Spyker Cars is a Dutch sports car marque. The modern Spyker Cars holds the legal rights to the brand name. The company’s motto is “Nulla tenaci invia est via”, which is Latin for “For the tenacious, no road is impassable”. The marque’s logo displays the rotary engine of an airplane, a reference to the historic Spyker company which manufactured not only automobiles but also aircraft.
In an attempt to save Spyker from bankruptcy, Swedish Automobile in September 2011, announced the immediate sale of Spyker to American private equity and hedge fund North Street Capital for €32 million (US$41 million). On December 18, 2014, Spyker confirmed that it deliberately had gone bankrupt, hoping to restructure its finances and getting back on its feet. However, the bankruptcy declaration was reverted early 2015 and the company announced to continue with the production of sports cars.
Established
1952
Headquarters
Zeewolde, Netherlands
History
The reborn company was founded by Victor Muller and Maarten de Bruijn in 1999, and since 2000, Spyker has been building exclusive sports cars like the C8 Spyder and the C8 Laviolette (with its elegant glass roof). Spyker’s history of producing aero engines is reflected in details in these new cars as well as in the logo. Before building the C8, de Bruijn had been building small numbers of the Spyker Silvestris. That in many ways foreshadows Spyker’s later cars. The C8 Laviolette and C8 Spyder have a 4172 cc Audi V8 engine delivering 400 bhp (298 kW; 406 PS), acceleration 0–60 mph in 4.5 seconds and a top speed of 300 km/h (190 mph). On July 14, 2005, it was announced that the C8 was approved for sale on the United States market.
Between 2002 and 2006, Spyker built the C8 Double 12 S. That was available from the factory with 5 different levels of performance called Stage I (400 h.p.) through Stage V (620 h.p.), depending on the customer’s need for performance. Between 2003 and 2007, Spyker built the C8 Spyder T, with the Twin turbo system being developed in conjunction with Cosworth in England. These engines were capable of 525 h.p. and 0–60 mph acceleration times of 4.0 seconds.
More Information
In 2005, the head designer and founder, Maarten de Bruijn, left the company. And founded Silvestris Aquamotive which builds aluminum space frame speed boats. Also, in 2006, Spyker built the C12 La Turbie with an V12 engine capable of 500 horsepower and acceleration from 0–60 mph in less than 4 seconds. Also, in September 2006, Spyker bought out the Midland F1 team. The team competed in the final 3 races of the 2006 season as Spyker MF1. In the 2007, the team competed as Spyker F1 using engines supplied by Ferrari.
Driver Adrian Sutil was paired with Christijan Albers until the European Grand Prix where the latter was replaced by reserve driver Markus Winkelhock the team then signed Sakon Yamamoto to fill in the slot for the rest of the year. The team itself had minimal success, suffering from multiple retirements (including double retirements in Malaysia, Canada and Brazil) before Sutil scored the team’s first and only point in Japan. At the end of the season, the team was sold to a consortium named “Orange India” led by Vijay Mallya and was subsequently renamed as Force India.
Models:
Spyker C8:
The C8 Spyder was the original base model with an Audi 4.2 litre V8 engine. Since the start of its production in 2000, twelve different variants have been sold. A long wheelbase version was presented at the 2008 Geneva Motor Show, called the C8 Aileron. A year later, a convertible version was presented. So, horsepower ranges from 400 for the original C8 Spyder to 620 for the C8 Double 12S. The car either comes with a 6 speed manual Getrag or a 6 speed ZFautomatic transmission. As with previous Spyker models, the car has typical aviation inspired design elements such as NACA styled air-inlets.
Spyker C12 Zagato:On March 6, 2007, Spyker announced the C12 Zagato at the Salon International de l’Auto in Geneva. The Milanese design house Zagato co-designed the model. The C12 Zagato featured all-new design elements inspired by Formula 1. Though the exterior styling is somewhat of a departure from the C8, retained features include. Scissor doors, interior styling, and general aviation theme. Also, the C12 Zagato is powered by a 6.0 L W12 engine sourced from VW Group (the same engine as featured in the Audi A8 and Volkswagen Phaeton).
Spyker Cars:
