This is the 2001 Volkswagen W12 Nardó by Italdesign, initially released to the public during the 2001 Tokyo Motor Show. Former VW CEO Ferdinand Piëch collaborated with Giorgetto Giugiaro and his design company, Italdesign, to showcase a brand new W12 engine. In order to achieve this, a new, and wild supercar concept that we now know as the W12, was developed and the first iteration was shown during the 1997 Tokyo Motor Show. The W12 ‘Syncro’ was the first in a series of three total variations of the W12 created by Volkswagen and ItalDesign to showcase this new engine. The Volkswagen W12 can be found in a number of racing video games such as Gran Turismo, Asphalt 8, Project Gotham Racing 3, GTI Racing, World Racing 2 and the also the Test Drive series. After the initial introduction of the yellow W12 Syncro, Volkswagen followed up in 1998 with a Roadster variant of the W12, finished in a beautiful shade of red paint, and boasting the same 5.6-litre W12 engine producing 309 kW (420 PS; 414 bhp) with Syncro four-wheel drive. Following this, in 2001, Volkswagen introduced this car shown here, their most powerful, and visceral iteration of the W12, known as the W12 Nardò, which was finished in bright orange, and was named after the high speed test track known as The Nardò Ring. This example also featured a 12-cylinder engine, but this time, producing a whopping 591 horsepower. In February of 2002, a modified W12 Nardó managed to take the world record for all speed classes over 24 hours over the Nardò Ring at Lecce, where the car covered a distance of 7,740.576 kilometres (4,809.8 mi) at an average speed of 322.891 km/h (200.6 mph). Five total examples of the W12 across all variations are believed to have been created, but this orange example is truly one-of-a-kind.
How many made? Five total Volkswagen W12 concepts are believed to have been created across all variants.
Engine: 6.0 L Volkswagen Group W12
Debut: 2001 Tokyo Motor Show
Top speed: around 221.8mph
0-60mph: 3.5 seconds
Photo credit: @lukebinias
Research: @rarecarsonly