Red Bull RB17 almost ready for track days

Share

Share

Share

Share

Email

Comments

That’s right, Red Bull doesn’t want to limit itself to energy drinks and dangerous stunts. The company is spreading its wings to include hypercars, and the first one is this RB17. The prototype recently made its debut at the 2026 Goodwood Festival of Speed, and it seems almost ready to join the garages of VIP collectors. Speaking of which, Red Bull is building only 50 of these, with each reportedly carrying a price tag of somewhere between £5 and £6 million.

The RB17 was developed by Red Bull Advanced Technologies (RBAT), the technology and engineering arm of the Red Bull Racing F1 team. Why does it look a lot like the Aston Martin Valkyrie, you ask? Well, that’s an interesting story. In case you forgot, the Valkyrie was developed in association with RBAT, and the designer of both of these cars is Adrian Newey, the fella now serving as the Team Principal & co-owner of the Aston Martin F1 team. He was with Red Bull Racing for nearly two decades. If you think about it, the Valkyrie looks so extreme because of the involvement of Red Bull.

Of course, the powerplant comes from Cosworth, but it’s not a V12. It’s a 746 kW (1,014 metric hp/1,000 bhp) 4.5L naturally-aspirated V10, redlining at 15,000 rpm. A 149 kW (203 metric hp) electric motor is integrated with a 6-speed sequential transmission. To cut down weight, the e-motor will also take care of reversing the vehicle. The combined power output is around 895 kW (1,217 metric hp/1,200 bhp). Thanks to extensive usage of carbon fibre, including the gearbox housing, weight is claimed to be under 900 kg (1,984 lbs), resulting in a power-to-weight ratio of about 1.3 hp/kg.

The RB17 will undergo more testing before production commences, but as mentioned, only 50 units will be built, with owners joining a programme of track events at some of the greatest circuits in the world.