It’s radical. It’s lightweight. It doesn’t have a hood, or doors, or a windscreen. (Okay, there’s a transparent wind deflector. A big whopping 70-milimeter’s worth.) You pronounce it “crossbow,” but it’s spelled “X-Bow” and it’s the radical, new, two-passenger sports car from Austria-based motorcycle manufacturer KTM. And frankly, this street-legal, track-ready baby is hot, hot, hot.
KTM’s website sums up the X-Bow mystique neatly. This is a car “oriented towards sporty drivers who seek a purist’s experience.” There’s no other sports car out there prepared to deliver the “immediacy that can only by felt when riding a motorcycle.” The first 100 are sold out. There are orders for 600 more after that, and plans to only build 1,000 in 2008. From the looks of things, KTM won’t have any problem moving that final 400. Even with a price tag of $50,000 USD.
Designed in partnership with Kiska Design, KRM engineered the X-Bow with the renowned Italian open-wheel racing car manufacturer, Dallara. In fact, Dallara will build the first 100, an exclusive series long since sold out and destined to bear collector plaques with sequential numbering. After the special lot, production will be switched to Magna Steyr in Graz, Austria.
The X-Bow has a body weight of 1,598 lbs. with the six-speed manual transmission; 1,644 with the Audi S Tronic dual-clutch gearbox. The carbon fiber monocoque has integrated crash protection and there’s an F1-style crashbox. Under the hood look for a 220 hp, two-liter, four-cylinder TFSI Audi engine with options for 260 and 300 hp versions. (You won’t find the Audi logo anywhere on this machine, though. Audi wanted airbags and KTM wouldn’t go for it.) Brakes by Brembo. The gasoline fuel tank holds 9.2 gallons. Acceleration is a heart throbbing zero to 62 mph in 3.9 seconds.
So what’s the downside? When the X-Bow starts shipping in February 2008, it’s European only. The vehicle meets the European Union road service guidelines in Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Great Britain, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Austria, and Spain. Switzerland and the rest of the EU should come onboard with approval during the year, but if you’re outside one of the listed countries, your new car dealer may not have the X-Bow because it is a race car all the way, legal on the track only.
Destined to be a big hit in Britain with its thriving car culture, the X-Bow joins the ranks of the Ariel, Lotus, Nobel, and Radical as a car ready for the racetrack, but fit for the hands of weekend speed demons. Already a crowd favorite when it debuted at the Geneva Motor Show, the X-Bow should be a resounding success for KTM as the company’s first-ever car design — and hopefully, not its last.
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