Spyder RS

   The Holmes Spyder RS is a stunning tribute to the extremely successful Porsche Spyder 550 which was campaigned throughout the 1950's.  This beautiful replica retains the original low weight good balance concept whilst taking advantage of all the technological advances made since the Porsche 550 Spyder ceased production.

    The Holmes Spyder RS has been designed purely as a road legal racing car and therefore complies with the same safety and emissions legislation that governs the all new low volume production sports cars. 
                        
 

  The Holmes Spyder RS although still in the early stages of development is already proving itself to be a phenomenal motor car.  Some of this early success can be put down to the excellent power to weight ratio which makes the car fast and responsive but this alone does not ensure a good car.  There are many low volume specialist trackday and performance road cars available today with good power to weight ratio, they look great on paper but in reality many can be quite unpredictable machines even in the hands of the most skilled driver.
  Holmes Motor company have spent a lot of time and money taking care to make this car potentially the best all round retro racer the market has seen.  Attention to detail and some ingenuity throughout the design and development stages has resulted in exceptional torsional rigidity in the chassis/body unit.  This high strength gives an excellent basis for mounting the computer designed double wishbone suspension ensuring none of the geometry will change due to chassis flex.  Couple all this with perfect 50/50 weight distribution with the driver seated and unique steering system you will see how the Holmes Spyder RS really harnesses 350bhp/ton power to weight ratio advantage.    

  Please check back soon for details of the British release date.

Spyder RS technical specification
 

Specification quoted is standard to the Spyder RS upgrades are available in the options list.
 

Configuration

Mid engine, rear wheel drive. Fuel tank centrally mounted in front of drivers compartment to give near perfect 50/50 weight distribution when driver is seated.

Engine

Specialist hand assembled turbocharged 2332cc.
The engine is based around the the same type as the
original Porsche Spyder 550, a boxer configuration four cylinder air-cooled design. This offers low centre of gravity for superior handling, very low weight and extremely good power and torque outputs.
The unit is assembled around a highly strengthened and modified Volkswagen  AS41 super crank case made of the extremely light weight magnesium alloy and built up from specialist components all of which are race proven for reliability and power.  The engine is then fully balanced to ensure free revving smooth power delivery.  To ensure the drivability and smooth power delivery of the normally aspirated engine is retained Holmes motor company has designed an electronically controlled turbo system that is bespoke to the Spyder RS.  To meet the Emission regulations distributorless electronic ignition and electronic fuel injection, utilising individual throttle bodies, are used to enable us to fit catalytic converters all of which is controlled by an Omex Engine management system, rev limit is set at 7000rpm.  This engine is coupled to the extremely reliable and race proven Audi A4 5speed Transaxle.

Suspension

The suspension has been developed using the latest computer aided design programmes. This allows our designer to view in detail exactly what the wheels are doing under all conditions.

 Front-Independent unequal length double wishbone system.  Bespoke uprights.  Aluminium fully adjustable coil over shock absorbers.
 Rear-Independent unequal length double wishbone system.  Bespoke uprights.  Aluminium fully adjustable coil over shock absorbers.

Braking system

 Split dual circuit system.
Front-Large diameter fully vented disc brakes and large two piston callipers.
Rear-Large diameter fully vented disc brakes and large two piston callipers.

Chassis and body construction

The tooling for the body shell was made from an original Porsche Spyder 550 sourced in the united states of America.  All Holmes Spyder 550 body shells are manufactured from these moulds using a unique lamination process.  First the mould is meticulously sprayed with a 3mm layer of gel coat, after being fully hardened high temperature resin is applied and the first layer of standard pre cut fibre glass is put in place.  Once the resin has been sufficiently absorbed into the fibre glass all air and excess resin is removed using our unique method, the laminate is then allowed to fully cure.  The next stage uses a specialist glass of a woven construction in the same way as carbon fibre, this provides excellent rigidity in every direction throughout the panel.  Once again our unique method of expelling air and excess resin is used, the finished item is left in the mould until fully cured.  The advantages gained by our lamination process over other techniques is low weight, high strength, incredible resistance to impact and the misshaping problems so many other manufacturers experience later on in the cars life.
The bespoke replica chassis from the Holmes Spyder 550 is taken and extensively modified to gain extra stiffness and further weight reduction by use of modern design methods and ideas.  This gives the chassis a completely different look and feel to the original Porsche item but is far superior for the application.  The design is constructed from steel tube and coated by a process employed by the aerospace industry.  The completed chassis is bonded and bolted to the fully cured body whilst still in the mould.  By doing this we ensure maximum torsional rigidity and ensure no unnecessary stress is built into the body shell.  The body is finished in a colour of your choice in our new state of the art paint booth.

Interior features

The trim is left to a minimum so the interior of the Spyder RS is painted in body colour for weight reduction whilst complimenting the exposed chassis rails and bulkhead aperture.  Leather bucket seats trimmed in a period style offer all the support needed without cramping your body.  The instrumentation features 3 replica dials with the centrally situated rev counter lightly raised to give a clear view of engine status at all times. 

Performance statistics

0-62mph.                             4.5 seconds
Top speed.                           140mph
Maximum power.                  210bhp @ 6700rpm
Weight.                                600kg
Power to weight ratio.            350bhp per 1000kg