$3.4 Million Supercar Concept to Debut at Qatar Auto Show

VALBONNE, France – Ferrari, Lamborghini, McLaren, Pagani and other makers of supercars have a new challenger coming their way in the Middle East’s ultra-luxury-car market.

W Motors will unveil a design concept of its upcoming supercar at the Qatar auto show, which opens to the public tomorrow in Doha.

Announced in Beirut last December by the young Lebanese entrepreneur and designer Ralph Debbas, chairman and CEO of W Motors, the first supercar from Arabia is called the LykanHypersport.

The car is expected to make a strong impression, with its sharp lines and edginess similar to that of the Lamborghini Aventador. The price is set at QAR12.4 million ($3.4 million).

The LykanHypersport project has been on Debbas’ mind since he was a student at the Coventry University School of Art and Design, where he earned a degree in automotive design.

In Qatar, W Motors will exhibit a full-scale model of the supercar, built with lightweight carbon fiber and composite materials and executed with the help of several coach-building specialists led by Magna Steyr Torino, with the cooperation of Alfredo Stola of Studiotorino.

The model has been built to body engineering in order to ensure a swift transition from the prototype phase to a production series of only seven units.

The extreme 2-seat coupe features diamond-encrusted light-emitting-diode lighting, a gold-plated hood and a holographic display on the windshield, the auto maker says.

The LykanHypersport will be powered by a mid-mounted flat-6 (boxer) Iturbi engine provided by German specialist RUF Automobile. Sources say the engine delivers 750 hp and 738 lb.-ft. (1,000 Nm) of torque, allowing the car to accelerate from 0-62 mph (100 km/h) in 2.8 seconds and reach a top speed of 242 mph (390 km/h).

However, those figures represent computer estimates as no prototype has been tested yet. The LykanHypersport’s weight, tire maker and size are not available at this time, and the interior is only in the design phase.

No decision has been announced yet as to whether the supercar will be built in Torino or Dubai, where W Motors is setting up its headquarters.