Tata Racemo: All you need to know

At the Geneva motor show 2017, Tata took the wraps off of its first home-grown mid-engined sportscar, the Racemo. Developed under the carmaker’s new Tamo sub-brand, the Racemo is designed by the company’s design studio in Turin, Italy, and features race-car-inspired styling derived from Tata’s new Impact design language.

We take a look at some of the interesting facts about the Racemo.

1.       Not Tata’s first sportscar

The Racemo is far from Tata’s first sportscar. The automaker had previously showcased an Aria roadster concept at the Geneva motor show 2000 with a coupe version debuting in the following year. The Racemo, however, unlike the Aria, which later went on sale in India as a premium MPV is expected to make its way to showrooms as early as the end of this financial year.

2.       Built on a patented multi-material sandwich structure coined ‘MOFlex’

The Racemo is built on a patented multi-material sandwich structure which Tata has coined as MOFlex. The MOFlex sandwich structure consists of two composite skins with foam filling injected in-between to form an incredibly stiff and light panel. This production method also allows faster readiness for new vehicles. But the big advantage is that it gives great freedom in design and is extremely cost-effective for low volumes. This allows Tata to produce exciting-looking cars at an affordable price. The automaker also claims that it’s the first company to use this technology in the passenger car market.

3.       Originally it wasn’t meant for production

An interesting fact about the Racemo is that it was originally never meant to see the light of day as a physical creation. Tata had commissioned its design team in Turin to develop a car for digital racing platforms, though the team went ahead and develop a physical model which was then shown to the company’s top management.

4.       Head-turning design

Tata design team has gone to town with the Racemo’s styling. It’s not a clean design like most of Tata’s passenger cars, and instead is a fussy interplay of multiple surfaces and extreme shapes aimed at making heads turn and jaws drop. The wide front grille has a hint of the Tata family look, while the complex-looking rear, with its split and sculpted flying buttresses, seems to have been inspired by the BMW i8. The butterfly doors also add greatly to the wow factor.

5.       Cabin straight out of a video game

The Racemo’s cabin, with three high-res screens, looks straight out of a video game. The button-festooned steering wheel has large, bright red paddle shifters behind them and the red accents are carried over to the switchgear, the pull straps for the door and the massive air con vents which look like the exhaust of a fighter jet.