The venerable Spanish brand Hispano Suiza attempts a comeback with the Carmen, an electric supercar whose lines are inspired by one of his mythical models of the 1930s.
The advent of the electric car will be the occasion of the revival of a car brand with a glorious past: Hispano Suiza. The Spanish manufacturer founded in 1904 was illustrated between the Belle Epoque and the late 1940s with its luxury cars. Hispano Suiza is also known for his fighter jet engines that equipped models during the two world wars.
Miguel Suqué Mateu, great-grandson of the co-founder Damian Mateu, who took over the reins of the company, tries a return with the Hispano Suiza Carmen. This 1,019 horsepower electric supercar, which owes its name to the mother of the current boss of the car brand, caused a sensation at the last Geneva Motor Show. Lovers of Hispano Suiza will immediately notice a familiar evocation in the unique style of Carmen that is directly inspired by that of the superb Hispano Suiza H6C Dubonnet Xenia of 1938.
The Hispano Suiza Carmen will be produced in 19 copies
The keeled rear wheels that complement a bold aerodynamics give it a drag coefficient of Cx 0.325 which is lower than that of a Porsche 918 Spyder, a Ferrari F12 or a Koenigsegg Agera R. The Carmen is propelled by two engines electric motors totaling 750 kW located on the rear axle with torque vectorization to optimize the power distribution.
Hispano Suiza announces a 0 to 100 km / h in less than three seconds and a maximum speed voluntarily restrained at 250 km / h. The 80 kWh lithium-ion battery will offer up to 400 kilometers of battery life. Essentially made of carbon fiber, both for the one-piece chassis and the bodywork, the Carmen displays 1.690kg on the scale.
This new Hispano Suiza will be produced only 19 copies between the end of 2019 and 2021. Its price: 1.5 million euros. Road tests will begin shortly and the press will take the fireball on hand in October. The official launch will take place in June 2020.