turn up at the world’s motor shows, though most are incomplete and underfunded and never progress beyond the prototype stage.The Artega is the exception. The GT was developed in secret by a respected auto-industry supplier.
It took two years before it was ready, and there was no advance hype. The car emerged fully formed in 2007 at the Geneva show, ready for production.
And in October 2008, production began at a purpose-built plant in Delbrück, Germany.
Clearly, there is a depth of planning and commitment here. The company behind the Artega is Paragon AG, an electronics supplier best known for the stopwatch/lap timers fitted to Porsches. Paragon’s CEO is Klaus Dieter Frers, a prominent historic-car racer with an enviable collection of Porsches. So perhaps it is not surprising that Porsche was the inspiration for his very own sports car. The Artega is a lightweight, two-seat, mid-engined coupe with a transverse-mounted VW/Audi V-6 and DSG six-speed, double-clutch, automated manual transmission.
It is short (157.9 inches), wide (74.0 inches), and low (46.5 inches). The closest equivalent is the Porsche Cayman S, although the Artega is more than a foot shorter. Designed by Henrik Fisker—whose portfolio includes the aluminum-bodied BMW Z8, the Aston Martin V-8 Vantage, and the upcoming Fisker Karma plug-in hybrid— the Artega GT is shapely and well finished. And the company lured Karl-Heinz Kalbfell, the ex–sales supremo at BMW who has since headed Rolls-Royce, Alfa Romeo, and Maserati, to handle sales and marketing.
Paragon’s small engineering team had never done a complete car before, but thanks to the close cooperation of some blue-chip suppliers—Bosch, Brembo, Bilstein, Michelin—it succeeded in producing a car that drives better than any first-time model of our experience. The Artega’s chassis is made largely from aluminum, with carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic body panels. The suspension is a classic unequal-length control-arm layout with coil-over shocks front and rear.
The 3.6-liter engine is the latest direct-injection V-6 found in the Volkswagen Passat CC. It produces 295 horsepower, which, in a car that weighs just 2600 pounds, should provide better-than-Porsche performance: 60 mph arrives in less than five seconds, and there’s a claimed top speed of at least 170 mph. At higher revs, the exhaust sound is terrific—it’s more like an Italian V-8 than a modest German V-6. A less pleasant booming inside the cabin at about 2500 rpm is one of the few things that needs fixing.
This is one of the first cars outside the Volks*wagen Group to use VW’s excellent DSG gearbox, which operates either automatically or manually via paddles behind the steering wheel. The Artega has its own software to dictate the shift program. The smoothness of operation and the compatibility of all the car’s controls are impressive. The steering, with electric power assistance, is direct and accurate yet not deflected by bumps. Body control is tight in fast cornering, yet the ride is settled and unusually comfortable for a sports car. The Artega has a nearly ideal suspension setup for normal road driving.
Although the exterior is voluptuous, the Artega’s interior is almost austere. It is neat, tidy, and spacious but does not look very special. Naturally, Paragon wants to showcase its “cockpit system.” The main analog instrument has a dual function: The rev counter is in the top arc, and the speedo is below it—both needles from the same axis. Electronic displays, which can be selected by the driver, emerge from a black panel that surrounds the center dial.
With a couple of refinement issues addressed, the Artega would compare favorably with sports coupes from the established premium automakers. The price—75,000 euros, or about $100,000—is some 25 percent higher than that of a Cayman S in Germany, but there is an element of exclusivity: In full production, only 500 Artegas are expected to be made a year. The first cars were delivered to customers in April, and the plan is to bring the car to the U.S. by 2011.
Specifications
VEHICLE TYPE: mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive, 2-passenger, 2-door coupe
BASE PRICE (GERMANY): $100,000
ENGINE TYPE: DOHC 24-valve V-6, iron block and aluminum head, direct fuel injection
Displacement: 220 cu in, 3598cc
Power (SAE net): 295 bhp @ 6600 rpm
Torque (SAE net): 258 lb-ft @ 2400 rpm
TRANSMISSION: 6-speed dual-clutch automated manual
DIMENSIONS:
Wheelbase: 96.9 in Length: 157.9 in Width: 74.0 in Height: 46.5 in Curb weight: 2600 lb
PERFORMANCE (C/D EST)
Zero to 60 mph: 4.5 sec
Standing ¼-mile: 12.8 sec
Top speed (drag limited): 170 mph
FUEL ECONOMY (C/D EST):
EPA city driving: 17 mpg
EPA highway driving: 26 mpg
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