2019-04-01 CAR UK (1)

CARMAGAZINE.CO.UK | APRIL 2019

M

aking your supercar out of carbonfibre not only

sounds sexier than metal, it brings a host of benefits,

too. But taking the composite path isn’t without

challenges. To find out more, and to learn which technical

innovations are coming next, CAR sat down with two of car-

bonfibre’s biggest proponents: Christian von Koenigsegg, CEO

of Koenigsegg, and McLaren’s carbon guru Claudio Santoni.

Claudio Santoni: ‘When McLaren presented the MonoCell

[carbonfibre monocoque] in 2009 for the 12C supercar, people

said it was impossible, let alone that we’d be able to produc-

tionise the design. Scaling up manufacturing and eliminating

excessive labour have been the long-term challenges.’

Christian Von Koenigsegg: ‘From Koenigsegg’s first exper-

iments in 1995, it was clear that if you want to make a car as light

and strong as possible, carbonfibre is the answer, especially

if cost isn’t the main concern. Our volumes are also very low.’

CS: ‘McLaren chose carbonfibre for the same reasons: because

it has an excellent ratio of stiffness to weight [typically 25 per

cent lighter and stiffer than aluminium, according to McLaren].

They are also very crashworthy, especially our monocoques

that eliminate the joins that can introduce weakness.

‘Carbonfibre also gives us more scope to adapt the structural

design than metal, and dimensionally it’s extremely accurate –

that’s important, because everything bolts to the monocoque.’

CvK: ‘There were some issues that Koenigsegg took into

consideration, like carbonfibre preferring to take load in

tension rather than compression. If you use lots of layers

it’s not really an issue. Carbonfibre also has limitations

around heat, particularly if you need it to look good.

Our solution has been to apply gold-leaf into pre-preg

carbon [carbon combined with epoxy resin, ready to lay into an

open mould]. It’s reflective and very attractive, and you can use

it in hot areas.’

CS: ‘The challenge now is taking the unique ability of carbon-

fibre and spreading it across the rest of the car [Koenigsegg and

top-end McLarens use carbon bodywork, but not the Sports

Series cars]. In future we could see our entry-level Sports Series

‘Carbonfibre is the answer’

Carbon tubs promise stiffness with low weight. Supercar maker Christian von

Koenigsegg and McLaren’s Claudio Santoni discuss the wonder material’s future

Tech

30

Meeting
of minds

CHRISTIAN

VON

KOENIGSEGG

Koenigsegg’s

CEO and technical

driving force CLAUDIO SANTONI

Technical director

of McLaren’s

Composites

Technology

Centre