If there is one thing that characterizes the (sub)writer, it is his incurable romanticism. A belief in plans, in the good side of life, in a better tomorrow. But sometimes, the questions that arise are so relentless, they make you doubt, no matter how well-intentioned. I want to believe. I want to believe. But can I?
Even the... stones have realized that I am referring to the ultimate topic of discussion of the last few hours: The presentation, by SP Automotive, the company of Spyros Panopoulos, of what he calls the world's first ultracar: the Chaos. Its design is admittedly impressive. The numbers are equally impressive. Let's look at them briefly, before we become... "unbelieving Thomases".
The Chaos will have two versions, the Earth Version, with power of 2,049 PS and torque at 1,389 Nm, with the four-litre twin turbo V10 engine revving up to 11,000 rpm, while the corresponding specs for the top-of-the-line Zero Gravity are power of 3,065 PS and torque of 1,984 Nm, with the engine capable of revving up to 12,200 rpm, with the weight kept at 1,272 kg (1,388 kg for the Earth Version). The Greek company, promises that in both versions, the Chaos will have a top speed of over 500 mph. and that the sprint to 100 mph will be done in 1.9 seconds for the weaker version and 1.55 seconds for the more powerful one.
We continue with the numbers, because, although they are boring, they matter. The price of the model will start at 5.5 million euros, rising to 12.4 million euros. Describing the project, the company says it aspires to produce 15 to 20 cars per year, with a total production of 100 units (20 in each continent), with interested parties registering for the priority list by emailing priority-list@spyrospanopoulos.com. The project has a total value of €96 million, with undisclosed sources of funding. But are things as promised by Mr Panopoulos?
The question marks
Unlike other attempts to produce a Greek car, most recently the Korres P4, the presentation of the Chaos was not received with great enthusiasm by the automotive public, both in Greece and abroad. So why don't they all... want to believe?
First of all it is the presentation itself. Spyros Panopoulos has been working on this project for a long time and was, as he has said, going to present the model at international motor shows. On yesterday's occasion, however, he chose not to do what we expected. Not to show the model live. Why, the normal thing would have been for the founder - or a presenter of his choice - to stand next to the physical prototype, telling us about it and showing us details. He could open the door for us, sit in it, even mise-en-scene it, covering, with the sound of the engine, any voices of doubt or questioning.
Instead, he chose what in my village they call "giving right to gossip". The digital, via graphics programs, photos he showed us, without even a video, if not a live one, was not what the public expected. And then, the controversy began. Many wondered if the car actually existed, since the site used as the backdrop for Chaos is the photos of a licensed warehouse in Hampshire, England, available on Google.
"The interior was not ready," he says. He should have shown us what's ready from the original. It's better that than the pictures. An effort, is characterized as such, when it is tangible. And, if he did that, we wouldn't ask if the prototype is actually real.
And then, more "grumbling" began. Others report that the Chaos front wing has been applied using CAD software, as it is the wing of the Red Bull RB13 car for the 2017-2018 F1 season, via Google again. Others are spotting details such as the rear window of the model, which looks different between photos, or side wings, brakes, etc. that have differences in each photo. And the question that arises is a nagging one: Does the Chaos actually exist in a physical prototype, or is it in the planning phase?
Then there are the issues of investment and production. SP Automotive does not disclose the source of funding for the project and it is a question of why. It is common for funds placed early on projects to be named, for transparency and also as a "guarantee" for the future of the project. In Greece we have a long experience of such issues, with dozens of start-ups conducting funding rounds, attracting hundreds of millions of funding from investment funds in Greece and abroad. In this case, however, we don't know who the investors are, or if they are equity investors.
As far as production is concerned, the company does not inform us if it has received a Press Approval (logically, it will ask for a Small Series Press Approval, which "frees" it from... crash tests) and where. But more importantly, it has not shown us the facilities that will house the production line for both the Chaos and the other models it has shown.
Today, Mr Panopoulos, in a Facebook post, promised to provide answers with a physical presentation of the prototype. And he said that he was under a lot of pressure to be on time - which he had set himself - by being forced to make this presentation that he did. He said that he had no intention of deceiving anyone and therefore used photos that are in "plain view" on Google search. But, given that he has promised before that he would attend an international car show, last year and this year, how would he have done it if Covid-19 hadn't come up? And how will it be able to deliver vehicles to customers in 2022-2023 if it can't present a working prototype today?
You know, there's the bad precedent. The bad precedent of the Devel Sixteen, which would have been the fastest car on the planet. A physical prototype was shown, a video of the motor (outside the car) running was shown, but beyond that, nothing. Certainly, no one wants the Chaos to have such a fate. All the more so, because it is presented with the Greek flag "accompanying" it. We all want to be proud that a fellow countryman has created a car that humiliates the entire automotive world. We want to believe it. But until we see the prototype in action, tested on the road, we can't. We hope that the amiable Spyros Panopoulos solemnly disproves all the doubt, with the Chaos on the road. Our page is open to host his views, if of course he is willing to undergo the "torture" of our questions...
