The Red Bull RB17 is a dramatic track-only hypercar that can lap quicker than a Formula 1 car, according to its creator, Adrian Newey.
The 1184bhp, V10-powered RB17 is the design legend’s swansong at Red Bull ahead of his departure from the group and has been revealed at the 2024 Goodwood Festival of Speed. A limited run of 50 examples will be produced.
The two-seat RB17 has been in its concept design phase for three years. Newey kick-started the project in 2021 while developing the F1 car that took Max Verstappen to his first world title and also while researching the then-new F1 regulations that would come into effect in 2022.
Development of the RB17, which has a top speed in excess of 217mph, will now ramp up, including the first firing of the Cosworth-developed engine on the dyno later this summer. The car is expected to turn a wheel for the first time in track testing next summer.
The RB17 is a successor of sorts to the Aston Martin Valkyrie, the first road car Newey was heavily involved in the engineering of during a now defunct tie-up between Aston and Red Bull. But whereas the Valkyrie was designed to be road legal, the RB17 is a pure track machine created by a team of around 120 engineers at Red Bull Advanced Technologies.
The specification of the RB17 reads almost like Newey’s greatest hits and includes active aerodynamics and suspension systems that he has pioneered in F1 in hugely successful technical roles at teams such as McLaren, Williams and Red Bull that have made him widely regarded as the greatest designer in the sport’s history.
Newey told Autocar there are three fundamental goals for the project: to look great – “at this level, cars should be considered pieces of art”; to sound great; and to ensure drivers of “all levels can go out, enjoy themselves and improve themselves”, not just F1 drivers.
The sheer volume of technology on the car enables a high degree of adjustability to myriad systems. But while the performance levels are prodigious, Newey wants the carbonfibre RB17 to remain accessible and exploitable, even for less experienced drivers.