It took SSC more than a decade to take the Tuatara from concept to production, but the American-made hypercar is finally here, with the first example of the limited 100-unit production run presented at the 2020 Philadelphia Auto Show.
Designed by Jason Castriota, whose previous work included the Ferrari 599, Maserati GranTurismo, Pininfarina Rolls-Royce Hyperion and other notable projects, it boasts a 0.279 drag coefficient, an aerospace carbon fiber skin and a monocoque chassis with hypercar looks to match.
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Made from carbon fiber, the cockpit offers seating for two, separated by a tall center console, and a flat-bottom and -top steering wheel. The human-machine interface (HMI) provides the driver with crucial information and the portrait-oriented touchscreen infotainment system lets them access the climate control, entertainment, tire pressure and other functions. In spite of the low-slung profile, SSC says that the Tuatara can sit occupants as tall as 6’5” (1.95 m) even with a racing helmet on.
The Sport and Track modes seamlessly adjust the ground clearance of the hypercar and the geometry of the suspension, while the Front Lift Mode lifts up the nose by an extra 1.6 in (40 mm) so that it can easily go over speed bumps.
Power comes from a flat-plane crank 5.9-liter twin-turbo V8 with an advanced intake that you can read all about it here. Provided that you fill the fuel tank with E85, you will have an impressive 1,750 horsepower available at your disposal, whereas running on 91 octane fuel will unleash 1,350 hp. In Track mode, gear-shifting takes under 100 milliseconds and the company believes that it can break the 300 mph (483 km/h) barrier, so it could eventually challenge the 304.77 mph (490.484 km/h) record set by Bugatti last year.
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