Radford built a fast car inspired by the Lotus race car
SuperBEAST - Before naptime we tried to write about an all-new sports car that was inspired by the 1960s classic racing cars. Indeed as we all knew, this has been done by many car makers today. Recently an automotive firm called Radford Motors revealed a new sports car named the Radford Type 62-2.
Radford Type 62-2 (in pictured the Gold Leaf variant) is debuted at at Quail Lodge as part of the Monterey Car Week 2021. (Picture from: CarsRadars)
As quoted of Auto Express and Goodwood Road & Racing, it later became the latest sportscar made from the British company after an absence of more than fifty years. As an automotive company, Radford Motors started from Harold Radford & Co, which is well known as a specialist in the customized car bodywork such as the Bentley and Roll-Royce cars. The company was then rebuilt by a partnership consisting of the automotive designer Mark Stubbs, the former F1 driver Jenson Button, and a television persona Ant Anstead.
Radford Type 62-2 (in pictured the Gold Leaf variant) also marked the company's come back after an absence of more than fifty years. (Picture from: Goodwood Road & Racing)
The automaker said that the Radford Type 62-2 sports car is took inspiration of the 1969 Lotus Type 62 race car which was developed from the Lotus Europa and was used as a test bed for the Lotus 907 engine. Interestingly, this two-seat sports coupé was not only inspired by the Lotus race car but also claimed to be developed from the Lotus technology.
1969 Lotus Type 62 race car which was developed from the Lotus Europa and was used as a test bed for the Lotus 907 engine (Picture from: CarBuzz)
So it is not surprising if then the Radford Type 62-2 is made as closely as possible to its source of inspiration. The sports car has a height dimension of 1,133 mm from the ground, wide wheel arches, and air holes on the side. According to the co-founder of Radford Motors, Jenson Button who said that the making of the Radford Type 62-2 was a big challenge.
Radford Type 62-2 (in pictured the Gold Leaf variant) posed along with its sources of inspiration, the 1969 Lotus Type 62 racing car. (Picture from: CarsRadars)
"Creating a car that is luxurious as well as comfortable, and fun to drive is a formidable challenge. But the first Radford in the modern era managed to achieve it through this Type 62-2 product," as explained by the former British F1 driver.
Radford Type 62-2 (in pictured the Classic variant) is powered by a 3.5-liter supercharged V6 engine also used by the Lotus Emira. (Picture from: GridOto)
The Radford Type 62-2 is built from an aluminum chassis taken from Lotus Evora and has a body made of carbon fiber so it is claimed to be quite light at only 1,000 kg. It also applied the coilover suspension that can be adjusted in four directions, and coupled with the optional hydraulic nose lift system for the owners who have to drive the car on rough roads.
Radford Type 62-2 Gold Leaf is powered by an upgraded engine (ranging from the pistons, con-rods, camshafts, and
electronic mapping) so makes it capable to spit out power up to 500
horsepower. (Picture from: AutoBlog)
The Radford Motors said that its new sports car is offered in two options, namely Classic and Gold Leaf. The two variants will each be powered by a 3.5-liter supercharged V6 engine also used by the Lotus Emira. Besides that, potential customers can choose a 6-speed manual transmission system or a 7-speed dual clutch with a limited slip differential.
Radford Type 62-2 (in pictured the Gold Leaf variant) is light, fast and nimble and will hold its own among even the most accomplished of supercars. (Picture from: AutoBlog)
For the performance, its Radford Type 62-2 Classic is claimed to have power up to 430 horsepower with a power-to-weight ratio of around 1:1. As for the second one, the Radford Type 62-2 Gold Leaf, which is beautifully displayed in a typical red-white racing livery, is said to be powered by an upgraded engine (ranging from the pistons, con-rods, camshafts, and electronic mapping) so makes it capable to spit out power up to 500 horsepower.
Radford Type 62-2 (in pictured the Gold Leaf variant) features a more pronounced front and rear splitters, which the firm says provides 'a race car stance,' providing increased aerodynamic downforce. (Picture from: AutoCar)
As for the legs, the Classic variant uses 17-inches rims at front and the rear of 18-inches, while the Gold Leaf uses 18-inches at the front and 19 inches at the rear.
Radford
Type 62-2 wrapped the John Player Special racing livery as attached on
the Lotus Type 72D F1 racing car in 1970s and said to be powered by a V6
engine capable of producing a burst of power of 600 horsepower. (Picture from: Evo.co.uk)
Furthermore, the automaker also mentions that there will be a third variant in the near future called the Radford Type 62-2 JPS which is to be wrapped by the John Player Special racing livery as attached on the Lotus Type 72D F1 racing car in 1970s and said to be powered by a V6 engine capable of producing a burst of power of 600 horsepower.
As far as Radford Motors plans to produce a total of 62 units of the Type 62-2 sports car and made it according to customer specifications starting later by the end of the year. As the bespoke nature of each vehicle means that there is no publicly available price tag (estimated around $100 thousand).😯 *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | RADFORD MOTORS | DYMAG | EVO.CO.UK | STRAINSMEDIA | AUTOEXPRESS | GOODWOOD ROAD & RACING | AUTO | AUTOBLOG | CARBUZZ ]
