Diesel-powered British supercar Trident Iceni promises 200 mph and 69 mpg
For the past few decades, various British engineers and businessmen have attempted to build sports cars under the Trident name with as much luck as a broken umbrella in London. Today, Trident announced it would finally show its production-ready car in public next month -- the Trident Iceni Grand Tourer, a diesel-powered machine that should hit 200 mph while returning 69 mpg on a variety of fuels. It could be fantastic -- if it's for real.
The latest version of Trident says it's using a 6.6-liter turbocharged diesel that combined with some undescribed system its calling Torque Multiplication that's good for 430 hp and 950 ft.-lb. of torque; those with additional pounds at their feet can pay for upgrade to 660 hp and 1,050 ft.-lbs. In the base version, the Iceni can reach 60 mph in 3.7 seconds.
By using a diesel, the Iceni GT can burn a variety of fuels, from regular diesel to used restaurant oils, and at cruising speed of 70 mph, can travel 2,000 miles on a tank of gas. If all these figures sound too good to be true, it's because they are a bit; it's not that diesel engines aren't capable of fantastic performance, but that the technology for doing so usually takes more engineering than a handful of people can pull together. While Trident didn't reveal much about the engine, General Motors builds a 6.6-liter diesel in its trucks good for 397 hp and 765 ft.-lbs.
Trident also didn't release the weight of the Iceni, which should be a substantial disadvantage to any of its competitors. With the company taking orders next month and vowing production by the end of the year with a starting price of $119,000, we'll see how sharp this Trident is soon.
For the past few decades, various British engineers and businessmen have attempted to build sports cars under the Trident name with as much luck as a broken umbrella in London. Today, Trident announced it would finally show its production-ready car in public next month -- the Trident Iceni Grand Tourer, a diesel-powered machine that should hit 200 mph while returning 69 mpg on a variety of fuels. It could be fantastic -- if it's for real.
The latest version of Trident says it's using a 6.6-liter turbocharged diesel that combined with some undescribed system its calling Torque Multiplication that's good for 430 hp and 950 ft.-lb. of torque; those with additional pounds at their feet can pay for upgrade to 660 hp and 1,050 ft.-lbs. In the base version, the Iceni can reach 60 mph in 3.7 seconds.
By using a diesel, the Iceni GT can burn a variety of fuels, from regular diesel to used restaurant oils, and at cruising speed of 70 mph, can travel 2,000 miles on a tank of gas. If all these figures sound too good to be true, it's because they are a bit; it's not that diesel engines aren't capable of fantastic performance, but that the technology for doing so usually takes more engineering than a handful of people can pull together. While Trident didn't reveal much about the engine, General Motors builds a 6.6-liter diesel in its trucks good for 397 hp and 765 ft.-lbs.
Trident also didn't release the weight of the Iceni, which should be a substantial disadvantage to any of its competitors. With the company taking orders next month and vowing production by the end of the year with a starting price of $119,000, we'll see how sharp this Trident is soon.
