Reading-based automotive specialist
GTO Engineering has revealed that it is striving to create a sub-1,000kg, lightweight, driver-focused sports car, via 3-D renderings, first look at the all-new Squalo carbon-fibre monocoque, created in conjunction with its latest technical partner,
Dexet Technologies. The partnership, which began in Q3 2021, has seen the latter — a leading British composite design and engineering consultancy — apply ‘decades’ worth of Formula One and low-volume supercar production expertise’ to an all-new challenge: the sub-1,000kg Squalo.
The carbon-fibre monocoque chassis features construction technology seen so far in only ‘the rarest of hypercars’. The monocoque is designed to be manufactured in three parts for accessibility and maintenance: the forward section of the chassis contains the engine and transmission; the middle section houses Squalo’s occupants, a brand new individually specified interior, and the fuel cell; while the rear subsection supports the rear suspension and power-distributing differential. The three sections are bolted together to form a rigid structure.
Unlike GTO Engineering’s series of Revival cars, which in part use a donor vehicle for registration and sit on a period steel tube chassis, Squalo will be all-new and registered as a brand-new vehicle. As such, its team has been ‘pushing technology and engineering to the limit’ as it approaches the vital testing of the monocoque and showing it to media and customers alike.
Francesco Aglietti, Dexet Technologies’ founder and CEO, said: “The challenge of designing and developing this chassis using such cutting-edge composite construction has been a real privilege, and it is incredibly exciting to be a part of such a distinguished project. GTO Engineering has allowed us to put our Formula One and composite-engineering experience to use and has trusted us with this key structural element with the primary focus, of course, being to achieve the coveted sub-1,000kg kerb weight of Squalo. We are thrilled to finally see these plans coming to light by way of technical drawings and are looking forward to taking the next steps with the team at GTO Engineering.”
Both GTO Engineering and Dexet Technologies are currently working to achieve the next milestones. ‘Defining and freezing’ the ergonomics of the interior using the recently revealed 3-D printed Squalo buck is the next immediate step and will allow Dexet to complete the design of the central carbon fibre tub. Once all the structural parameters are set, Dexet will analyse the full chassis and bodywork using finite element analysis and computational fluid dynamics software.