Car buyers in the UAE seeking an alternative to the usual dune-bashing vehicles such as the Nissan Patrol now have the opportunity to purchase what is said to be “the world’s first all-terrain hypercar”.
The Prodrive Hunter, a limited edition manufactured in the UK, is as adept on the regular roads as it is in the desert, mixing comfort and style with off-road performance.
All of that excitement does not come cheap — it is priced at £1.25 million ($1.58m) plus local taxes.
Prodrive has made the UAE “a priority market”, based on the abundance of discerning luxury car collectors in the country, and the combination of classic desert terrain and world-class road systems, it said.
“The UAE has vast expanses of breathtaking desert terrain still to be explored, beyond the reach of asphalt roads,” said Prodrive chairman David Richards.
“The Hunter opens up these regions with a performance and capability way beyond that offered previously by any all-terrain vehicle.
“At the same time, it has all the comforts of a luxury road car, making it a pleasure to drive on the UAE’s superb network of roads and highways, and to be shown off in a modern city environment.”
The four-wheel drive car comes with 600 brake horse power and is based on the competition car driven by rally legend Sebastien Loeb, but with a 50 per cent increase in power.
Prodrive said it will be capable of accelerating from zero to 100 kilometres an hour in less than four seconds, with a top speed of about 300kph.
The Hunter made its first public appearance two months ago in Bahrain, to coincide with the Formula One Grand Prix.
“It will be shipped to the UAE in due course to give potential customers the chance to drive the car, and confirm their personal specification for production vehicles to be delivered later this year,” Prodrive said.
