The SandRacer 500GT Off-Road Supercar

SandRacer 500GT

The terms “supercar” and “off-road” seem to be poles apart. However, Dubai’s Zarooq Motors has just redefined supercars by including an off-road dimension with the all-new SandRacer 500GT. This car has all the features that go with the luxury and speed of a supercar, but it has some impressive all-terrain capabilities as well, making it unique and the first in its class.

More about the Car

The new car isn’t a technological overload. It is more of a “back to basics” car, using all existing technology and hardware that was already in place for supercar manufacturing but with the addition of rugged all-terrain features.

Beneath and Within

Below the car, the suspension rests on a steel tube racing chassis frame. The Intrax racing shock absorbers extend up to one-and-a-half feet to meet the challenge of extreme desert surfaces. The 6.2-liter V8 engine packs a powerful punch with a whopping 525 hp which is what puts it in the supercar category. The addition of a longitudinal five-speed racing transaxle by Weddle Industries compliments the powerful engine rather nicely. With all those goodies packed beneath the bonnet despite its rugged looks, the SandRacer is expected deliver 0 to 60 mph in just below four seconds, with a top speed of 143 mph.

Another notable feature is the luxuriant leather-clad cabin, produced in collaboration with Mansory, a group renowned for their engineering solutions on luxury cars. According to Christian Verstappen from Mansory, they have used the same approach for designing vehicles from Rolls Royce, and Lamborghini on the SandRacer 500GT. Zarooq Motors has also joined hands with Spanish Grand Prix specialists Campos Racing for this venture.

SandRacer 500GT Off-Road Supercar

The Company’s Take

According to Zarooq co-founder Lannis Mardell, although the company received inputs from international sources, the fundamental DNA of the car is UAE all the way. He makes this statement with a sense of “Arabic national pride,” as he calls it because a majority of Zarooq’s clients are local princes from the Gulf region.

However, with the SandRacer 500GT, Mardell adds with pride, they have received queries from interested parties from all parts of the globe like Kenya, Russia and Japan and some European countries. This fact puts the SandRacer project on a global level, he feels, which can only do a lot of good for the company regarding sales and brand value addition.

Mardell goes on to add that in the UAE, there are many supercar enthusiasts. However, they also enjoy off-road experiences as well. So, with the SandRacer, you get a kind of three-in-one car we can use for track racing, off-road driving or just to cruise around on city streets.

Price and Availability

The SandRacer 500GT comes with a respectable price tag of $450,000 with the first ones expected to be available in the market by the end of the year but will Zarooq will release it to the US market only in 2018. However, if you have your sights on getting one of these, you would need to book well in advance, as Zarooq plans to produce just 35 SandRacers.