DC Design Avanti Rolls Up in New Delhi

12 years, 11 months ago - 6 January 2012, Autoblog
DC Design Avanti Rolls Up in New Delhi
DC Design, an Indian firm better known for creating one-off customized vehicles based on anything from the Tata Nano to Rolls-Royce coupes, has officially pulled the covers off its first production supercar at the New Delhi Auto Expo.

Called the Avanti, we can't help but wonder what esteemed designer Raymond Loewy might think of this creation.

We're not going to call this Audi-R8-meets-duckbill-platypus attractive, though we do spot design themes borrowed from the likes of Ferrari and Lotus (and there's probably a bit of Bertone Mantide in there, too). Somehow it manages to be both somewhat derivative and distinctive at the same time, with proportions unlike that of most supercars from Europe.

Regardless of its styling, we can get behind the idea of a low-cost supercar – its expected 30 lakh rupees in India translates to about Rs 1,65 Million at current exchange rates – powered by small-displacement engines relying on turbocharging to produce adequate power. The initial engine will be sourced from Ford, an EcoBoost 2.0 liter putting out 265 horsepower, mated to a six-speed dual-clutch transmission, so perhaps calling this a "supercar" is overstating its case.

Later, a version of the machine will be offered with a Honda-sourced turbocharged V6 producing something around 400 horsepower. The base Ford engine will reportedly be sufficient to hit 100 km/h in under seven seconds and the turbo V6 will surely be quicker. DC Design hopes to build about 200 units in 2013 and plans to ramp up to a few thousand in the coming years.