In December, new OEM Aspark opened its own official showroom near its headquarters in Osaka, Japan, displaying the two prototypes used during the development of the company’s all-electric Owl, which it says is the fastest accelerating car ever produced. The company also established close partnerships with top retailers in North America and Europe. After the initial period of direct sales, it is now is ready to provide more flexible services to customers through its network of dealers that will be probably added in Europe and the Middle East.
“It was a big challenge to meet the aggressive targets of the Owl,” said Masanori Yoshida, Aspark CEO. “But with the 14 years of automotive engineering know-how, and with great support from our Japanese and Italian collaborators, we overcame all.
“The world would be a more exciting place if there were more people thinking about exciting things,” Yoshida continued. “That’s why we will never give up our mission, and we will keep [producing] many exciting projects like Owl.”
The Owl is the first of a series of extreme and disruptive automotive projects planned by Aspark, an established Japanese engineering and R&D company.
High-speed launch
After a constantly improving series of tests over the summer, the Owl hit 0-60 mph (0-97 km/h) in just 1.72 s with Michelin road-legal tires at Misano World Circuit in Italy. The result confirmed the advanced state of the project and inaugurated the launch of production, with a limited series of 50 Owl cars to be available worldwide.
“It’s a great honor for us to announce this achievement, reached in a record time,” said Yoshida. “In 2015, when we decided to make this project, no one believed it could have been done.”
After its world premiere in Dubai in November 2019, the Owl was scheduled to be exhibited at the abruptly canceled 2020 Geneva International Motor Show. Since Dubai, the company has progressed on development and production, as well on a future strategy as a car manufacturer, said Head Of Sales and Communication Agshin Badalbayli.
The two-seat hypercar features falcon-wing doors and a body, chassis, and many other components made of “top-level” carbon-fiber materials. It is powered by four electric motors and has an all-wheel torque vectoring system, an exclusive battery system, and a handmade premium interior.
The highest-quality CFRP (carbon fiber reinforced plastic) materials are said to significantly increase the monocoque chassis’ stiffness and keep its overall weight to only 120 kg (264 lb). Honeycomb structures are used on the chassis to absorb the shock as much as possible to increase safety in the event of a crash. CFRP is also used for the body for high stiffness and low weight, resulting in 180 kg (396 lb). For maximum safety for the occupants in case of vehicle roll-over, the car has stainless steel frames under the carbon roof. The car’s total dry weight is 1900 kg (4188 lb).
The chassis offers three levels of ground clearance and four driving modes. The double-wishbone hydraulic suspension is adjustable for ride height (automatically or manually by the driver) between 80 and 160 mm (3.1 to 6.3 in). The drive modes are sport-dynamic, rain-snow, city-comfort, and high boost.
The car is 4791 mm (188.6 in) long, 1935 mm (76.2 in) wide, 993 to 910 mm (39.1 to 35.8 in) tall depending on adjustable ride height setting, on a 2750-mm (108.3-in) wheelbase. At its highest suspension setting, Aspark says the striking Owl is probably the lowest road-legal electric hypercar in the world. Luggage capacity is 50 L (1.8 ft³) in a 850 x 530 x 130 mm (33.5 x 20.9 x 5.1 in) space.
Differences between the production version and the original concept shown at the 2017 Frankfurt Motor Show are significant. Changes were made to improve style, reach aggressive performance targets, and meet requirements of worldwide homologation.
Two external mirrors with cameras were added, not only ensuring greater safety but also creating elements to direct airflow to improve vehicle performance. The side glass is more functional for the driver, thanks to modifications of the window cutline inspired by those for the Lamborghini Countach and McLaren Senna.
The car features active aerodynamics in the form of a moveable rear wing. The spoiler can be deployed manually but is designed to operate automatically, raising at 150 km/h (93 mph) to increase downforce to aid car stability at high speed and cornering performance. It stores automatically at 100 km/h (62 mph).
Going and stopping
Aspark claims the car has the most powerful four electric motors ever made, together producing 1480 kW and overall torque of around 2000 N·m (1475 lb·ft), courtesy of Integral Powertrain. That makes the Owl almost three times more powerful than Formula E and two times more powerful than Formula 1 cars. The rotation of the PMSMs (permanent magnet synchronous motors) should be the fastest in the world at 15,000 rpm. The powertrain is supported by inverters from Cascadia Motion and a torque vectoring transmission from 3MO.
Acceleration and performance numbers, with road-legal tires and a one-foot rollout, include a 0-60 mph (0-97 km/h) in 1.69 s and 0-300 km/h (186 mph) in 10.6 s. The car’s maximum speed is 400 km/h (249 mph) and the driving range is 450 km (280 mi), according to NEDC measurements.
The shape of the centrally mounted lithium-ion battery pack integrated into the Owl’s chassis is said to help increase occupant visibility and enable the low 99-cm vehicle height. The 64-kW·h battery pack operates at a maximum of 800 V dc and has a total power of 1300 kW. It can be charged within 80 min with a 44-kW system. The company says the pack has successfully passed a long series of safety tests for fire resistance, crush, over-charge, and over-discharge protection.
One of the strongest aspects of the pack is said to be its battery monitoring system, which continuously monitors the level of each cell and protects the battery from over-charge, over-discharge, and overheating—the safety device keeping automatic control.
There is no mention of regen braking, but the conventional brakes feature front and rear carbon-ceramic discs, with 10-piston front and 4-piston rear brake calipers. The wheels and tires are optimized for the fastest acceleration. Tires are 265/35 ZR20 front and 325/30 ZR21 rear, in either Michelin Pilot Sport CUP2-R or Pirelli XL P Zero form. Wheels in front are 9.5 × 20 in and in the rear 11.5 × 21 in.
Only 50 units
The production version of the Owl is limited to only 50 cars worldwide. Being fully customizable, each one will be unique.
Equipment includes a rear CMS (camera mirror system), the “latest” phone connectivity technology, four interior display screens, “super luxury” interior ambient lighting, customizable dashboard colors for each drive mode, and “cockpit style” ceiling switches.
Production is in Turin, Italy, in collaboration with Manifattura Automobili Torino, with the full support of Aspark engineering centers around the world. Other suppliers are Sparco, Bosch, Denso, Isoclima, Danecca, ARS Tech, Epics Group, Amphenol, Ikeya Formula, and GKN.
“By accelerating the final stage of the Owl project in Italy and establishing a new legal subsidiary in Switzerland (Aspark Promotion AG) dedicated to the hypercar business, Aspark reinforces its international presence outside Japan,” said Badalbayli. “We are not only delivering premium-level hypercars to our customers, but we also take full responsibility for after-sales, the right level of warranty, and full product liability.”
The base version starts at €2,900,000.
