Trident Iceni: A new name in the supercar business, which could just be timed about right. Why? Because it is powered by a V-8 diesel engine, which not only gets it to 60 mph in under 4 seconds, but pushes it on to 200 mph, yet can give 68 mpg at 70 mph!
You get all this, and can run the car on bio-diesel. Is this the supercar of the future? It could well be as there are plenty of sources of bio-diesel that do not affect food sources, while it is also possible to convert coal into a liquid fuel suitable for diesels.
Very fast diesel-engined supercar
Ecological credentials apart, does the Trident Iceni, made by a small firm in Norfolk, England compete with conventional supercars? It certainly appears to do so, with a claimed top speed of 220 mph and very rapid acceleration.
The Iceni is a front-engined supercar, with good lines that look just a little different with upswept rear fenders, and twin bubble rear windows. The front end is fairly ordinary for a supercar, with an oval grille and headlamps behind faired in plastic covers.
Overall, though pleasing lines. At the rear, there are split diffusers, and there is space in the tail for a reasonable amount of luggage – one of the advantages of putting the engine in the front.
[h[GM 6.6 liter diesel
Trident managed to find a suitable diesel in the GM diesel range, and selected a 6.6 liter V-8 to power the Iceni. Originally, the engine produced 375 bhp at 3,700 rpm, with maximum torque of 520 lb ft (705 Nm) at 1,800 rpm, but this has now been increased to 550 bhp at 3,800 rpm, enough to compete with the best. Maximum torque is up to a massive
950 lb ft (1,288 Nm) at 1,800 rpm.
Although the engine is fairly heavy owing to the iron cylinder block, which is still common among diesels, it has common rail injection and four valves per cylinder. Of course, with a rev range of about 1,000 to 4,000 rpm, you drive a turbo diesel in a different way from a gasoline-engined car.
In practice, you would probably use 1,500-4,000 rpm for all-out acceleration, but go only up as far as 3,000 rpm for more everyday driving.
Automatic or sequential eight-speed box
This means you need plenty of gears, and Trident has opted for the new eight-speed automatic. To get good weight distribution, the gearbox is mounted at the rear, just ahead of the axle gears. It is controlled by a pair of paddles on the steering wheel.
Very stiff, stainless steel body-chassis
Another feature of the Iceni that is unusual is the use of stainless steel sheet to produce the frame, which consists of folded and welded sheet. The frame consists of a stiff cockpit module, with deep, reinforced sills, and main side members running forward to carry the engine and front suspension.
There is a substantial tunnel built it, which then curves up between the seats and forward to form an anti-roll reinforcement. The frame extends back just beyond the seats. Trident claims that the frame is very rigid, with a torsional rigidity of 17,000 lbft/degree.
Aluminum wishbones
For good handling, double wishbones are used front and rear, the wishbones being forged aluminum. There is power-assisted rack and pinion steering of course, and the brake discs are 15-inch (385 mm) diameter at the front, and 13-inch (335 mm) at the rear.
The car rides on 20-inch wheels, with 255/35 ZR tires at the front, and 335/30 ZR tires at the rear – the rear tires look rather wide for a front-engine car, but may be needed to handle that massive torque.
200 mph plus and 68 mpg
Without doubt, the performance of the Trident Iceni is very good, but what about the fuel consumption? Well, the company claims 68 mpg(Imperial) or 55 mpg (US) (4 liters/100 km) at a steady 70 mph. Amazing – about what you might expect from a 2-litre diesel hatchback!
Despite the large engine, the Iceni is compact with an overall length of 165 inches (4,200 mm), and is not too heavy at 3,260 lb (1,480 kg), which gives a power-to-weight ratio with the driver aboard of 370 bhp per liter.
Clearly, the Trident Iceni is an excellent supercar for cruising effortlessly across continents, or for general day-to-day use – and doing it very quickly.
