SIN CARS Introduces LS7-Powered R1 550 Supercar at Geneva Auto Show

Race-inspired Bulgarian two-seater coaxes supercar performance from our favorite V8.

At the Geneva Motor Show earlier in March, SIN CARS unveiled a new iteration of its LS-powered R1 supercars, the R1 550. This newest SIN gets its power from a 550-horsepower version of the LS7, which is an upgrade from the “base” R1’s LS3 V8. Taking cues from the racing versions of the car, the road-going R1 weighs in at around 2,750 pounds. With the LS7, that should put the SIN at 60 mph in about 3.5 seconds.

Straight line acceleration, however, is not the R1’s real forte. SIN creator Rosen Daskalov, a Bulgarian engineer who founded the company in England in 2012, penned the car with sports car racing in mind. The road and race car versions both feature the same FIA-homologated tubeframe design, although the road car lacks the roll cage. The road car carries a number of race car features with it, however, including pushrod, double wishbone suspension, adjustable dampers, and big front brakes. The road car also gets an active rear wing, which is replaced by a larger fixed wing for FIA-sanctioned racing.

Also in common with the racing version is the MoTec engine management and dashboard for all three engine options: LS3, LS7, or LS9. Yeah, you read that right; you can order up a SIN road car (at least in the United Kingdom) with a 650-horsepower LS9. The LS7 was on the old R1’s options sheet, but the newly revealed RS1 550 comes with a dry-sump LS7 standard along with some aerodynamic and interior updates. Regardless of the engine choice, the base transmission allows the driver to row the gears through a gated-shifter, six-speed manual transmission. An optional paddle-shifted sequential gearbox is on the order sheet, as well.

Unfortunately, the SIN R1 is not yet sold for the road in the United States, although official dealer Racers Edge Motorsports plan to introduce the SIN road car eventually. Currently, you can buy a race-car (GT4) or track-day version (VTX) version of the R1 stateside from Racers Edge.

The Florida-based Racers Edge team currently campaign a pair of the Sin R1 race cars, which are built to FIA GT4 specifications. In addition to a race-prepped 515-horsepower LS3 with a dry-sump system, the R1 GT4 gets a six-speed Albins sequential gearbox with paddle shifting, adjustable limited-slip differential, 15-inch ABS disc brakes with six-piston calipers on all corners, twin master cylinders with adjustable bias, and air jacks.

The two Sin R1 GT4s run in Pirelli World Challenge’s GTS class, where they race against GT4 versions of the Porsche Cayman, Chevy Camaro, KTM X-Bow, Aston Martin Vantage, and Ginetta G55. In their 2016 debut season, the R1s nabbed five race wins despite substantial restrictors placed on the LS3 to meet World Challenge’s balance of performance envelope. 

The track-day R1 VTX gets a very similar setup to the GT4, but instead of the race-prepped LS3, the base option is a standard 430-horsepower version of the LS3. It gets smaller rear dbrakes (14-inch discs with four-piston calipers) with no standard ABS system, but adds a second seat for track-day instruction. Everything on the VTX, however, can be upgraded to GT4-specs.

The cars’ original pieces, like the chassis, are all manufactured in Bulgaria with the powerplants and assorted other parts assembled in the United Kingdom, Germany, or United States. The models sold in the United States currently are priced starting at $179,000 for the VTX and $195,000 for the GT4.

The SIN CARS R1 road cars are listed in Europe at €179,900 for the LS3, €189,900 for the LS7, and €199,900 for the LS9. We found no pricing information for the updated R1 550, but we’d expect it to be around that €179,900 to €199,900 price range.