DC Design’s first major product, the Avanti, labelled as the country’s first sports car is, after a delay, getting launched on 15th of April 2015 as confirmed by the company dealerships. Amidst all this delay, there has been a big change, it appears! We have noticed deviation in specs from what was shared with the media at the Auto Expo 2014 and the ones listed at the official website now.
Though, there has been no confirmation on this from DC, but Wikipedia also says that DC Avanti, due to cost reasons, will now come equipped with a Renault-sourced 2.0 liter turbocharged petrol engine instead of the Ford’s 2.0L EcoBoost it was earlier scheduled to get.
The new Renault engine produces the same 250 bhp of maximum power at 5,500 rpm but a reduced 340 Nm of peak torque in the range of 2,750 rpm to 5,000 rpm. The six speed manual transmission helps the car propel to a 100 kmph in 6 second with a top whack of 200 kmph (electronically restricted). According to Auto Expo specs (pictured below), Avanti produced 360 Nm of torque and had a top speed of 180kmph.
The twin seater, mid engined, rear wheel drive car looks surprisingly low slung but still manages to boast of an impressive ground clearance of 170 mm.
In terms of safety, Avanti comes with ABS, EBD, three point seat belts with pre-tensioners, a roll cage and disc brakes on all 4 wheels. Surprisingly, there are no airbags on offer! Avanti also gets a carbon fibre body, all LED lighting and Pirelli tyres. We do not know why, but the official website lists bigger dimensions (as compared to Auto Expo) for the production car. Available in four colours – namely Black, White, Silver and Red, the car misses out on the lively Green model that was showcased at the Expo.
Avanti appears to have improved in the past one year with a new engine. The company aims to keep the Avanti selling at 2,000 units per annum and the word is that the first batch has already been sold out.
We really expect DC to offer Avanti as a quality product and let this be the first showcase of India’s upcoming sportscar-making capabilities!
