Italian coachbuilder and design house Icona, a company founded in 2010 but with links to the auto industry that date back much further in time, has revealed the first image of a new V-12 supercar concept it plans to unveil at next month’s 2013 Shanghai Auto Show. The new supercar, which is called the Vulcano, is a truly international project, with development taking place in multiple countries.
Though Icona has offices in Turin, Italy, the company also has a large studio in the bustling city of Shanghai, where much of the Vulcano was designed. The car itself is being assembled by coachbuilders in Italy. The man responsible for its styling is French designer Samuel Chuffart, who has completed stints at Nissan, Jaguar Land Rover and Stile Bertone. Responsible for its powertrain, meanwhile, is none other than Italian engineer Claudio Lombardi.
Lombardi is a successful motorsport engineer who oversaw many of Lancia’s World Rally Championship victories during the 1980s as well as Ferrari’s Formula One powertrain development during the 1990s. More recently he was involved with Aprilia’s Superbike campaign of 2010, and during the past two years he has been developing new electrified powertrain concepts.
Both of these talents, plus the rest of the crew at Icona, have come together to build the new Vulcano, which its creators tell us is a one-off supercar concept built to showcase the talents of the firm.
Icona Fuselage concept, 2011 Shanghai Auto Show
From what we can see in this initial teaser, the design looks impressive. The lines are an evolution of those found on Icona’s previous concept, the Fuselage electric GT, unveiled in Shanghai two years ago, and they are said to draw inspiration from classics such as the Aston Martin DB4 GT Zagato and Ferrari 288 GTO, which were notable for combining raw power with a beautiful body.
Speaking of raw power, the Vulcano picks up a V-12 engine, which is mounted up front and rated at 900 horsepower. Initial performance estimates are a 0-124 mph time of less than 10 seconds and a top speed of around 217 mph.
Stay tuned for the reveal of the Icona Vulcano as we approach the 2013 Shanghai Auto Show’s April 19 opening press day.
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