The latest Ginetta supercar is the Akula, a 200 mph, 600 bhp two-door monster modeled after the G58 prototype race car from the same company. Not satisfied with mere English words for the new car, Ginetta looked to Soviet Russia for a fitting name, using the Russian word for "shark."
The Akula shares its name with both the fast-moving animal and the submarine class with the same attributes. Its huge 6.0-liter V8 produces a maximum 600 bhp (447 kW), has a top speed of 200 mph (322 km/h), and weighs only 2,535 lb (1,150 kg).
The car has a lightweight carbon fiber body and monocoque chassis, with integrated seats and an LMP1-inspired steering wheel. Carbon ceramic brakes provide 1.2 g-forces of deceleration, and its body design aims for market-leading downforce at speed. The huge V8 engine powers through a six-speed paddle-shifted transmission to the rear wheels, which turn from a Torsen limited-slip differential.
"The concept behind the Akula was to build something truly individual, something that other brands cannot do due to corporate constraints," says Ginetta chairman Lawrence Tomlinson. "Designed to cut through the air like a shark through water, the car unquestionably means business, and I'm proud to be manufacturing a car of such significance in the UK."
The Ginetta Akula has a price tag starting at £283,333 (about US$372,500) plus taxes and fees. Ginetta will only build 20 Akula supercars in 2020 and has already sold 12 of them. Buyers of the Akula will be treated to a special ownership experience hosted by Ginetta, in which professional race instructors will show them how to handle their car alongside other Ginetta projects on a professional race track. The experience will include seat time in the Ginetta V8 G58 prototype enduro-racer.
Source: Ginetta
