Brabham BT62 Road Car Already In The Works

Hot on the heels of introducing its very first model, the track-only BT62, Brabham Automotive is already eager to talk about what the future has in tow for the newly founded company. In an interview with Australia’s Motoring, founder and managing director, David Brabham, was asked whether there are any plans for an endurance racer to tackle the grueling Le Mans and if that would be followed by a road-legal car. His response was:

“Yeah, that might be a good assumption.”

The important disclosure was made last evening during the BT62’s unveiling at a special event organized in London. He specified the track-only machine and its road-legal counterpart will be offered in both left- and right-hand-drive configurations, with production set to take place in Australia. A former racecar driver and son of Sir Jack, Brabham mentioned people have already lined up to buy the racer, with at least five of the total 70 vehicles planned for production to remain in Australia.

Unsurprisingly, technical specifications concerning the road car were not released during the official premiere of the race-spec BT62. However, we can safely assume it will be heavier than its featherweight sibling, which tips the scales at a remarkably low 972 kilograms (2,143 pounds).

As for power, it could use the same naturally aspirated 5.4-liter V8 engine, though it might not be able to match the full 700 horsepower (522 kilowatts) and 492 pound-feet (667 Newton-meters) of torque of the racer. Of course, this is just an assumption at this point, but we do know for sure that the engine started out in life from a supplier before receiving a plethora of bespoke parts for the BT62.

For those wondering why they haven’t slapped on a pair of turbochargers, engineering boss Paul Birch argued they prioritized response, feel, and durability during development. Needless to say, forced induction would have also taken its toll on the car’s weight. The V8 is hooked up to a six-speed sequential transmission developed by Hollinger Engineering (from Victoria, Australia) with steering wheel-mounted paddles.

Regarding when the road car will be out, your guess is as good as ours, but at least we know that it’s coming.

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