You won’t have heard of Aria Group, but you’ll have seen it work. The Californian company been building one-off concepts (like the Ford Interceptor and Kia GT4 Stinger) for more than 20 years, and among other things, it produces carbon fibre body panels for Singer and its ‘reimagined’ Porsche 911s.
And at this year’s LA motor show, it’s revealed a full-on hypercar it hopes will give the European establishment something to think about. It’s called the Aria FXE, and as with all such cars that don’t technically exist yet (although given Aria’s past, we’d say it has a better chance than some), much is promised of its performance.
The FXE’s rear axle will be powered by a 6.2-litre supercharged V8, and the front will be electrified with all-wheel drive and a (claimed) total system output of 1,150bhp and 1,316lb ft.
We’re told the gearbox will either be a seven- or eight-speed dual-clutch. All this theoretically enables the FXE to reach 60mph in around 3 seconds and hit a 220mph top speed. Aria also plans to offer an entry-level FE that does without the electrified front axle.
The FXE’s monocoque chassis and body will be made mostly from carbon fibre, and elsewhere Aria promises “extensive use of 3D printed metal components”. It claims a kerb weight of 1,565kg (70kg lighter than a Porsche 918 Spyder) from a car 4.5m long and 1.9m wide – making it quite a lot shorter and narrower than, say, a Ford GT.
We’re told Aria is planning a run of no more than 400 cars – which sounds pretty ambitious. Pricing hasn’t been announced – but as each car will be a bespoke order, it’s likely no two will cost the same. It should go on sale in 2019.