The Red Bull RB17, unveiled as a concept last week, is an extreme track car designed by legendary Formula 1 mastermind Adrian Newey. This beast aims to outperform even current F1 race cars.
While Newey didn’t envision public road use, Lanzante, a company specializing in transforming track cars into street machines, is up for the challenge of making the RB17 legal for everyday driving. According to a recent statement to Top Gear, Lanzante has already received requests from future owners for a road-legal conversion, and development is underway.
The focus, Lanzante assures, is to retain the RB17’s track-focused performance while enabling road use.
Red Bull is yet to reveal the final RB17 design. The larger concept displayed last week is simply a non-functional mock-up lacking an interior or powertrain.
Lanzante hasn’t specified regions where the car will be street-legal. Due to the UK’s single vehicle type approval rules, where both Red Bull F1 and Lanzante are based, the process might be simpler there compared to, say, the US.
Lanzante boasts a history of transforming track cars into street-legal machines. Some examples include McLaren’s P1 GTR and Senna GTR, Pagani’s Zonda Revolucion and Huayra R, and even two modern Porsche 935 tribute cars, all showcased at the 2024 Goodwood Festival of Speed.
However, the RB17 presents a unique challenge. Unlike previous projects based on existing road cars, the RB17 is a ground-up design. Power comes from a screaming Cosworth 4.5-litre V10 that revs to a mind-numbing 15,000 rpm. An additional electric motor boosts power, provides torque fill, and enables first gear and reverse functionality. The engine alone cranks out 1,000 hp (746 kW), with the electric motor adding another 200 hp (149 kW).
Production will be limited to just 50 units and yes they are all spoken for.
Top Gear estimates the conversion cost to fall between £250,000 (approx. R600k) and £500,000 (approx. R1.2m).