Nilu27, the hypercar brand recently founded by celebrated sports car designer Sasha Selipanov, is thrilled to showcase its first vehicle: the self-titled NILU hypercar. Following a number of social media teasers, which created a stir among the sports car community, the car can finally be revealed in its entirety.

The NILU hypercar challenges traditional automotive industry trends. By avoiding electrification, digitalization, and other technological aids, NILU will deliver a raw, unfiltered, uncensored driving experience. 

Taking inspiration from sources such as ’60s F1 and Le Mans racers, classic Italian design houses, the Bauhaus “form follows function” philosophy, old school American muscle, drift cars, mathematics, and avant garde metal music, NILU’s no-nonsense design is as eclectic as it is original. 

Sasha’s goal was to create a car with an “inevitable” design: fresh and yet somehow familiar. The resulting NILU exterior, with its tight cross sections and sinuous curves, is functional, lean and aerodynamic. For maximum contrast, it juxtaposes clean sculptural surfaces with its mechanical, exposed and intricately detailed engine bay. True to Bauhaus philosophy, NILU eschews superfluous styling features to celebrate essential functional beauty. 

The NILU chassis features a bespoke carbon fiber monocoque with lightweight aluminum-alloy tubular subframes. In contrast to “fashionable” composite subframes, the designer deliberately chose a tubular approach to improve access to the drivetrain components while effortlessly facilitating heat extraction and celebrating the mechanical aesthetic. 

The NILU cabin was designed to provide perfect viewing angles with ideal ergonomics and safety. The designer was able to achieve an incredibly low roofline and compact cabin dimensions without sacrificing comfort. NILU seats two adults in a traditional side-by-side layout with best-in-class ingress and egress made possible by substantial gullwing doors, low sill heights, and fixed, sunken seats, which do not obstruct the door apertures with their side bolsters.

The NILU human/machine interface is all about manual, analog controls, inputs and feedback. The only screen is the rear view camera/mirror, which addresses the traditional weakness of mid-engined sports cars: the lack of rearward visibility. 

The steering wheel’s compact size and perfectly round shape allows for incredibly detailed steering feel and input precision. The wheel is void of switches, buttons and toggles; a testament to the belief that performance driving requires full concentration with zero distractions. Gone are the driving modes, settings and options: NILU controls are both primary and intuitive. 

For this reason, an open-gate, seven-speed manual transmission celebrates raw, analog driving while adding a safety element with its reverse gear lock-out. Steering wheel, pedal box, headrest, door mirrors and other adjustments are deliberately manual, accessed by gratifying manual levers and switches. The tactile, haptic feedback from cold-touch, machined billet controls was deemed both more engaging and, crucially, safer than navigating through screen menus. 

PRODUCTION
The NILU hypercar is Sasha’s vision in its purest form; a vision he’s been perfecting since 2006. It will initially be available in an extremely limited run with production capped at 15 units.

“My path in the industry has never been about following rules and sticking to norms. I was never afraid to follow my intuition or chase my dreams. Breaking conventions is simply a byproduct. The same is true for NILU  – a hypercar that discards current trends and conventions in pursuit of an elevated automotive experience.

“Unveiling NILU to the world is a dream come true; a moment so profound it is hard to express in words. The vision was the result of a decades-long search, sleepless nights, years of overthinking and overanalyzing. I was fortunate to learn from and contribute to the industry’s best; now my team and I are thrilled to put all this vision and knowledge into action.”

– Sasha Selipanov, NILU co-founder and designer

V12 ENGINE
Nilu27 has partnered with Hartley Engines in New Zealand to produce one of the most powerful and visually striking naturally aspirated engines in the world. The NILU engine bay is fully exposed, showcasing the beautiful 6.5-liter, 80-degree V12. 

As NILU will not rely on electrification, it aims to be the world’s most powerful, naturally aspirated hypercar. To achieve this, the V12 will deliver more than 1000 horsepower. And while its large bore and short stroke will make it rev like an electric motor, the even-fire engine will provide the driver with the perfect amount of tactile vibration. 

The Hartley V12 has a refined combustion area, high-flow ports, and performance-style valve geometry: something OEMs typically cannot accommodate in their compact platforms. The engine also features 12 large, individual throttle bodies for instant throttle response. 

Another key differentiator for the NILU V12 is its unique “Hot V.” In this configuration, the conventional exhaust and intake positions are swapped around. The setup delivers key advantages when it comes to packaging, heat extraction, and aesthetics. And it has allowed the stunning “snakepit” 12-into-1 exhaust headers to serve as a unique highlight of the exterior design. 

The entire exhaust system was 3D-printed in Inconel, allowing the complex design to be realized; another unique feature when you consider its dimensions.

Mated to the seven-speed CIMA manual transmission, and housed in the ceramic-coated aluminum-alloy subframe, the NILU V12 represents functional beauty at its finest.

“We’ve been quietly working on the design and layout of our own engine for the last few years, taking inspiration from late ’80s and early ’90s Formula 1 cars. We strove for the kind of engineering that’s raw, endearing, emotional, and sometimes a little crazy. 

“With Sasha’s wishlist for NILU, we finally found the perfect project to dedicate our time and were able to adapt our development into his Hot V configuration, designing the engine around his chassis layout.

“Make no mistake; this is not an OEM engine from another manufacturer converted to the Hot V; this is a bespoke, large bore, short stroke monster. It’s got aggressive cams, aggressive port flow, lightweight components and exotic materials. We want to get a cold sweat every time the V12 starts and revs. It’s fair to say, we’re very excited!”

– Nelson Hartley, founder and CEO of Hartley Engines

DYNAMICS
The NILU hypercar employs a double wishbone, pushrod suspension, with its extremely long wishbones visible from the rear; the length contributing to the exceptionally precise and compliant handling characteristics. 

A set of Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 R tires were fitted, specified at 265/35 R20 front and 325/30 R21 rear. They have been mounted to 10×20” and 13×21” Nilu27 centerlock wheels, which were designed in-house with intricate lightweight detailing to reduce the unsprung weight. The wheels are produced by AppTech in Italy.

Carbon-ceramic braking equipment was sourced from Brembo. The Italian company’s GT | BM calipers are fitted front and rear in a custom white finish. The car also has Brembo’s highest performance CCM-R Plus rotors, which deliver outstanding performance and fade resistance.

THE FUTURE
The initial NILU prototype vehicles and first batch of customer cars will be assembled by Aria Group in Irvine, CA, allowing Nilu27 to ramp-up its own facilities overseas.

Nilu27 is simultaneously developing a street homologated version. This variant will be limited to 54 units, four of which will be unique, one-off designs.

“We’ve been fascinated by the strong reaction to our social media teasers alone. While the world is moving towards electrification, and for very good reason, we firmly believe the timelessness of these cars will not only keep them relevant but they will continue to find a place in the collections of passionate car lovers.”

– Inna Selipanov, NILU co-founder and COO

Nilu27 is proud to have the support of industry leaders such as Aerotak, AppTech, Aria Group, Brembo, CIMA, Hartley Engines, Michelin, and Schroth. 

The car will be unveiled to a select VIP and media group at a private Los Angeles event on August 8. Its public debut will follow on August 15 on the ramp at Pebble Beach in Monterey, California, before appearing on the Concept Lawn at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance on August 18.

The NILU hypercar will also debut in CSR Racing 2; the hyper-real mobile racing game from Zynga’s NaturalMotion. Players can experience the high-octane performance and stunning in-game design this November.