Making its European debut at the Goodwood Festival of Speed was the 845bhp mid-engined de Macross Epique GT1 – better known as the first-ever Korean supercar. The idea for the Epique with its carbonfibre tub and alloy body comes from Korean oil magnate and car collector Keyser Hur. Company spokesman Yongbin Choi said that Hur is pursuing his dream to build his own car and company. Canadian supplier company Multimatic engineered the Epique in Toronto. Powering it is a supercharged 5.4-litre Ford V8 that Roush tweaked to produce more than 800bhp and 725lbft of torque. It has mounted midships and in line, it attaches to a Ricardo transaxle that an alloy rear subframe supports.
Dampers by F1 company DSSV are featured on the front suspension. It’s believed that the hardware used here is the same one used by Red Bull. Furthermore, the suspension is supported by an alloy front subframe that features cast suspension towers. De Macross said that it has a 1450kg kerb weight and can accelerate from zero to 62mph in 3.1sec and a top speed of more than 230mph. Plans for a production car are still in the very early phase.
However, US and Middle East buyers are believed to be capable of ordering the over $1.5m-plus in taxes for the Epique. There’s still a six-month waiting time quoted." There are some regions in the Middle East where Bugatti Veyrons are very common. There has been interest in the Epique is “as an interesting alternative.” The Epique was introduced at the Dubai auto show last November by De Macross. In addition, the company has been working with a US engineering group Turin International to get them to sign the engineering approvals even if the plan is to sell its models under the vehicle approval process. [source: victorymusclecars]
