The Lykan Hypersport is a car that would probably feel more at home in the Grand Theft Auto universe than the world it actually exists in. But what's the real story behind one of if not the most expensive car at its launch of all time? Is it worth a price tag that is rarely seen outside of the NASDAQ or New York City real estate?
If for no other reason than to laugh at its absurd price tag, let's take a deep dive into a 3.4 million dollar hypercar that's one of the most head-scratching ideas we've ever seen get off the drawing board.
A Hypercar For Oil Tycoons And Hedge Fund Managers
It wasn't designed to be the pinnacle of high technology, nor was it made for traveling in abject luxury and comfort. No, the Hypersport's only purpose was to be a nice little plaything for flexing rappers, ultra-wealthy New York stock traders, far east oil tycoons, and other people with more money than functioning brain cells. Let's look at where Lykan chooses to show off its $3.4 million dollar price tag.
Diamond Encrusted Head Lamps
Take a look at the headlamp arrangement. Most nice looking modern cars use a blend of LED lighting and smooth, sculpted body lines to make the headlamps an integral part of the car's appeal.
That said, the choice to add genuine diamonds to the Lykan Hypersport's front lights serves no other purpose than to wow people with your financial clout.
Putting diamonds in ultra-high-end cars is nothing new, but it's been done far more subtlety in cars that are a decade older. Not only would a fifteen-year-old Bugatti Veyron gap the Lykan at the drag strip, but the choice to accent the car's interior with optional fine gemstones rather than the exterior is also considerably more reserved for a car with over 1,000 horsepower.
You won't need a mobile security detail to make sure someone doesn't smash your headlamps and steal the diamonds with a Veyron either.
A Six-Cylinder Engine? You Must Be Joking.
It's customary for any halo hypercar to come with an engine so special it justifies the astronomical price tag. The Devel Sixteens quad-turbo 16 Cylinder engine immediately comes to mind. Not so with the Lykan Hypersport. Sure, the twin-turbocharged 3.7 liter flat-six engine makes a healthy 700 plus horsepower and is made in house by Ruf, legendary tuners of Porsches. Ruf is a wonderful tuning company, but their engines are most happily at home sitting in the rear of a 911 modified up to its eyeballs, not a 3.4 million dollar hypercar.
700 horsepower may have sounded like a lot in 2013. But just two years later, the Dodge Challenger Hellcat was released with just as much power. We're not making this up, the Challenger Hellcat was one 40th the price of the Lykan. All while at least to our eyes being a lot uglier than the Challenger.
Zero to 60 is done in a claimed 2.8 seconds with a top speed of 245 miles an hour. Though no independent tests have verified this. Seeing as the car is no longer in production as 0f 2019, we doubt those numbers will ever be verified.
A Shoddy Interior? Now That's The Final Straw
We lament Cadillac's infotainment systems and interiors for using cheap, shiny plastics on their touchpoint surfaces. That was barely passable at the $60 thousand dollar price point. So how does that sound on a $3.4 Million dollar hypercar? Only this time, it's throughout the entire cabin. Yeah, not impressive to say the least.
To give credit to Cadillac, they do make some of the most comfortable seats, we only wish that Lykan had contracted them to make comfy seats for them. Instead, you get very generic looking bucket seats, paired with a heads up display and a central infotainment Bluetooth touch screen. Really the bare minimum of what's acceptable on a modern car. But if one thing's obvious, this is a car to have ogled at from the outside instead of being driven in the first place.
How Many Legitimately Good Supercars Can You Have For $3.4 Mill?
We're all petrolheads at the end of the day, and we hate to have been even remotely negative to any car manufacturer. We respect the hard work, blood, sweat, and tears designing and building cars require.
Our goal is to show off the most wonderful and story-worthy cars from the 140-year history of the automobile. But unless you're ultra-wealthy, and we mean in the top 0.1 percent of the entire world wealth wise, the Hypersport is just an awful investment at its price point.
Just in case you needed just a bit more proof that the Hypersport is an unwise investment in the year 2021? ponder this for one moment.
For the same money, you could have seven Lamborghini Aventadors, three Mclaren P1s, or a Florida beach house with an entire car dealership full of C8 Chevy Corvettes to supplement your investment for the same amount of money. We rest our case.
So as a car then, the 3.4 million dollar Lykan Hypersport doesn't make a whole lot of sense. But as a 3.4 million dollar piece of artwork that doesn't have to move, it's sure to wow your guests every time they come over. That justifies its existence if nothing else.
Sources: W Motorsports, Autoemu.com