The Invicta Car Company is to build a special supercharged version of its V8-powered S1 luxury coupe to help Britain’s fastest blind driver, 42-year old Barclays bank manager Mike Newman achieve his record-breaking goal of 200 mph.
The new Invicta, called the S1-600 and closely based on the current model, will be powered by a supercharged 5.0-litre Ford V8 engine which produces more than 600 bhp at 4,500 rpm. As well as the new engine, which hikes power by 88% compared to the S1 model, the record car will feature a six-speed manual gearbox, refined aerodynamics, specially-made Toyo tyres, full safety kit and GPS electronic driving aids.
"We are very pleased to join forces with Mike Newman’s Speed-of-Sight Project 200
to break the 200 mph barrier in a British car and highlight vision and blindness issues around the world," commented Invicta Chairman Michael Bristow. "Our target is to design, build and test the new S1-600 in good time for Mike to undertake a series of practice sessions before his record-breaking run which is scheduled for 14 October, World Sight Day 2004."
Invicta claim that from day one, the Invicta S1 was conceived and developed as two cars in one – a luxurious Grand Tourer and a no-compromise sportscar with the potential to become a class-winning GT racing car. The S1 comes with adjustable suspension and an all-ventilated-disc brakes.
"The S1 was designed to accept much more power than the current 320 bhp, and it was always envisaged that once full production of the S1 road car was underway, a second, supercharged model would be developed for customers wanting more power," continued Bristow. "Invicta has now reached that point in the company’s development and supporting the Speed-of-Sight
challenge is a natural fit for us. We will learn much from testing and running the S1-600 record car and those lessons will then be incorporated into next year’s supercharged road car."