketing.
Coventry Climax
14th July 2024, 19:04
@chimaera2003
I’m most certainly not trying to pick a fight here, but I was saying F1 is not the forefront of technology at all.
There’s a very simple given to substantiate that, and that is that F1 is bound by rules constricting development.
Other than that, yes, the claim of being faster than an F1 car, even around an F1 track, is easy to realise.
What I said is: Go rent a recent Ferrari or any such car of a brand of your preference, and run it around Silverstone. If you’re anything close to at least somewhat of a decent family car driver – meaning you’d most likely qualify – you’d probably put in a faster laptime than they did in the official F1 race back in 1950. You could then say you’re faster than an F1 car and not be lying. THAT’s why I think the year information is vital – and deliberately missing, for that matter.
stefano (@alfa145)
13th July 2024, 1:10
why not enter the WEC with it
Johns
13th July 2024, 1:30
I would buy a house next to Max in Thermal Ca and run it with his F1 car that was gifted to him on that private track. Lots of fun.
Coventry Climax
13th July 2024, 11:25
What’s the point? It wouldn’t pass WEC rules, and otherwise get BoPped hyper heavily for this ‘keepin the playing field equal’ nonsense.
You could enter a hyped 2CV and still stand a chance to win.
MichaelN
13th July 2024, 17:27
There’s nothing nonsensical about it; the LMH and LMDh class is already a huge success and is seeing great participation numbers from manufacturers and pro-teams on both sides of the Atlantic.
Coventry Climax
14th July 2024, 19:07
Define huge success, and for whom please. I’ve stopped watching it, for one, because of BoP.
AlanD
13th July 2024, 16:13
I think if they did, it would quickly be exposed as marketing hype.
MichaelN
13th July 2024, 17:25
The idea behind the Hypercar regulations was to cut speeds and cut costs; so roughly 3:25-3:30 laptimes at Le Mans and about $20 million annual budgets. An F1-equivalent car that costs $5 million a piece is not the way to do that; it’s simply not the point of the class.
EffWunFan (@cairnsfella)
13th July 2024, 7:06
Must have had my head in the sand, or in the clouds. Did not realise it was going to be a track only car.
Even if I had the money I’d rather have a fleet of fun track vehicles and still save most of the cost than purchase this offering. It’s beuatiful though, and with the (spare) money for a road version, I’d perhaps feel differently.
Sergey Martyn
13th July 2024, 14:13
With all the respect to Newey, this car looks like a cheesy ripoff of Luigi Colani designs from 40-50 years back.
AlanD
13th July 2024, 16:16
In some of the shots, it made me think Batmobile. That was another car which had impossibly high fictional performance.
Rolfski (@rolfski)
13th July 2024, 21:15
This could be the perfect Safety Car
Esteban (@esteban)
14th July 2024, 4:54
Check out the interview to Adrian Newey by Top Gear at YouTube with The Wall of Red Bulls as background to the RB17.
Coventry Climax
14th July 2024, 22:15
Reuters now have an article and a video of it, shot at Goodwood.