POLISH ROAD TRIP
08/08/16 – The blue Arrinera Hussarya GT prototype, the same one which distinguished itself as the first Polish car to ever tackle the famous hillclimb at the 2016 Goodwood Festival of Speed, visited Poland during a road tour which consisted of several photo locations in beautiful Polish cities. The car, which is a GT4 racer with a tubular frame, carbon fiber body, V8 engine and a sequential Hewland gearbox, looked its best against the backdrop of various spots in Szczecin, Wroclaw and Warsaw.
In Szczecin the Hussarya GT visited the cobblestone-paved terraces overlooking the Odra river, with their flowing corners and monumental buildings atop the hill providing an unusual venue for a race car photoshoot, then the car appeared at a park in Szczecin which boasts Poland’s largest population of plane trees. It looked positively awesome in the natural chiaroscuro environment. Then the Arrinera appeared in front of the Philharmonic in Szczecin, which in 2015 received the Mies van der Rohe prixe for the most beautiful building in Europe. Afterwards the car was transported to a secret location deep in Szczecin’s harbor, and later to the newly rebuilt bank of the river, remodeled for the Tall Ships Races.
In Wroclaw our car caused a considerable stir in the fabulous Old Town Square when we parked it in front of the 13th century town hall, and was constantly besieged by crowds of people, both Polish and foreign, anxious to take pictures of the sleek racer transplanted to the centre of the town which in 2016 is the European Culture Capital.
Finally, in Warsaw, the historical heritage evident in the Arrinera bloodline was emphasized by the photoshoot in Pilsudski Square, named after our political leader who was instrumental in bringing Poland back to the map of Europe in 1918. The square, which until World War II was dominated by the Saski Palace, is now a parade ground surrounding the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, which is the only part of the original palace that has survived. The photoshoot ended with our car being driven around the square and around the imposing National Opera House which boasts the largest theater stage in Europe. The prototype returned to the UK for further testing and development.
THE POLES ARE BACK
27/06/16 – The Arrinera Hussarya GT took part in the Michelin Supercar Run, a traditional component of the Goodwood Festival of Speed, among the world’s most exciting cars contesting the famous hillclimb twice a day.
In 1940, during the Battle of Britain, the RAF fighter force faced the onslaught of the Luftwaffe. Among those who fought bravely to repel the invaders were two Polish fighter squadrons, 302 and 303, staffed by experienced veterans of the 1939 campaign in Poland and the defence of France earlier in 1940. The Poles quickly learned how to best use Hawker Hurricanes to their advantage, and contributed greatly to the success of Winston Churchill’s “The Few”, In November, 1940, 302 Sq. (Polish) was transferred to RAF Westhampnett, which is now known as… Goodwood Aerodrome.
The Poles are back at Goodwood. This time their weapon is a prototype of the Arrinera Hussarya GT supercar, the first Polish car to ever spin its tyres on the famous Goodwood Hillclimb tarmac. The car has a carbon fiber body wrapped around a tubular spaceframe/rollcage, meticulously built from British BS4 T45 seamless steel tubing used in the structures of the Hurricanes and Spitfires flown during WWII by Polish pilots. The same type of steel is extremely popular in the motorsport community. The efficient aerodynamics of the body have been designed by Professor Janusz Piechna of Warsaw Technical University and honed further in the MIRA wind tunnel in the UK.
The current car, built to FIA GT spec, is powered by a 6.2 liter V8 engine, developing between 420 and 650 bhp, depending on its state of tune. The ample torque is delivered to the rear wheels via a Hewland LLS sequential gearbox with paddle shift actuation and a limited-slip differential. The suspension is a bespoke design using pushrods and Öhlins 4-way adjustable dampers. Braking is handled by a quartet of 380 mm discs with Alcon 6-pot monobloc calipers, aided by a racing Bosch ABS system.
The exterior of the Arrinera Hussarya GT wears a light-blue colour for Goodwood, reminiscent of the hue of the photo-reconnaissance Spitfires, which, unarmed, flew higher and faster than regular variants of Reginald Mitchell’s magnificent creation.
The Arrinera Hussarya GT race car, which successfully showed its graceful lines and its speed during the Festival of Speed weekend, will be followed in the fourth quarter of 2017 by a road-legal trackday version and later by the roadgoing Arrinera Hussarya 33. The Hussarya range of sports cars is named after a legendary type of Polish cavalry which distinguished itself by winning battles at Kircholm in 1605 and at Vienna in 1683. The Hussarya units, armed with lances, long straight swords and special Polish curved sabers, were invincible for over 100 years. They were renowned for the tall wings attached to their body armor, and for the fact that they were able to be victorious against overwhelming odds.
The Polish fighting spirit is symbolized on the Arrinera by white and red hussarya pennants, and by the white and red checkerboard insignia of the Polish Air Force, utilized since 1920.