2012 awaits the entry of the newest offering from Shelby Super Cars (SSC), the 2012 SSC Tuatara. This car is aimed to unseating the Bugatti Veyron SS as the fastest car in the world. Jerod Shelby, founder and CEO of SSC, unveiled the Tuatara in the presence of a few people from the industry. Jerod Shelby is not related to Carroll Shelby, the legend behind all those muscle cars. The name of this supercar is derived from the Maori language that describes a resident reptile from New Zealand, Tuatara, means “peaks at the back.”
Shelby and his team of 16 engineers have put their skills together to produce a high performance production vehicle in the SSC Tuatara by highlighting this rear wheel drive, 1,350 horsepower speedster. SSC produced the Ultimate Aero that was able to topple the record established by the Bugatti Veyron. In 2007, the Ultimate Aero TT had a run of 256 mph on a four mile stretch of a Texas carriageway. The Volkswagen owned Bugatti, not to be denied, came back with the Veyron SS (Super Sport) and clocked a record 267 mph.
With the Tuatara, Shelby SuperCars intends to reclaim that distinction of being the fastest car in the world, by aiming for a record setting 275 mph.
Performance
As for the engine, Jerod Shelby’s team of engineers has come up with a rear wheel drive, quad cam (four valves per cylinder OHC), twin turbo V8 engine. This 7 Liter engine produces 1350 HP and revs up to 9000 rpm.
Braking is aided by traction control, ABS with servo assistance, and the use of carbon ceramic brakes by Brembo. It comes in at 2646 lbs (1200 kgs) curb weight, which puts it at 1407 lbs(638 kgs) lighter than the Veyron. Little, if any, change has been done on the suspension in which SSC keeps the coil over setup intact along with the triple plate carbon clutch mechanism.
Expectations are high on this new SSC Tuatara, with all those horses; zero to sixty mph should come in under 2.8 seconds. It has been claimed that its top speed will be at 275 mph, hang on to your seats for the final results.